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NASCAR Sprint-Cup Series
CUP: Berrier Hopes To Boost Labonte, JTG
Former Richard Childress Racing crew chief starting over with smaller operation…
Mike Hembree  |  Posted January 25, 2012   Concord, NC
Todd Berrier is adjusting to a new way of life in his new assignment. (Photo: LAT Photographic)
When Todd Berrier, who had worked at Richard Childress Racing seemingly forever, was booted from that organization last year, the general expectation across NASCAR garages was that he would land on his feet.

That landing occurred at JTG/Daugherty Racing, where Berrier serves as general manager and crew chief for driver Bobby Labonte. He has moved from one of the sport’s biggest organizations to one of its smallest, from a place that fields a fleet of strong race cars to one that is still reworking the Toyotas it hauled out of Michael Waltrip Racing last year.

JTG ownership decided to return to its own race shop after an in-house partnership with MWR didn’t produce the expected results. Berrier oversaw the rebooting and upfitting of the shop while also preparing race cars and equipment for the new season.

“I’ve learned how to put sheetrock up,” Berrier said.

The bigger task for Berrier, however, will be trying to compete on an even plane with bigger, multi-car teams from JTG’s single-car base.

“There’s a fair amount of light at the end of the tunnel,” Berrier said Wednesday. “Things are coming together. I’m very confident from what I’ve seen and from dealing with Bobby that we can make decent improvement.

“We’re very confident with our position as a company and having our own entity and our own cars. We started at the shop Nov. 1. A lot of things had to happen in a short time.”

Berrier said the team will transition from Toyotas originally built in Waltrip’s shop and refitted by JTG to cars that will be produced in the JTG shop.

The long-range plan includes adding a second team.

“We now have the right people in place to give us an opportunity to be successful,” said team co-owner Brad Daugherty, formerly an NBA player and now a racing television commentator. “We need to have a two-car team. It’s paramount. You have to have that relationship in house to gather information. It’s almost like we’re at the genesis of good things to come.

“Last year we were kind of a race team that had the sponsorship and had the funding and we put ourselves with a group that would give us the best opportunity to be successful. What we learned is that we’re only going to be as good as they are.

“We think we have something really good to build on this year. I’ll be really disappointed if we aren’t a top-20 team this year. I think we have the parts and pieces and personnel.”

Labonte, a former series champion, finished in 29th in points last season had and only two top-10 finishes.

Mike Hembree is NASCAR Editor for SPEED.com and has been covering motorsports for 29 years. He is a six-time winner of the National Motorsports Press Association Writer of the Year Award.
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