The Buzz: March 12, 2001

By Exclusive
March 12, 2001
4:34 PM EST (2134 GMT)

A Turner Sports Interactive exclusive:

A source close to Ultra Motorsports said Sunday that several key team members left the team after the Cracker Barrel 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Travis Block, front tire changer and a key mechanic in research and development is going to Chip Ganassi Racing. Eric Wakeland (fabricator and rear tire carrier, moved on to Ray Evernham’s No. 19 Dodge program and Tommy Smith, a fabricator, tire specialist and front tire carrier, left in favor of the No. 36 Pontiac team.

Rumor has it that Jimmy Smith is not happy about the team’s struggles and made a call from California this past weekend to express his extreme displeasure. Subsequently, the word is that several individuals aside from those already gone are planning to jump ship.