dpkimmel2001
Team Owner
Is to reunite with Smoke at SHR as competition director.
From here.
From here.
Despite winning the 2011 Sprint Cup championship, Tony Stewart is not resting. He instead continues to add key personnel to Stewart Haas Racing.
Greg Zipadelli, the crew chief who paired with Stewart to win the 2002 and 2005 series championships, will reunite with his former driver at SHR in 2012 as the organization's competition director, multiple industry sources told ESPN.com Friday.
The team had been without a competition director since it released Bobby Hutchens in June. Zipadelli, sources said, was granted a release from his contract with Joe Gibbs Racing and will move immediately to SHR.
At Stewart Haas Racing, Zipadelli will oversee building Danica Patrick's team as she debuts in the Sprint Cup Series on a part-time basis in 2012, though it is unknown at this time who will serve as her crew chief, sources said.
Neither SHR nor JGR officials immediately returned requests for comment Friday morning.
Two weeks ago it was announced that Steve Addington will serve as Stewart's crew chief next season, while Darian Grubb, who directed Stewart's team to the 2011 Sprint Cup title, will move to JGR as Denny Hamlin's crew chief.
Zipadelli had been the crew chief of the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 20 car since Stewart's rookie year in 1999.