Looking for more: New Dale Jr. crew chief says best is yet to come
AVONDALE, Ariz. -- Greg Ives, the next crew chief for Dale Earnhardt Jr., hopes to continue the success NASCAR's most popular driver has enjoyed over four seasons with Steve Letarte calling the shots.
In fact, 35-year-old Ives wants to achieve things his predecessor didn't as the crew chief on the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet.
"The goal is not to be Steve; the goal is to be better in that position, and Steve's going to be a big part of that," Ives told FOXSports.com in an exclusive interview on Friday at Phoenix International Raceway. "We've already discussed and talked about how certain things have been working, and stuff like that. Not to take anything away from Steve, but Steve is in a position where he wants the team to progress and continue the success that they had this year, and he's been nothing but supportive. We're going to enjoy the ride, I believe."
Letarte, who announced before the 2014 season that he would be leaving Hendrick Motorsports at year's end to take a job with NBC Sports, has won five races with Earnhardt in nearly four seasons together. Four of those victories, including the Daytona 500, have come this year.
Earnhardt Jr. made the Chase for the Sprint Cup in each of his seasons with Letarte, but has finished no better than fifth in points. This season, Earnhardt Jr. won multiple races for the first time since 2004 but failed to advance beyond 12-driver Contender Round of the Chase for the Sprint Cup.
A native of Bark River, Mich., and graduate of Michigan Technological University, Ives joined Hendrick Motorsports as a mechanic in 2004 before moving into an engineering role on the No. 48 team of Jimmie Johnson in 2006. In seven years working under crew chief Chad Knaus, Ives contributed to 42 wins, 113 top-five finishes and 21 pole positions in the Sprint Cup Series.
In November 2012, Ives transitioned to JR Motorsports -- owned by Earnhardt Jr. in partnership with Rick Hendrick and Earnhardt's sister, Kelley Earnhardt Miller -- as crew chief for driver Regan Smith. The duo won two races and finished third in points in 2013 before Ives was named Chase Elliott's crew chief prior to this season.
Elliott, an 18-year-old rookie who has three wins this season under Ives' guidance, arrived in Phoenix with an opportunity to clinch the Nationwide Series title in Saturday's Nationwide Series race, and in the process become the youngest champion in one of NASCAR's major series.
"I have my own style," Ives said. "I've worked under Chad Knaus, Robbie Loomis, Steve Letarte -- I've worked for him. My style is going to be different. Hopefully, with Steve's support, it's going to be better because I'll be able to lean on him and hopefully bring a side of my personality that Dale enjoys."
Ives recently joined Letarte and Earnhardt Jr. during a test at Homestead-Miami Speedway where the goal was not only to prepare for the 2014 season finale, but also to give Ives and Earnhardt Jr. a chance to work together ahead of next season, when all testing will be banned.
"It's just something that we were able to do together," Ives said. "I had the weekend off, so I was able to take some time just to get on the radio, let him hear my voice and talk to him a little bit. It wasn't anything that was a super-big deal time-wise or away from my schedule, but it was one of those things that just allowed ourselves to get one more step, one more step closer. Dale, as a team owner (for JR Motorsports), obviously knows the importance of what we have going on here in the Nationwide Series side. It was more of a formality just kind of letting people understand how I operate, and for me to be able to see the crew in action."
Much like Letarte felt upon first being paired with Earnhardt Jr. in 2011, Ives is undaunted by the extra scrutiny that inevitably comes with being the crew chief for the sport's most popular driver.
"I don't look at a race car. I don't look at a driver. I don't look at anybody any different than I look at myself," he said. "I don't care who's in the race car. I don't care if it's Dale Jr. -- the most popular driver -- or Chase Elliott or Regan Smith. I'm there to do one thing and that's put the best car underneath them and the best race team for them. Obviously, I want to have a good, quick start and that's going to be easier (with the Homestead test), but the one thing it can't do is build complacency.
"I feel like they have a great team, and hopefully I'll come in as a leader that they want to rally around and make sure we do whatever it takes to get off to the right step. I know the couple times I've worked with Dale recently and in the past, he's 100 percent all the time, so we'll just have to see how things work out."
VIDEO: Uncut footage of Dale Earnhardt Jr. reliving his 2014 Daytona 500 victory
