Dale Earnhardt Jr. excited about new crew chief

When Dale Earnhardt Jr. learned then-crew chief Steve Letarte was leaving at the end of the 2014 season, the search for a replacement was underway immediately.

But Earnhardt had very specific instructions on what he wanted in a crew chief. He didn’t want someone young and inexperienced that would have to grow into the job over time. Forty years old and coming off one of the best seasons of his career, Earnhardt wanted to maintain that level of performance, which saw him win four races and emerge as a championship contender.

“I told Steve, one of the things you are responsible for is to put me in a better situation than I am in right now,” Earnhardt said. “I didn’t want to do a lateral move, I didn’t want to drop down and wait on a guy to develop.

“I said, ‘Steve, I need you to comb the sport and give me some names of guys who can make us better.’”

That search quickly centered on Greg Ives, a crew chief in the Xfinity (formerly Nationwide) Series for the team co-owned by Earnhardt, JR Motorsports. Ives’ pedigree suggests Letarte made the right recommendation.

Previously Ives was the lead engineer on Jimmie Johnson’s team that won five consecutive championships from 2006-2010. He moved to JRM in 2013 to serve as crew chief for Regan Smith, who won twice and ranked third in points. Last season Ives worked with rookie Chase Elliott, guiding him to three wins and the Xfinity title.

Similar to Letarte, Ives shares a close relationship with Chad Knaus, Johnson’s crew chief, which will allow the teams to continue its strong rapport. Earnhardt describes Ives as a “details guy” and lauds his engineering ability.

That attention to detail was evident at a recent photo shoot when Earnhardt thought the show car they were posing with was too high off the ground. As he and Ives began working to lower it Ives noticed other changes he wanted to make.

“While we were doing that, Greg made a list of about 25 other things wrong with the show car and gave it to the guy who’s in control of the show car program,” Earnhardt said.

What’s going to take Earnhardt some getting used to is the differentiating leadership styles of Letarte and Ives. Where Letarte was more of a cheerleader and continually offered encouragement, Ives is more low-key and cerebral.

“Greg is truthfully opposite of Steve Letarte,” Johnson said. “Steve was always chatting away ... he was very focused on the energy of his people, the camaraderie on the team, having fun, very outward. Greg is much different. He’s a details guy, an engineer. It’s going to be a change for Junior and for that team.”

A NASCAR-wide testing ban has prevented Earnhardt and Ives from working with one another and developing their chemistry at the track. As a substitute they have become frequent diners together where they try to learn each other’s terminology.

“I think it’s going to be great,” Earnhardt said. “There may be a little time for us to learn how to communicate and get the jargon down to handle how he talks and how I explain the car. But once we get that done, I think the cars will have the speed. I’m excited.

“Regan was so impressed when he worked with him. He told me I was just going to love it and I’m already seeing that and we haven’t even got to the race track yet.”