Gill promoted to crew chief of No. 32 Chevrolet

HICKORY, N.C. -- PPI Motorsports has announced that interim chief mechanic Danny Gill has accepted the position of crew chief for the No. 32 Tide/Downy Chevrolet Monte Carlo driven in the Nextel Cup Series by Bobby Hamilton Jr.

Gill, who formerly worked on Hamilton Jr.'s father, Bobby Hamilton's Craftsman Truck Series team, began the season with another Nashville area operation, Sadler Racing, which was racing part-time in the Busch and Craftsman Truck Series.

Gill had served as the interim chief at owner Cal Wells' PPI Motorsports team since July 5, when Harold Holly went on sabbatical. Gill's promotion came after Holly accepted the crew chief's position for driver Justin Labonte in the Busch Series at Labonte Motorsports/Haas CNC Racing.

Credit: Autostock

"I want to officially welcome Danny Gill on board to the Tide Racing program," Wells said. "He came to us at the recommendation of Bobby Hamilton when we were looking for a new shop foreman.

"Instead, he quickly stepped up to the plate to assist us as interim crew chief when Harold Holly went off the road after the Pepsi 400 to re-evaluate our entire race program. Gill has done a very commendable job for us in a short time so I am looking forward to his contributions as the season progresses.

"I also want to thank Harold Holly for everything he has done for PPI Motorsports. He is a championship-level crew chief who has been an invaluable asset. Unfortunately, and surprisingly, he has decided to leave for another endeavor. I wish him all the best."

Gill comes to PPI Motorsports after an impressive tenure in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.

His first crew chief opportunity came in 1999 with Bobby Hamilton Racing (BHR). He worked for BHR during the 1999, 2000 and 2002 seasons and during that time visited victory lane in 2000 at Phoenix International Raceway with Joe Ruttman and in 2002 at Daytona International Speedway with Robert Pressley.

Gill's biggest success to date has come with Morgan-Dollar Motorsports and driver Dennis Setzer. Gill served as crew chief of that team's No. 46 Chevrolet Silverado in 2001, 2003 and 2004 when the organization won five times and finished second twice in the Truck Series' point standings.