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One of Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s most notable moves as the owner of JR Motorsports was hiring Tony Eury Sr. as competition director and crew chief.
Not only is Eury Sr. his uncle, but Earnhardt Jr. certainly wasn’t going to make the same mistake twice.
Asked recently what he felt were the biggest mistakes of his career, Earnhardt Jr. pointed to Eury Sr. being replaced by Pete Rondeau as his crew chief during the 2004-2005 offseason at Dale Earnhardt Inc.
Eury Sr. and Earnhardt Jr. had combined for 15 victories in his first five Cup seasons. Eury Sr. also had been the crew chief for both of Earnhardt Jr.’s championship seasons in what was then called the Busch Series.
But after a six-win season in 2004, DEI officials wanted to move Eury Sr. into a management role and Earnhardt Jr. gave the move his blessing.
“I was just ignorant, man, just naïve,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “I didn’t realize what I had. I had a great team around me, had a great leader. I thought I knew more than everybody else around me and I didn’t.”
Rondeau didn’t last a full season with Earnhardt Jr., and Steve Hmiel took the role on an interim basis (and won a race) before Tony Eury Jr. took over as crew chief.
Earnhardt Jr. worked with Eury Jr. for two years at DEI and then a little more than a year at Hendrick Motorsports. Eury Jr., who won two races with Earnhardt Jr., is now a co-owner and crew chief at JR Motorsports.
How did Eury Sr. get replaced as his crew chief? Earnhardt Jr. just shakes his head.
“We had won a lot of races and did really well,” said Earnhardt Jr. “I think that year we had won six races. So for whatever reason, we split up and I feel like I had a lot of responsibility in that decision and I regret doing that because he was good.”
While he possibly could blame the people making the decisions – his stepmother, Teresa, owned the team and Ty Norris was running the operations – Earnhardt Jr. wouldn’t go down that road.
“I was in the meetings with the other people at DEI and talked myself into being in favor of it in one way or another over the months that we went over this,” said Earnhardt Jr., who hired Eury Sr. at JRM in July 2007.
“I felt like that definitely was a mistake. I’m not putting it on anybody’s shoulders. I’m taking my responsibility for part of that decision.”
From:http://www.scenedaily.com/news/arti...y_Eury_Sr_leave_as_his_crew_chief_at_DEI.html
Not only is Eury Sr. his uncle, but Earnhardt Jr. certainly wasn’t going to make the same mistake twice.
Asked recently what he felt were the biggest mistakes of his career, Earnhardt Jr. pointed to Eury Sr. being replaced by Pete Rondeau as his crew chief during the 2004-2005 offseason at Dale Earnhardt Inc.
Eury Sr. and Earnhardt Jr. had combined for 15 victories in his first five Cup seasons. Eury Sr. also had been the crew chief for both of Earnhardt Jr.’s championship seasons in what was then called the Busch Series.
But after a six-win season in 2004, DEI officials wanted to move Eury Sr. into a management role and Earnhardt Jr. gave the move his blessing.
“I was just ignorant, man, just naïve,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “I didn’t realize what I had. I had a great team around me, had a great leader. I thought I knew more than everybody else around me and I didn’t.”
Rondeau didn’t last a full season with Earnhardt Jr., and Steve Hmiel took the role on an interim basis (and won a race) before Tony Eury Jr. took over as crew chief.
Earnhardt Jr. worked with Eury Jr. for two years at DEI and then a little more than a year at Hendrick Motorsports. Eury Jr., who won two races with Earnhardt Jr., is now a co-owner and crew chief at JR Motorsports.
How did Eury Sr. get replaced as his crew chief? Earnhardt Jr. just shakes his head.
“We had won a lot of races and did really well,” said Earnhardt Jr. “I think that year we had won six races. So for whatever reason, we split up and I feel like I had a lot of responsibility in that decision and I regret doing that because he was good.”
While he possibly could blame the people making the decisions – his stepmother, Teresa, owned the team and Ty Norris was running the operations – Earnhardt Jr. wouldn’t go down that road.
“I was in the meetings with the other people at DEI and talked myself into being in favor of it in one way or another over the months that we went over this,” said Earnhardt Jr., who hired Eury Sr. at JRM in July 2007.
“I felt like that definitely was a mistake. I’m not putting it on anybody’s shoulders. I’m taking my responsibility for part of that decision.”
From:http://www.scenedaily.com/news/arti...y_Eury_Sr_leave_as_his_crew_chief_at_DEI.html
