What makes a successful crew chief? Indeed, there must be a long list of dos and don’ts that one should follow in order to be the leader of a Cup Series crew. On that very note, legendary crew chief Larry McReynolds spilled the secret behind his success and interestingly, the list wasn’t that long.
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As the curtains to an episode of the Kenny Conversation parted, McReynolds explained how he attained the level of success that he flaunts today. No, it’s not about understanding race cars; neither is it about working hard or working well with the drivers. As a matter of fact, there is no driver that McReynolds has not enjoyed working with. Then what is it?
McReynolds said, “All of that’s probably true but to me, the things I contributed the most to is I worked very hard in surrounding myself with people that were smarter than I was. If I was the smartest guy on the race team, we were going to be in big, big trouble.”
Indeed, when one becomes the sole person everyone looks up to for ideas and guidance, that one person seldom has the scope to upgrade himself or even resort to a second opinion. And that might hinder the growth of the team along with the leader himself. Being stagnant is definitely not a good thing in the world of a sport as dynamic as NASCAR.
However, that’s not all. McReynolds also explained to Kenny Wallace how being entirely grounded to the earth has helped him (McReynolds) become what he is today. “I wouldn’t ask anybody to do anything that I wouldn’t do myself. We all came on this earth equal and that’s the way we’re gonna leave it one day,” he admitted as Wallace roared into a burst of laughter, nodding in approval.
The crew chief and the spotter play a vital role in the successful execution of a race and hence, communication is the key. For McReynolds however, it wasn’t a problem. “I always felt like I was a good communicator,” he said, “I feel like that, that is the success of any person in any type of business is being a good communicator, especially when you are the crew chief.”
Stints with Allison and Earnhardt as crew chief, then venturing into a broadcasting role
With a glorious career spanning over three decades, this man has made it big in the motorsports industry. He has led some of the biggest names in NASCAR to victory lane, including the legendary Dale Earnhardt and the talented Davey Allison.
In 1991, McReynolds teamed up with owner Robert Yates and driver Davey Allison to cruise down the victory lane 11 times, earning 3 pole positions between 1991 and mid-1993. He assisted Allison in the latter’s 1992 Daytona 500 triumph, and the duo went on to ace the NASCAR All-Star race in 1991-1992. Larry Mac also led Dale Earnhardt to his historic 1998 Daytona 500 win.
In 2001, America’s Crew Chief put down his pit box tools and picked up a FOX Sports microphone alongside legendary driver Darrell Waltrip and veteran broadcaster Mike Joy to form the NASCAR broadcast team. Having an innate knowledge of race cars and how things happen behind the garage, Larry McReynolds served FOX Sports for 15 years.
In 2016, he started his journey as an in-race analyst for FOX Sports, where he analyzed everything from pit strategies to rule infractions. He still serves as a race analyst at FOX Sports’ brand-new, state-of-the-art virtual studio in Charlotte, N.C.
