Roush team names Blickensderfer Crew Chief
“We are really looking forward to Drew coming on board with the No. 17 DEWALT team," said Kenseth. “Drew brings a great work ethic and high level of enthusiasm to our team. He has been waiting for the opportunity to become a crew chief in the Sprint Cup Series and I know he’ll make the most of it.
“I had the chance to work with Drew for a couple of years in the Nationwide Series and he is one of the hardest working guys in the garage. He has a passion for the sport, and I know he will be a great addition to our No. 17 team."
Blickensderfer served the past three seasons as a crew chief in Roush Fenway’s highly successful Nationwide Series program. He helped guide Danny O’Quinn to a Raybestos Rookie title in 2006, before teaming with Kenseth in the Nationwide Series for the next year and a half.
The duo earned three victories in the series, before Blickensderfer moved over to Carl Edwards’ No. 60 team midway through the 2008 season. There, he helped guide the Edwards’ team to seven wins in their last 19 races and a second-place finish in the Nationwide Series point standings.
With the addition of Blickensderfer, Chip Bolin – who served as the crew chief on the No. 17 Sprint Cup team in 2008 – will return to his previous post as team engineer, where he was instrumental in helping guide the team to a Cup championship in 2003.
“Chip has been one of the biggest assets to this team since the beginning," said Kenseth. “Both as an engineer and crew chief, he has been instrumental in our championship run in 2003 and our making the Chase every year since. We are looking forward to adding Drew to the mix and everyone on this No. 17 DEWALT team is committed to working together and to running up front next season."