Shane Wilson (racing)
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American |
| Born | November 3, 1968 South Royalton, Vermont, US |
| Occupation | Crew chief |
| Sport | |
| Sport | NASCAR Sprint Cup Series |
| Team | Richard Childress Racing |
Shane Wilson (born November 3, 1968) is an American NASCAR crew chief for Richard Childress Racing's Brendan Gaughan of the Xfinity Series. He had previously served as crew chief for Penske Racing.
Career
Wilson began his career in Vermont, building race cars before earning a driver's license. In 1988, he won a local touring division championship along with Brian Kenyon.[1] In 1989, Wilson joined Alsup Racing of the American Canadian Tour as a mechanic for Mike Bachelor. Four years later, Wilson joined the NASCAR All-Pro Series and subsequently worked with Hendrick Motorsports in the Craftsman Truck Series.[1]
In 2000, Wilson joined Orleans Racing as the crew chief and general manager for Brendan Gaughan, and won two K&N Pro Series West titles, while finishing fourth in the 2003 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series standings. In 2004, Wilson and Gaughan joined Penske Racing, with Gaughan driving the no. 77 in the Nextel Cup Series until 2005, in which he was replaced by Travis Kvapil. In December 2005, Wilson joined Richard Childress Racing as the crew chief for the no. 21 of Kevin Harvick in the Busch Series. Wilson proceeded to lead Harvick to the Busch Series championship in 2006 by a record margin of 824 points. Wilson worked with Harvick until 2008, in which he joined RCR's development program. In 2009, Wilson became the crew chief in the Sprint Cup Series for Clint Bowyer and the no. 33 team, with Wilson winning his first Sprint Cup race with Bowyer in the 2010 Sylvania 300.[1] However, after the race, Bowyer's car failed a post-race inspection, and Wilson was suspended for the next six races of the season.[2] The following season, Wilson guided Bowyer to RCR's 1,000th victory in the 2011 Good Sam Club 500.[1]
In 2012, Wilson reunited with Harvick as the interim crew chief after Harvick requested for Gil Martin's removal after two consecutive third-place finishes, but after failing to win a race, Wilson was reassigned to Paul Menard's team prior to the Irwin Tools Night Race.[3] For the final three races of the season, Wilson replaced Drew Blickensderfer as Jeff Burton's crew chief after Menard's crew chief Slugger Labbe returned from a suspension. As a result, after the 2012 AAA Texas 500, Wilson will have served as crew chief for all three RCR teams.[4]
References
- ^ a b c d "Shane Wilson". Richard Childress Racing. Retrieved 2013-06-17.
- ^ "Vermont crew chief Shane Wilson fined, suspended". WCAX-TV. 2010-09-22. Retrieved 2013-06-17.
- ^ Pockrass, Bob (2012-08-31). "Crew chief Shane Wilson relieved to part with Kevin Harvick after struggling with fiery driver". Sporting News. Retrieved 2013-06-17.
- ^ Bromberg, Nick (2012-10-29). "Luke Lambert to crew chief for Jeff Burton in 2013". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved 2013-06-17.
External links
- Shane Wilson biography at Cheerios Racing