Elledge joins Red Bull Racing

[Schwartz Fan]

Elledge joins Red Bull Racing as Allmendinger's crew chief
By SceneDaily Staff
Wednesday, July 09, 2008


Red Bull Racing officials announced Wednesday that Jimmy Elledge will take over as crew chief for the team’s No. 84 Toyota driven by AJ Allmendinger, effective this weekend at Chicagoland Speedway.

Elledge joins Red Bull from Chip Ganassi Racing, where he served as crew chief for Juan Pablo Montoya and Reed Sorenson this season.

“Jimmy is a successful and very well-known crew chief in the NASCAR garage,” Red Bull Racing Vice President and General Manager Jay Frye said in a news release. “He’ll be able to provide the experience and leadership for AJ and the No. 84 team to be competitive on a weekly basis.”

Elledge has one Cup series victory as a crew chief, leading Bobby Hamilton to victory lane at Talladega in 2001. Elledge replaces Ricky Viers, who will remain with Red Bull, a team spokesperson said.

“Of all the crew chiefs in the Cup garage, Jimmy is one of the only ones I’ve spoken to and had a chance to get to know,” Allmendinger said. “When I drove a few Nationwide races at Ganassi last year, Jimmy was always helpful. He’s a guy with a lot of crew chief experience and has a good knowledge of these race cars, so I’m looking forward to turning this season around together.”

Allmendinger failed to qualify for the first three Sprint Cup races of 2008, his second season in the series. He was temporarily replaced by Mike Skinner for five races and then qualified for the last 10 events. His best finish has been a 12th at Pocono.

Allmendinger called Viers “one of the most organized, hardest working guys” that he has ever worked with.

“We were both put in a tough situation here, fighting an uphill battle to get into the top 35 [in owner points],” Allmendinger said. “We never had a chance to get our feet on the ground. Ricky’s a great guy. and in a different situation, he would have flourished. He’s a very close friend of mine, and we fought through a lot together. You never want to see a friend go through a difficult time.”

The No. 84 team is 37th in the owners standings, 200 points out of 35th.


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