Nead to lead the No. 5, RMM Truck Series effort

STATESVILLE, N.C. -- Officials at Randy Moss Motorsports on Tuesday announced that Gene Nead has joined the organization and will serve as crew chief for the No. 5 Truck Series entry driven by Mike Skinner.

"We were obviously surprised when Eric Phillips left," team owner David Dollar said. "Eric had been at Randy Moss Motorsports for a long time and was a big part of this organization. That said, we feel extremely fortunate to have found someone of Gene's caliber to take over.

Skinner

"We sat down as a team and gave a lot of thought to what we wanted and needed in a leader. I talked to several candidates who are really talented racers and would have done a great job, but ultimately we felt like Gene was the guy who would be the right fit for this team. He's been around for a long time and is a fierce competitor. He's really got the whole package and that's exactly what we were looking for. He's shown he has what it takes to win a truck series championship, and I definitely think the Nead/Skinner pairing will be a force to be reckoned with right from the start."

Nead joins RMM after spending the first half of the 2009 season at JTG Daugherty Racing as crew chief for the No. 47 Nationwide entry. In August, Nead was named interim crew chief for the Toyota driven by Michael Waltrip in the Cup Series. The veteran racer has served in a crew chief capacity in each of NASCAR's three major series.

"My heart lies in the Truck Series," Nead said. "It's where I've experienced the most success and where I've had the most fun. I'm excited about the opportunity to work with Mike Skinner and everyone at Randy Moss Motorsports. There's no question Skinner can drive a truck; he's proven it year after year. It's also clear that RMM has the resources to get the job done. It will be up to me to make sure Mike has everything he needs to be successful, and I'm looking forward to getting started."

Prior to his stint at MWR, Nead served as lead engineer on Bill Davis Racing's Cup Series effort. His greatest success, however, came in Truck Series competition. Working for Ultra Motorsports, Nead led driver Ted Musgrave to 11 top-five finishes and 15 top-10s en route to the 2005 series championship.

"I'm very excited," Skinner said. "Gene Nead and I were all lined up to work together at Bill Davis Racing last season, but when the team was sold, it didn't work out. When Eric chose to go in a different direction for next season, we were lucky enough to discover that Gene was available and interested in the job. My truck chief, Chris Showalter, played a big part in this process, too.

"This was a team effort. We sat down as a team and figured out what we needed in a crew chief to make it the best fit for everyone. Gene Nead fit the bill perfectly and I couldn't be more excited. He will definitely make our team even stronger."

Nead was born into a family of racers and at the age of 15, began building and racing dirt modified cars. He started his own chassis company in Philadelphia before making the move to North Carolina in 1993. He was offered his first job as crew chief with NASCAR driver/owner Phil Parsons in 1996 in the Nationwide Series.