Tryson, Leslie in crew chief swap

AVONDALE, Ariz. -- As the green flag dropped Sunday on the Checker Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix International Raceway, Roush Racing and Wood Brothers Racing announced they were swapping crew chiefs.

Ben Leslie will go from Roush's No. 6 team and driver Mark Martin to the Wood's No. 21 team and driver Ricky Rudd. Leslie replaces Pat Tryson, who takes over crew chief duties for Martin. The swap is effective Monday morning, the teams said.

Roush and the Wood Brothers have a technical alliance, with Roush providing engines and bodies to the Woods. The Wood Brothers are planning to move its racing operation from Stuart, Va. to the Charlotte, N.C. area, closer to the headquarters of Roush Racing and most NASCAR teams.

"They are working on a move to Charlotte that will put them a lot closer to our operation, so beginning with that move, we are going to look to revitalize the No. 21 car by putting Ben with the Wood Brothers and Ricky Rudd," Roush Racing team owner Jack Roush said. "This step, given that Ben has been integral to our program, will facilitate a situation that will allow the No. 21 program to get closer to our operations in Concord, (N.C.)."

	Ben Leslie and Mark Martin's best finish this year is a second at Pocono. Credit: Autostock

Roush said Martin has been wanting to work with Tryson, who worked at Roush in 1999-2000 with Johnny Benson and Kevin Lepage.

"Hopefully this will enable the No. 6 take advantage of Pat's own experience and perspective with these Fords, which coupled with Mark's input can get us a better result in 2004," Roush said.

"We are looking to improve the chemistry by making a crew chief/driver combination change in the same manner as we did with Ben and Jimmy Fennig with Mark and Kurt (Busch) before the 2002 season. We've made similar changes with chemistry in the past, and it has been very effective in those situations, so we are going to go with it again. In the end it's two great drivers with two great teams."

Martin is in the midst of his worst season with Roush Racing. He's 17th in the points standings with five top-five and nine top-10 finishes. Martin was runner-up to Tony Stewart in last year's championship and hasn't finished lower than 15th in the points since joining Roush in 1988. Martin has been sixth or better in points 12 of 16 seasons in the No. 6 car.

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"We are just mixing up the program a little bit," Martin said. "We are trying to get the No. 21 car to run a little better, while at the same time improving the performance of the No. 6 car. We've already been working together throughout the season, so the relationship is there now, and I'm excited about working with Pat.

"Pat's been a part of our program and he's familiar with Roush Racing and all of our processes. We think that he will be able to come in and help provide a fresh look, and bring some new and different ideas to the table. We are just going to mix things up and have a different look."

Tryson has been with the Wood Brothers for nearly three full seasons, going to Victory Lane once with the No. 21, with Elliott Sadler in 2001. He knows there will be pressure going to Roush's No. 6 team.

"There are pluses and minuses to everything," Tryson said. "I've got a lot of good friends over here that I enjoy working with, and Eddie (Wood) and Len (Wood) have been good to me. There will be a lot of pressure at Roush: the No. 6 car is the Roush Racing flagship, and it is not expected to be in the back. ... Sometimes change is good for everybody just for the sake of change. This will mix it up and change the combination of people, and I think it will be good for everybody."

Eddie Wood, who guides the team with his brother Len, said the two teams will be closer for the next few weeks.

	Pat Tryson and Ricky Rudd have four top-five finishes this year. Credit: Autostock

"It's all under the same family roof here," Wood said. "It's all under the Roush umbrella. Nobody has been left out in this decision. It's just a straight-up swap. We think that this switch will make both teams stronger. ... Everybody is going to be working together. Pat will use whatever he needs, and Ben will be able to take whatever information that he needs from both groups. Hopefully that will carry over into next year. That's kind of what the thinking really is."

Like Martin, Rudd isn't having a good season either. In his first year with the Wood Brothers, Rudd is 22nd in the points, with four top-fives and five top-10s. The veteran driver had won three times in three years with Robert Yates Racing, finishing in the top 10 in points all three seasons.

"The weakness within our camp is that we really haven't had the engineering support that it takes to succeed within this business," Rudd said. "This will make a tighter alliance with the Roush camp, and with that comes more engineering support."

Rudd said the cars he drives are different from Martin's, having learned first-hand during a test at Kentucky Speedway earlier this year. He hopes the crew chief switch will bring more unity to the two teams.

"If anything, the reason for doing it now is to take advantage of the remaining two races and give us more insight, so when the winter comes along we can evaluate if I need to have cars built more like I've had built or do they need to be built more like Mark's cars," Rudd said. "I think it will give us a whole lot better direction starting next year by knowing how his cars drive now."

Leslie guided Martin to one victory, scored in the Coca-Cola 600 last year. Leslie served as Busch's crew chief in 2001 before moving to Martin's team.

"Ricky's truly one of the all-time legends in NASCAR, and I consider myself very fortunate to get the opportunity to work with him," Leslie said. "I have nothing but the greatest respect for Mark, and I've enjoyed working with him for the past two years. Hopefully this move will help provide both of these teams with the type of spark that can help rejuvenate our efforts."