Eddie Jones reckons that new IndyCar Series champion Dan Wheldon can join the ranks of legends such as AJ Foyt, Rick Mears, Al Unser and Johnny Rutherford, and he's a man that ought to know. source: crash.net It is an analysis not to be taken lightly as, in 30-plus years of motorsport, Jones has been a successful driver, mechanic, designer, chief engineer and company executive. For the past two-and-a-half years, he's been Wheldon's race engineer on the #26 Klein Tools/Jim Beam Dallara/Honda/Firestone for Andretti Green Racing. "I don't see a weakness in Dan," Jones said, "We've raced on all sorts of tracks, and I honestly think he could emerge as the best of his generation. That's how good I think he is." At the tracks, Jones and Wheldon communicate well and work hard. After hours, they're often found together raising a glass to their efforts. They have forged a winning combination. "On a personal level, we clicked from the start," said the long-time engineer, who inherited Wheldon as part-student part-comrade after Michael Andretti retired from the cockpit during 2003, "I could recognise his talent. "I suppose what helps is that I've been in racing for a long, long time. My father was involved in it and I grew up with it. I have experience at every level of racing, so I appreciate what the driver is dealing with all the time. I was able to relate to Dan in his early stages and some of the difficulties of performing at this level of racing - the highest level. Sometimes it wasn't easy for him as talented as he is and always was. So I think I was perhaps able to help during some of the difficult stages. The complete article here on Crash.net
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