THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, July 6, 1994 TAG: 9407060573
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BOB ZELLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: GREENSBORO LENGTH: Long : 107 lines
In midseason shakeups on NASCAR Winston Cup teams, car owner Jack Roush welcomed back old hand Robin Pemberton, while Darrell Waltrip fired his crew chief and engine builder, saying he'd ``floundered in mediocrity'' long enough.
Roush announced Tuesday that Pemberton, 37, would become crew chief for Ted Musgrave's No. 16 Family Channel Ford Thunderbird, replacing Howard Comstock, who will head Roush's research and development effort.
``I looked at a lot of different things and, when it was all said and done, this seemed to be the best total picture for me,'' Pemberton said in a telephone interview Tuesday during his first day of work back at the Roush shops in Liberty, N.C.
Pemberton left Roush at the end of 1991 to become Kyle Petty's crew chief. He worked there, winning three races with Petty before he was fired by car owner Felix Sabates on Memorial Day.
Pemberton had hoped to have some equity in his new team. But in the end, he opted for the familiar surroundings of the Roush operation, one of the best-financed and best-equipped in the sport.
``I enjoy the thought that you'll never go lacking for anything when it comes to working on race cars,'' Pemberton said. ``If you race for a living, that's what you look to do.''
``When I left (Roush), I left under good terms,'' Pemberton said. ``I've got a lot of friends here, and Jack and I have always continued to get along. He called the day (the firing) happened and said he was looking for somebody for a different situation. But that was five or six weeks ago, and in the course of that time he has moved some other people around to fill other voids.''
Roush said in a telephone interview that he initially was going to make Pemberton the research and development manager. But as a crew chief, Roush said, ``he has specific skills I think will be of great value right now.''
``When I was deciding who would do which job, it felt like I shouldn't try to force it in the other direction,'' Roush said. ``There's nobody that I hire that I won't accept an assurance that they'll do whatever we need for them to do. Howard liked very much being (Musgrave's) crew chief, but he's willing to do whatever I wanted him to do.''
Comstock, who will retain his administrative duties, will fill the R&D position that became vacant last December, when Ken Glenn left to become Derrike Cope's crew chief.
Waltrip, meanwhile, cleaned house on July 4 - a work day at his shop in Concord, N.C.
Dodson, 41, was in his second season as Waltrip's top mechanic. LaRosa, 50, builder of engines for three Winston Cup championship teams with Dale Earnhardt, had joined Waltrip in 1992.
After firing the pair, Waltrip headed to New England for a few days of vacation before this weekend's Slick 50 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway. He could not be reached for comment, but he said in a statement:
``Making changes is the hardest part of being a car owner. Friendships develop and it's hard to make changes, especially at the top. But this team has floundered in mediocrity for over a year and in order to move forward, we needed a breath of fresh air.''
Waltrip didn't say where the fresh air is coming from, because he has no immediate plans to replace Dodson or LaRosa. He said the team had enough depth to get along without them.
He said the leadership will be provided by general manager Clyde Booth and veteran chassis specialist Pete Peterson, who will act as crew chief on race day. Claude Queen, who has served as the engine tuner at the track, will oversee Waltrip's engine department.
MIDSEASON RUDD REPORT: He hasn't threatened for a win yet, but Ricky Rudd and his new team have posted a remarkable record of consistency for an outfit that started from scratch last year.
Rudd is seventh in Winston Cup points, with six top-10 finishes in 15 starts. More importantly, when he doesn't finish in the top 10, he usually finishes. His only really bad race was at Bristol, where he crashed and was 32nd. His best finish was fourth at Michigan last month.
``I feel like we're on schedule or a little ahead of schedule,'' Rudd said last weekend at Daytona. ``Right now, we have the potential to be 15th in points at the end of the season or go all the way to third.''
As a new owner, one of Rudd's biggest challenges has been getting enough race cars built for the season. And that has taken some of the time a team normally would spend practicing or refining what it already has.
Rudd has won at least one race a year since 1983, but he is not surprised he hasn't won yet this year.
``I don't think we could even seriously think of winning in the first half of the year,'' he said. ``We feel like three-quarters of the way through this season we'll have our best chance to win a race.''
STILL OUT: The head injury Chuck Bown sustained in a crash at Pocono will keep him out of Sunday's Slick 50 300.
Bown had a trial run at a Winston West race in Portland, Ore., on Sunday, but experienced the same double vision he had when practicing his Winston Cup car June 19 before the race at Michigan International Speedway. Bown also is recovering from a broken right wrist and left ankle from his June 12 crash at Pocono.
ARCA driver Tim Steele will be in the car again at New Hampshire, said Carolyn Carrier, spokeswoman for car owner Bobby Allison.
SOUTH BOSTON TEST: Kenny Wallace, currently fourth in Grand National series points, today will test on the repaved and enlarged 0.4-mile oval at South Boston (Va.) Speedway, which will host the Ford Credit 300 on July 16. It will be the first Grand National race at South Boston in three years.
Wallace, driver of the Filbert Martocci-owned Ford Thunderbird, is the first Grand National driver to test the new surface. Tommy Ellis and Larry Pearson are scheduled to test at the track Thursday. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Barry Dodson, in his second season as Darrell Waltrip's crew chief,
got his walking papers on the Fourth of July.
by CNB