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Pemberton Adding Expertise

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By TONY FABRIZIO, The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 8, 2008

Updated: 01/08/2008 12:11 am

DAYTONA BEACH - When Mark Martin came within 2 feet of winning the Daytona 500 and then led the points standings after four races for upstart Ginn Racing last year, much of the credit went to veteran crew chief Ryan Pemberton.

Martin and Pemberton were supposed to work together again this year, but a few days after the season, the crew chief announced his departure.

He's now the crew chief for Zephyrhills' David Reutimann - a switch that has left Martin deeply disappointed but Reutimann with a fighting chance of making a major leap in his second Sprint Cup season.

"So far, I'm impressed," Reutimann said Monday on the first day of Daytona preseason testing. "You can always see the gears turning in his head. I mean, even when you're backing out to make a practice run, it seems like he already has the next run planned out."

Pemberton, 38, has won only one Sprint Cup race as a crew chief (with Lakeland's Joe Nemechek in 2004 at Kansas). But the younger brother of NASCAR vice president of competition Robin Pemberton has 11 years of experience as a crew chief and is respected in the garage area.

Martin was sold last year after working with him in his first season driving a part-time schedule.

But Martin says he knew Pemberton wasn't happy with the direction the team took after Ginn Racing was absorbed by Dale Earnhardt Inc. in July.

"Man, I was hell-bent to keep that team together and keep a smile on their faces and I just ... failed," Martin said Monday. "I just couldn't manage to get some of that group over whatever the hump was that it was going to take to make this merger thing work. The ones that weren't comfortable with it, they made their moves.

"I still think Ryan Pemberton is very possibly the smartest crew chief I've ever worked with. That's how much I think of him. I'll be a great friend to him forever."

Pemberton was supposed to be the crew chief this year for Martin and Tampa's Aric Almirola, who are sharing DEI's No. 8 car. The crew chief says he had no qualms about a split-driver scenario and, in fact, was "really looking forward" to working with Almirola, "a good kid who deserves an opportunity."

But he concedes he was uncomfortable with the structure that was in place after the DEI-Ginn acquisition, although he wouldn't get into specifics.

"They had their way of doing things," Pemberton said. "I saw a lot of procedures and standards go away. Those were types of things that, in my view, were very important. They're going to go forward, but it's going to be in a different timeframe, probably, than what I was looking at."

Pemberton had a relationship with Cal Wells III, who is part owner of Michael Waltrip Racing and has taken a hands-on, executive role this year. Conversations with Wells' led to his hiring, he said.

Frank Kerr, Reutimann's crew chief last year, has moved to Robby Gordon Motorsports. And there have been several other major moves at MWR, including the hiring of former championship crew chief Paul Andrews as Michael Waltrip's crew chief and aerospace engineer Eric Warren, formerly of Evernham Motorsports, to head the company's engineering staff.

Pemberton's first major challenge, aside from the obvious one of getting Reutimann in the field for the historic 50th Daytona 500, will be to get the team in the top 35 in the owners points.

Teams outside the top 35 have virtually no chance of competing for wins or a berth in the Chase because they have to spend so much of their time and resources concentrating on qualifying. Those in the top 35 are assured starting berths and can focus on their race setups.

"One of the most important things you can do is get locked in," said Reutimann, who will switch numbers from 00 to 44 after five races but keep his crew chief and crew. "You're secure with your sponsors because they know they're getting in the race. And you know when you show up you're going to be in the race. So you unload with a completely different mentality and game plan."

With a qualify crew chief, Reutimann has a fighting chance.

HOT LAPS: DEI announced a 24-race schedule for Martin in the No. 8 car but did not immediately confirm that Almirola will be in the car for all of the remaining 12 races. Those not taken by Martin are the two races each at Martinsville, Bristol, Talladega and New Hampshire; second races at California and Phoenix; and the road-course races at Sonoma and Watkins Glen. ... Showing his enthusiasm for his switch to Hendrick Motorsports, Dale Earnhardt Jr. made an appearance at Monday's test session. His No. 88 team doesn't test until next week. ... Valrico's Michael Cherry is "looking good" for a spot on the 2008 NASCAR Drive for Diversity team, according to someone closely connected to the program. Cherry, as well as Sarasota's Danny Martin, participated in the program's annual testing and evaluation combine at South Boston Speedway in October. Eight drivers from an original pool of more than 200 minority applicants will essentially get scholarships to compete in a regional racing series. The team will be announced later this month. ... Defending Nextel Cup champion Jimmie Johnson posted the fastest speed in both of Monday's test sessions. Teams worked on qualifying setups and did not practice in drafting conditions. ... The wrong end date for East Bay Raceway's Winternationals appeared in Sunday's Tribune. The program runs from Jan. 30 through Feb. 23.

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