Chad Knaus Named WYPALL Wipers Crew Chief of the Race in Martinsville
Chad Knaus, crew chief for the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevy driven by three-time Sprint Cup champion, Jimmie Johnson, has been named the WYPALL Wipers Crew Chief of the Race in Sunday’s Goody’s Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway.
After starting in the ninth position due to qualifying being rained out, Johnson began fighting a tight race car early in the race. With three cautions in the first 70 laps, Johnson was the only driver on the lead lap to pit twice, losing vital track position and falling as low as 25th place by lap 100.
“We went ahead and took the opportunity to pit and try to make the car a little bit better because we knew if we didnt take the opportunity then, we wouldnt have enough time to get back up through the field,” said crew chief Knaus.
Knaus’ patience and his crew’s flawless pit stops paid off as Johnson moved up the leaderboard and soared past leader Denny Hamlin with 70 laps to go. Hamlin slipped by Johnson 26 laps later, but in crunch time with 15 laps to go, Johnson made the final pass of the day for the lead, and sailed to victory.
“We didnt have an easy day today,” said Johnson. “We had to stay together as a team, work through a lot of changes, a loss of track position to make the car better and fight for the front, count on pit stops, count on good driving. It took a team effort today. Im very proud of that.”
“I was really impressed with the way [the No. 48 team] handled business this weekend,” said Jeff Hammond FOX Sports analyst and WYPALL Wipers spokesman. “Knaus and his team are proven winners, it’s hard to keep them out of Victory Lane for too long. It’s not a surprise that they won again [five of the last six races] here in Martinsville.”
Bob Osborne, crew chief for the No. 99 Roush Fenway Ford (Carl Edwards), Todd Berrier, crew chief for the No. 29 Richard Childress Racing (Kevin Harvick) and FOX/Speed Channel analyst Hammond, along with representatives from the WYPALL Wipers brand, serve as the panel for the WYPALL Wipers Crew Chief Challenge and vote for the weekly crew chief winners. In addition to the $1,000 check, the winning crew chief will receive signage to announce the win on their pit box the following week. The crew chief with the most weekly wins will be honored as the WYPALL Wipers Crew Chief of the Year and will be presented a $20,000 check at the season finale in Homestead, Fla.
Former winners of the WYPALL Wipers Crew Chief Challenge include Tony Eury, Sr. (Dale Earnhardt, Jr.), Robbie Reiser (Matt Kenseth), Doug Richert (Greg Biffle), Mike Ford (Denny Hamlin) and Chad Knaus (Jimmie Johnson).
