Greg Zipadelli, long-time crew chief on the #20 Home Depot car with Joe Gibbs Racing, is leaving JGR to become Director of Competition for Stewart-Haas Racing, reuniting him with long-time driver Tony Stewart. In Zipadelli’s place at JGR with driver Joey Logano: Jason Ratcliff, who has spent the last seven seasons as the crew chief on the #18 Nationwide Series team.
“We appreciate everything Greg has done for us here at Joe Gibbs Racing. He has been a big part of our success, but we felt the timing was right to make this transition for our race team which allows Greg the opportunity to pursue a Director of Competition position with Tony (Stewart),” said team owner Joe Gibbs. “We also felt that the timing was right to bring Jason to our Cup operation. He is a proven leader with a tremendous track record in our Nationwide program and we think he and Joey will work well together.”
Zipadelli has been crew chief on the #20 car since its inception in 1999; he led Stewart to the Rookie of the Year title that year, as well as Cup Series titles in 2002 and 2005. Zipadelli also led Logano to his first victory in 2009, making Logano the youngest driver to win at the Cup Series level. In addition to his position as Director of Competition, Zipadelli will serve as Danica Patrick’s crew chief in the Sprint Cup Series for approximately 10 races in 2012.
Ratcliff and the #18 Nationwide team won two straight Nationwide owners’ championships (2009 and 2010), and finished second in 2011. In the past three seasons, the #18 team has 30 victories in the Nationwide Series and 85 top 10 finishes.
Find out more about this breaking story at www.nascar.com and joegibbsracing.com.
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