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NASCAR Trucks: Danny Gill Named Crew Chief for Bobby Hamilton Racing

6 February 2000

Posted By Terry Callahan
Motorsports Editor, The Auto Channel

Lebanon, Tennessee- It is official, Danny Gill has been promoted to crew chief of the No. 18 Dana Dodge team that currently fields trucks for veteran NASCAR driver Joe Ruttman. Gill, who served as the Truck Chief for Bobby Hamilton's Dana team last year, brings a wealth of knowledge to the team, despite being only 31 years of age. Gill's previous experience includes racing and building cars for multiple types of racing series in the Nashville, Tennessee area. He also has experience working with Sadler Racing.

"We're very happy to have Danny as the crew chief," said Hamilton. "He's a young guy with a great deal of experience. I wanted a crew chief that could be the leader and someone who isn't afraid of trying new ideas. Danny gives me both of those things. He and Joe seem to communicate very well, which ultimately is the most important thing in being successful. I also like Danny because he has raced, which helps him understand what Joe is talking about when they're at the track."

Gill's rise to the crew chief position of a Hamilton-owned team has been a fast and rather unique one, considering how the two first met. It was early in the 1990's at the Nashville Speedway USA when the newly crown NASCAR Winston Cup Rookie of the Year, Bobby Hamilton, came back to race a late model event. Hamilton started the event and was racing hard with the local drivers when their cars touched and the ensuing crash eliminated Hamilton and several others. It was at that moment that things got a little interesting. One of the drivers involved in the accident got out of his car and was on his way over to have a discussion with Hamilton about the crash. It was Danny Gill. The two exchanged a few words, but the impact of that first meeting made an overwhelming impression on Hamilton.

Over the next few years, Hamilton kept up with what Gill was doing and with whom he was working for, in hopes that someday the two would meet again. That day came in November of 1998, when a phone call from Hamilton landed Gill a position at Bobby Hamilton Racing, a new team on the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. Since then, Gill has moved quickly into his new position.

"This is a massive opportunity," said Gill. "It's huge to be working with a veteran driver like Joe Ruttman and to have Bobby Hamilton as my boss. I can't begin to tell you what this means to me. This is a great team and to have Bobby pick me to be the crew chief is awesome. I just hope I can live up to the expectations we have as a team this year, and that we become a force in the Craftsman Truck Series."

One of the things that made this pick intriguing is the age difference between Gill (31) and the man he will have to work the closest with, driver Joe Ruttman (55).

"I'm very happy that Bobby picked Danny to be the crew chief," said Ruttman. "We seem to have a great communication level. He understands what I'm trying to say and that's not always the easiest thing to do. I just can't wait to get to Daytona."

Text Provided by David Pepper

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