Drew Blickensderfer, formerly Matt Kenseth’s crew chief until last week, will be back be on the pit box, but in the Nationwide Series starting this weekend at Las Vegas.
After winning the Daytona 500 and California races, last year, Kenseth went winless, and, in what Kenseth described as a sudden decision, Blickensderfer was sidelined and Todd Parrott was announced as his interim replacement.
Now Roush Fenway announced that he will immediately take over as crew chief for Carl Edwards No. 60 Nationwide team. Mike Kelley, who had been crew chief, becomes competition director for the entire Roush Fenway Nationwide series effort.
“Drew is a wonderful team builder,” said team owner Jack Roush. “He will bring car-of-tomorrow experience to the Nationwide shop. Carl and Drew have a strong track record together. This is great for Copart and Fastenal. It provides them with a great chance to win a championship. This assignment will task Drew’s potential.”
The musical chairs reunites Blickensderfer with Edwards in the Nationwide Series. The duo teamed for 19 races in 2008, running to seven wins, two poles and a second-place series’ points finish, while closing the season with nine consecutive top-five runs.
“Mike Kelley is a fierce competitor and a very loyal employee,” said Roush.
“This is a great promotion for him. We will look forward to watching him continue to grow.”
In another announcement, the team named Mike Beam to work on superspeedway projects.
“Mike (Beam) has a great track record and his trucks were always really fast on the superspeedways,” said Roush. “We will look for him to bring that knowledge to our overall program and pick up where Todd Parrott left off with that progression.”
photo:NASCAR
After winning the Daytona 500 and California races, last year, Kenseth went winless, and, in what Kenseth described as a sudden decision, Blickensderfer was sidelined and Todd Parrott was announced as his interim replacement.
Now Roush Fenway announced that he will immediately take over as crew chief for Carl Edwards No. 60 Nationwide team. Mike Kelley, who had been crew chief, becomes competition director for the entire Roush Fenway Nationwide series effort.
“Drew is a wonderful team builder,” said team owner Jack Roush. “He will bring car-of-tomorrow experience to the Nationwide shop. Carl and Drew have a strong track record together. This is great for Copart and Fastenal. It provides them with a great chance to win a championship. This assignment will task Drew’s potential.”
The musical chairs reunites Blickensderfer with Edwards in the Nationwide Series. The duo teamed for 19 races in 2008, running to seven wins, two poles and a second-place series’ points finish, while closing the season with nine consecutive top-five runs.
“Mike Kelley is a fierce competitor and a very loyal employee,” said Roush.
“This is a great promotion for him. We will look forward to watching him continue to grow.”
In another announcement, the team named Mike Beam to work on superspeedway projects.
“Mike (Beam) has a great track record and his trucks were always really fast on the superspeedways,” said Roush. “We will look for him to bring that knowledge to our overall program and pick up where Todd Parrott left off with that progression.”
photo:NASCAR