NASCAR crew chiefs are often involved in a game of chess with their rival camps. But history has taught us that behind the on-track rivalries and cutthroat competition, there have been secret alliances and pacts. The most notable one has to be Dale Earnhardt’s #3 and Jeff Gordon’s #24 crew running a secret channel. Ray Evernham and Andy Petree were running the show behind the scenes, while the two drivers traded blows on the racetrack.

This was a cross-team partnership, but in 2010, Hendrick Motorsports teams #24 and #48 did something similar for the greater good. It wasn’t behind the scenes, but rather out in the open at the Texas Motor Speedway. Steve Letarte from the #24 camp offered his pit crew to Chad Knaus and the #48 team. An offer which Knaus gladly accepted as he couldn’t see Jimmie Johnson miss out on winning the championship.

Steve Letarte recalls how the pit crew swap deal was struck with the #48 team

With just two races left in the season, Jimmie Johnson was trailing against Denny Hamlin in the title race at the Texas Motor Speedway. The speed wasn’t the concern of the #48 HMS Chevy but a half-hearted effort by their pit crew members. Chad Knaus was desperately trying to cut the points deficit of the #11 team, but their efforts amounted to nothing.

The race in total had nine cautions, and Jeff Gordon’s #24 Chevy was involved in one of them. With heavy damage, their day was done, and this is when Steve Letarte had an ingenious idea of utilizing the #24 pit crew to help the #48 team. The former HMS crew chief shared the entire story of how the swap came about while speaking on the Dirty Mo Dough podcast.

“I walk up to the pit box and climb up there. I’m like, man, what the hell’s wrong with your sh*t? You’re running like fifth or sixth every time I come up here. “My pit crew stinks.” I’m like, alright, you want mine? Really. We’ve been rock solid for the last ten weeks. You want me to do? Yeah, sure, yeah, that’s a good idea. So I walk down to the garage, gather my guys up, and say, Hey man, you guys up for this? They were like, yeah, went up there and swapped their air gun,” Letarte said.

Despite this intervention, Denny Hamlin would go on to win the race and carve a 33-point lead over Jimmie Johnson. However, Chad Knaus did receive a lot of heat for benching his crew at the penultimate stage of the season. But that didn’t stop him from making a gutsy call that made the swap permanent for the next two crucial races.

Chad Knaus wanted the best for his team

Trending

Chevy Prodigy Loses NASCAR Seat, Fans Allege Ignorance to Kyle Busch’s Daytona Setback Behind It

Michael Jordan’s Opponent’s Warning Comes True as Roger Penske Shuts Down NASCAR’s Infiltration

Joey Logano Leaks NASCAR’s Threat to Kick Teams Out of Daytona 500 After Chevy’s Defiance to $400,000 Fine

NASCAR Rumor: Despite Lawsuit Uncertainty, Tony Stewart’s Veteran Eyeing FRM Switch After Noah Gragson’s Lead

Joe Gibbs Racing Reveals the True Reason Behind Covered Windshields During NASCAR’s Inspection

Interestingly, the #24 and the #48 teams shared the same lobby space at the team garage where the cars were prepared. An engineer or mechanic could be working on either of the two race cars if they weren’t identified by the sponsorship schemes or the numbers. Many of them had both 24 and 48 logos on their shirts.

Building a race car at the shop and changing the personnel on the racetrack are two different scenarios. The latter requires synergy to perform at its best, but at the time the #48 pit crew were off their game. Knaus is known to be one of the best crew chiefs in NASCAR, and that title is earned by making tough choices, which is exactly what he did back in 2010.

“I’m not saying the 24 is our bullpen or anything like that, but this is a good way to introduce some new energy to both teams,” Knaus said on this swap after the Texas race. Meanwhile, Letarte added, “We’re all still working on the same team. That’s the whole problem; everybody on the outside, they don’t see how the building runs.”

Well, their plan did work out; Jimmie Johnson managed to pull off an epic comeback against the #11 team and won their fifth straight NASCAR Cup Series championship.