NASCAR: Montoya Not A Title Contender After Richmond Slip
May 07, 2008
Almost a month after a crew chief swap at Chip Ganassi Racing put Jimmy Elledge in charge of Juan Pablo Montoya’s team, the two are finally getting to know each other.
The two didn’t have a real chance to communicate before their debut race at Talladega Superspeedway, where handling doesn’t matter and Montoya finished a season-best second. Then it was on to Richmond International Raceway, where in two quick hours of practice time, Elledge was unable to get the car to Montoya’s liking.
“It was such a tight schedule and we had so many questions at Richmond, and not enough time to answer them, and we just pretty much missed it. We didn’t have a car suitable for him,” said Elledge, who spent 80 races with Reed Sorenson before he was moved to Montoya’s crew.
“The last two days is the first time we’ve had a chance to work together and test together. Different drivers respond to different things, and you kind of get programmed when you work with a certain driver for so long. So this was good to be able to run through changes and understand what Juan responds to. I’ve got a lot better understanding of what he looks for in a car now.”
After moving up to 12th in the standings after Talladega, a 32nd-place finish at Richmond for the No. 42 Dodge dropped Montoya to 16th in the standings and out of contention for the Chase for the championship.
“I feel a lot more comfortable now than I did a week ago. We went to Richmond, and all I can do is what I’ve known to do and that wasn’t right for him,” Elledge said. “From here on out, it’s just track time and communication that we need, and I feel a lot better now about it than I did.”
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