Change was needed and to had to be done, plain and simple. For Rick Hendrick and three of this sports biggest star, it was only a matter of when after Jeff Gordon, Mark martin and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. went winless in 2010.
The champagne hadn’t dried and less than 48 hours after celebrating championship number five, Hendrick made crew chief swap for Gordon, Martin and Earnhardt.
Gordon will now work with Alan Gustafson, Earnhardt will work with Steve LeTarte and Martin will work with Lance McGrew.
Hendrick in a teleconference on Wednesday said “After '09 being 1-2-3 in points. We made adjustments and we got complacent. Other teams got stronger and stronger."
The move broke Tuesday night but the switch was in talks following Texas. Drivers, crew chiefs, engineers sat down and discussed how as an organization they could be better.
In the end the decision came down to Hendrick and he acknowledged there really was no vote for the move.
"It's not one of those things you can vote on. You have to pull the trigger."
Pull the trigger they did. The new crew chief and driver match up is more about personality and less about the equipment.
While LeTarte is less technical in his changes he is as Hendrick said “Of all the crew chiefs we have, Steve is the more people person."
Which for Earnhardt could be exactly what he needs, Letarte doesn’t scream back or get heated very easily.
Earnhardt, who missed the Chase for the second consecutive year in 2010 and has gone winless the last two seasons, was in need of a change.
“Sometimes gets to point that frustration sets in and it just doesn't work. It wasn't working with Lance and Dale.”
With Martin leaving at the end of 2011 and Kasey Kahne coming in 2012, this is a lame duck year for Martin.
Don’t tell Hendrick that or that team; he believes with these changes that Martin and his team could win the title.
When asked if Martin was getting the short end of the stick, Hendrick said “Mark's not getting the short end of the stick. He's gonna get all the stick he wants.”
Gordon and Martin working together could be beneficial for both drivers next season. For Gordon, his second winless season in three years, prompted fans to want changes.
Gordon who hasn’t won a title since 2001, according to Hendrick was a team player.
“Jeff is a team player and has tremendous respect for Alan. He wants to do whatever's necessary to give him an opp to win.”
Some have questioned whether or not Gordon wants to win as badly as he did years ago. Gordon has said throughout 2010 that he has never been hungrier to win races and a title.
“Jeff Gordon is just as hungry as he was when he won the four championships.”
It wasn’t just the crew chiefs that changed, Hendrick promised that pit crews will be reevaluated. Pit road had been a struggle for Johnson this season, so much so that initiated the pit crew swap mid race at Texas.
No stone seems to be going unturned this off season for HMS. “Right now we're looking at each team individually & build/improve what we had. They'll be some new faces in the mix at Daytona."
HMS lacked speed at times in 2010 and issues on pit road didn’t help them very much. Clearly the change had to be made now so new teams can begin to work with each other.
Success in this sport comes with good relationships with the team.Change is a good thing and exactly what is needed and according to Hendrick the energy level has already changed.
"After championship, we decided this move would make all 4 teams better. Everyone is pumped, excited. Have new energy level.”
The true barometer will come in 2011 if all three of these drivers start winning and contending for the title.
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