#17-Matt Kenseth and crew chief Todd Parrott have parted ways. Former championship winning crew chief Jimmy Fennig, who was running Roush Fenway Racing’s R & D Center, will act as temporary crew chief for the #17 Roush Fenway Ford until a permanent solution can be found. Fennig is a longtime Roush employee and worked with #6-David Ragan last year. Parrott replaced Drew Blickensderfer following the season-opening Daytona 500. Together Parrott and Kenseth posted four top fives and eight top 10 finishes. The pair’s best performance together was second at Atlanta Motor Speedway in March. Parrott could not be reached for comment but is expected to return to the Roush’s research and development department.(FoxSports)(6-23-2010)
UPDATE: Roush Fenway Racing has named Jimmy Fennig as the crew chief for Matt Kenseth and the #17 Crown Royal Ford in the Sprint Cup Series. The move pairs Kenseth – who drove Roush Fenway to its first Sprint Cup Championship in 2003 – with Fennig, who served as crew chief on Roush Fenway’s 2004 championship team. “I am very pleased that we have been able to place these two together on the #17,” said team owner Jack Roush. “These guys were both instrumental in our back-to-back Sprint Cup Championships in 2003 and 2004, with Matt driving us to our first Cup Championship and Jimmy of course being instrumental in the 2004 championship as the team’s crew chief. We would expect this pairing to yield strong results as both of these guys are extremely talented and among the best in the business at what they do.” Fennig will be joined on the #17 by car chief Richie Davis. Davis had been working in Roush Fenway’s research and development department along side Fennig. Todd Parrott, who had been working as crew chief on the #17, will serve as the new R&D manager at Roush Fenway; a position formally held by Fennig. Current #17 car chief Charles “Cully” Barraclough will also move over to car chief the R&D program.(Roush Fenway Racing)(6-23-2010)
