Makar won't crew chief for B. Labonte in 2003

CONCORD, N.C. - After 11 years as crew chief for Joe Gibbs Racing's No. 18 program, Jimmy Makar will move to team manager full time in 2003.

Makar, Gibbs' first hire when Joe Gibbs Racing was formed in 1991, will hand-pick his replacement. The search begins immediately. Team sources said no short list of candidates currently exists.

"Jimmy has been with us from the start of our racing operation in 1991," said Gibbs, whose start-up team first took the track in 1992 with Makar as crew chief and Dale Jarrett as driver.

Have tools, will travel  Notable crew chiefs who have switched jobs during the 2002 Winston Cup season:  June 9: Kevin Hamlin, crew chief for Kevin Harvick, goes to work with Harvick's teammate, Robby Gordon.  June 9: Gil Martin, crew chief for Robby Gordon, goes to work with Gordon's teammate, Kevin Harvick.  Sept. 4: Frank Stoddard suddenly leaves his job as Jeff Burton's crew chief.  Sept. 4: Paul Andrews leaves his job as Steve Park's crew chief and goes to work for Roush Racing as Jeff Burton's crew chief. A month later, DEI hires Tony Gibson to serve as Park's crew chief.  Sept. 30: Tommy Baldwin, crew chief for Bill Davis Racing's No. 22 Dodge of Ward Burton, quits after the Protection One 400 in Kansas. Frank Stoddard immediately moves to Bill Davis Racing to serve as Burton's crew chief.  Oct. 1: Joe Gibbs Racing announces that Jimmy Makar, the only crew chief in the team's history, will move to team manager in 2003, ending a 12-year stint as crew chief. No immediate replacement named.

"He was our first employee. He helped take 18 guys, myself as a new owner, a new sponsor in Interstate Batteries and was instrumental in building a championship winning race team. Without Jimmy's wisdom and loyalty, this organization would not be where it is today."

According to the team, the change had been planned for quite some time, but wasn't scheduled to take place for "a couple more years." But the lengthy, 38-event Winston Cup schedule (36 points races, two exhibitions) is taxing, and proved a major determining factor in Makar's decision to step away from at-track duties.

Not only are teams required to attend 38 race weekends, but also conduct a grueling testing schedule during the week, all the while attempting to create some semblance of a family life.

Given the demands, everyone at Joe Gibbs Racing agreed that Makar's management and leadership skills would be best suited solely in the role of team manager. All involved feel certain Makar will end his career at Joe Gibbs Racing.

"As a result of our continued expansion at Joe Gibbs Racing and the magnitude and scope of racing today, Jimmy will be focusing his full-time attention on his role as Team Manager in 2003," Gibbs said.

"We will continue to rely on his experience to guide us and we fully intend for Jimmy to spend the remainder of his racing career at Joe Gibbs Racing."

Makar decided it was best to make the transition now in order to help ensure the continued success of Joe Gibbs Racing. He led Labonte to the 2000 Winston Cup championship, but 2002 has been simply miserable.

Labonte is currently 18th in the championship standings. He hasn't finished worse than 11th since joining Joe Gibbs Racing in 1995. During their eight-year run together - currently the longest such relationship in Winston Cup - Labonte notched all 19 of his career victories.

"I have always prided myself on the quality of my work and not the quantity of it," Makar said. "Lately though, it seems I have had a lot more quantity and as a result I think the quality has suffered.

"And that is not something I am happy with. This move will not only allow me to use my talents to help our race teams perform better in the future, but it will also allow me to spend more time with my family.

"My kids aren't getting any younger and it's important for me to be there for them and to play a significant role in their lives as they grow up."

For Labonte, the upcoming change is bittersweet. He and Makar have become very close friends over the years, keeping one another afloat in the inevitable ebb and flow of the Winston Cup Series.

"This is a tough one," Labonte said. "Jimmy has been more than a crew chief for me the past eight years. He has become a best friend. We have been through a lot together, both good and bad.

"We have lost a championship together and we have won a championship together. We lost races that we should have won and we won races that we should have lost. Eight years is a long time to be in our position."

The trying season has weighed heavily on both.

"Unfortunately with our performance not being up to par, and with the demands of the schedule taking a toll on us all, our friendship has also been taking a beating," Labonte said.

"The way that the sport has changed in the past few years, along with our race team, I can see where it was hard for Jimmy to keep up with everything that there is to do nowadays."

Labonte, who like Makar has two small children at home, can fully understand and appreciate the desire to spend more time with his wife and children.

"Like he said, it will allow him to spend time with his family and that will mean more to us than winning any race," Labonte said.

"Jimmy will have a new role next season, just as I will be working with somebody different in the garage area, but the goal of being the best team out there will remain the same and I look forward to that challenge."