Oh, What A Difference A Year Can Make

Last year, the talk of the garage, at times, was that the two car team of Earnhardt Ganassi Racing was on the rise and could be the next team to challenge for a spot amongst the series’ best. They won 4 races, including the Daytona 500, the Brickyard 400, the race at Watkins Glen, and the fall race at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. And, although coming up short, both of their drivers, Jamie McMurray and Juan Pablo Montoya, were on the edge of a Chase berth during the summer.

Down the garage just a bit, there was another team that was struggling for its existence. Although it had the name of the other 7 time champ, Richard Petty Motorsports was being run by George Gillett, Jr. straight into the ground. The team had debt up to its eyeballs, drivers jumping ship, like Kasey Kahne, and a rumor that the doors would be closing. The drivers that currently drive for RPM, Marcos Ambrose and A.J. Allmendinger, were struggling. Ambrose finished 2010 with 2 top five’s and 4 top ten’s, while A.J. finished slightly better with 2 top five’s and 8 top ten’s.

But my, oh my, how things can change in the off season.

RPM was bought back by Richard Petty and a group of investors, placing the control of the team back under someone with proven ability to win in NASCAR. Although there was much to do in the off-season, and many unknowns for the coming year, the RPM crew worked hard, and apparently well. In the first 11 races of this season, the RPM duo has compiled a combined 2 top five’s and 5 top ten finishes. Another great stat for the RPM team is that in 2010 they had a total of 11 DNF’s. So far, for 2011, they have only 1.

Meanwhile, over at EGR, Montoya and McMurray are struggling to find their rhythm from last year. Although Montoya began the year with a head full of steam, lately he has been deflated. His average finish for the first six races was 11th, however, for the last four, his average finish has been 28.5. His teammate has had only two top ten finishes so far, and ranks a dismal 26th in laps run on the lead lap.

We all know about the wide array of changes made at RPM in the off-season to bring about their improvement in finishes. What we don’t know, and Mr. Ganassi, no doubt, will be working to find out, is what was changed at EGR to bring about their disappointing racing.


Follow Joseph Davis on Twitter @the_Bumpdrafter

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