ESPN: Eury willing to take the heat for missed call at Watkins Glen
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Tony Eury Jr. can take comfort in the fact that he's returning to Michigan this weekend -- the place where he had his golden moment earlier this season. And Eury could use a little comfort right now.
It's not easy being the crew chief for NASCAR's most popular driver. Many Dale Earnhardt Jr. fans are furious about the decision Eury made Sunday at Watkins Glen.
Earnhardt was leading the race, but Eury had the No. 88 Chevy stay on the track while all the other lead-lap cars pitted under green.
A caution came out, and Earnhardt was doomed. He was forced to pit under yellow while the other cars stayed on the track, dropping him way back in the field. Earnhardt finished 22nd on a day when he should have posted a top-5.
And Earnhardt Nation is fighting mad about it. But before you Junior lovers send Eury to the gallows, you might want to hear his side of the story.
"We were getting six fewer laps on fuel mileage than the other cars," Eury said after the race. "We didn't have a choice. We had to stay out longer."
That brings up another question, but no one could change the fuel situation in the heat of the moment. Eury was trying to make the best of it. Unfortunately, he waited one lap too long, gambling the yellow wouldn't fly before his team pitted.
This strategy is used all the time in Formula One. A leader will stay on the track and push as hard as he can for as long as he can, building up a big lead before he pits. If it's big enough, he can get back on the track without losing many spots, if any.
But here's the difference: A full-course caution is rare at F1 events. In a Cup race at Watkins Glen, it's a virtual certainty.
Eury knew that, but he let his zeal for building a big lead and his concern over fuel mileage overshadow the danger of waiting too long to pit.
"I made a mistake," Eury said. "Had the caution not come out, we would have been sitting pretty. But it ended up being the wrong decision."
Give the man some credit for taking the heat, and he's taken a lot of it this year. Eury also was criticized at Indianapolis for electing to pit out of sequence seven laps into the race, knowing a competition caution was coming a few laps later.
It led to Earnhardt going a lap down when he had to pit under green with a tire problem. He still managed to finish 12th.
These are tough calls that require taking risks. And no crew chief receives more scrutiny that Eury. In fact, few head coaches in any sport take more heat than Eury.
When you're making the key in-race decisions for NASCAR's biggest star, everyone watches your every move. Everything you do during a race is magnified.
Sometimes it goes against you, and sometimes it goes your way.
Eury made a call on fuel mileage earlier this year at Michigan that led to Earnhardt's only 2008 victory. Now the Cup teams are back at the 2-mile oval, which has to feel good for Eury after a race in which Junior fans were howling.
After reading many opinions and articles on his call at Watkins Glen,
I think Tony really screwed up. Hopefully this mistake will make him wiser him before the chase starts?
After reading many opinions and articles on his call at Watkins Glen,
I think Tony really screwed up. Hopefully this mistake will make him wiser him before the chase starts?
I haven't seen him grow any wiser from the mistakes he has made so far, so I don't hold out much hope for this being the one that flips his light switch on.
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I haven't seen him grow any wiser from the mistakes he has made so far, so I don't hold out much hope for this being the one that flips his light switch on.
Well blood is thicker than water, at least where I grew up . I wouldn't expect many changes yet.
Last edited by **TOPGEAR** : 08-13-2008 at 10:33 PM.
Reason: ,.
Well blood is thicker than water, at least where I grew up . I wouldn't expect many changes yet.
I agree with you there. I think it would take Dale Jr.'s approval to make a change right now and I think that would probably take something bigger than what he's screwed up so far. With that being said I have a feeling that unless the 88 team catches fire and wins the cup that Hendrick will probably make a change after the season. When you have equipment as good as they are getting it is hard to over look how many chances they have blown so far.
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I wake up in the morning and I piss excellence.
I really can't see Hendrick forcing a change without Dale Jr.'s approval until at least 2010. You have to give Eury a chance to figure it out and hope it's just bad timing/luck that have done him in.
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