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Danica Patrick, mired in 11th in the Nationwide points, in her first full year will be getting a new crew chief, likely Ryan Pemberton.
On Monday afternoon Junior Motorsports released Tony Eury, Jr. as crew chief of Patrick's Number 7 Chevrolet.
Dale Earnhardt Jr., one of the owners of JR Motorsports, along with his sister Kelley and Rick Hendrick said in a statement “Unfortunately, Tony Jr. is no longer with the company,” he said. “I had hoped he would be here for a long time, but as we've discussed the direction of JR Motorsports moving forward, it was clear our differences in ideas were too vast to overcome.
I love him like a brother and you'll never hear me say a bad thing about him. I know he'll have much success in anything he does going forward. As for our No. 7 team, no decision has been made on who will crew chief that team this weekend at Kentucky Speedway. We will discuss our options and make a decision very soon.”
Tony Eury Sr. had been released as the team's competition director about 11 days ago. And more recently Pemberton, recently with Red Bull Racing, was hired by JR which leads to the likelihood that the veteran Sprint Cup level crew chief would become Patrick's crew chief.
Ironically Eury Jr. still has a part-ownership in JR Motorsports which makes his release as the team's spotlight driver very curious. He told Fox Sports “They're trying to fix the competition of the cars," Eury said. “They thought they could do better without me there. They hired Ryan and Ryan's their guy.”
About his ownership position he said “we're still in discussions about that,” Eury Jr. said.
Last year Patrick drove a part-time schedule while finishing her IndyCar commitment to Andretti Autosport. Her best finish this year was 8th at Texas Motor Speedway and she's crashed in four races. Next year she's going to a full-time Sprint Cup schedule with Stewart-Haas Racing.
On Monday afternoon Junior Motorsports released Tony Eury, Jr. as crew chief of Patrick's Number 7 Chevrolet.
Dale Earnhardt Jr., one of the owners of JR Motorsports, along with his sister Kelley and Rick Hendrick said in a statement “Unfortunately, Tony Jr. is no longer with the company,” he said. “I had hoped he would be here for a long time, but as we've discussed the direction of JR Motorsports moving forward, it was clear our differences in ideas were too vast to overcome.
I love him like a brother and you'll never hear me say a bad thing about him. I know he'll have much success in anything he does going forward. As for our No. 7 team, no decision has been made on who will crew chief that team this weekend at Kentucky Speedway. We will discuss our options and make a decision very soon.”
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| Danica Patrick and Tony Eury Jr. (Photo: NASCAR) |
Tony Eury Sr. had been released as the team's competition director about 11 days ago. And more recently Pemberton, recently with Red Bull Racing, was hired by JR which leads to the likelihood that the veteran Sprint Cup level crew chief would become Patrick's crew chief.
Ironically Eury Jr. still has a part-ownership in JR Motorsports which makes his release as the team's spotlight driver very curious. He told Fox Sports “They're trying to fix the competition of the cars," Eury said. “They thought they could do better without me there. They hired Ryan and Ryan's their guy.”
About his ownership position he said “we're still in discussions about that,” Eury Jr. said.
Last year Patrick drove a part-time schedule while finishing her IndyCar commitment to Andretti Autosport. Her best finish this year was 8th at Texas Motor Speedway and she's crashed in four races. Next year she's going to a full-time Sprint Cup schedule with Stewart-Haas Racing.