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"His efforts behind the wheel can now be more concentrated on what he needs to get the job done, which makes us go faster. The confidence I have in Ward and he has in me and whole team is the key." The loyalty goes both ways, and all the way to the top of this team. Burton, a driver every garage on pit road knew was on the verge of breaking into the top echelon of Winston Cup, could have easily looked elsewhere as his stock rose in recent years. But he chose to stick with Davis' single-car operation.
His decision was made much easier when you consider the relationship he'd built with Davis over two-plus years together. Family ... loyalty ... relationships. Again, it's more than just racing on Sundays when it comes to Ward Burton.
"Bill's personality is quiet and laid back. That's something you learn to deal
with when you build a relationship with Bill," Burton said. "One of things that comes with that is the trust he has in other people. He's a very honest person and
that's one of the things I noticed immediately about Bill. He's just
very honest.
"And Tommy and I are very straightforward with each other. And then there is team manager Mike Brown, who helps out with the team's communication skills. I've got the hardest working team and I'm just so proud of them."
The loyalty of a key member of the No. 22 family was tested during the 1999 season when Baldwin was tempted to jump to a bigger, higher-profile operation. Hendrick Motorsports wanted Baldwin, and tried to lure him to become the crew chief of Jeff Gordon's No. 24. He would have replaced the departing Ray Evernham midway through the season.
Baldwin was flattered, but politely decided.
"Everyone staying together, that's pretty much the key to this team," Baldwin said. "We've got all our key people together for the next three years. And it's a solid three years. That's why we're pretty excited to be able to take everything we've learned this year together and put it toward 2000."
What's ahead in 2000 is both new challenges and changes to the No. 22 team. The challenge is obvious -- improve on 1999's numbers, which once again didn't include a victory. The changes? Well, Dave Blaney moves into the family's spare room, jumping up from the Busch Series to drive a second Winston Cup car for Bill Davis. That's right, Burton's racing family is growing -- or at least adding a few relatives. "It'll be important for us to gain that continuity with the No. 93 (team) next year. So we can be like the 18 and 20, or the 99 and 6," Baldwin said. "That's another thing we'll work on this winter. It'll be a tough task, but I think we'll be all right." "More than anything, I think it's going to help Bill Davis' race team. It'll add depth to the team, give it some more funding," Burton said. "Hopefully, it'll help the No. 22 car. "But to be honest, having a teammate next season will be a challenge for me. You know it's going to take time (to adjust). I've got some concerns about it. Because to be real honest, I've never had a teammate. Everything we've had at Bill Davis racing has been focused only on the No. 22 car's Winston Cup effort. "But Tommy and (Blaney's crew chief) Gil Martin are working real hard to get the shop organized. Get everyone working in the same direction." That direction appears to be up the track. After establishing itself as a top-10 Winston Cup team, everyone associated with the No. 22 agrees there is no reason to challenge for a spot in the top five in 2000. There is also no reason Burton can't end his victory drought. "I wasn't surprised we finished in the top 10. That was one of the goals we set last winter. I think finishing in the top five is an attainable goal next year," Baldwin said. "We did miss one of our goals in 1999 and that was winning a race." Burton finished second three times in 1999, each time crossing the finish line on the bumper of his brother Jeff's No. 99 Ford. But he had a dominate car on several race days, only by his own admission to make errors on the track that often cost him a shot at challenging for the checkered flag. "The challenge for this team is to get to that next level, then we can concentrate on winning races," Burton said. "We want to go from a top-10 car to a top-five car in 2000. To do that, everyone has to step up a little bit -- including me. In order to do that, it's going to take a lot of homework (this winter). "It's just human nature. When you get 16 top 10s, you want 26 top 10s. But the team has just grown tremendously. I'm really excited about our future." "We know we may not be able to win the championship next year, but we'll be pretty close," Baldwin said. | ALSO SEE Skinner spotlight: Keeping 'big picture' in mind Emotional Jarrett collects big money for first title Winston Cup at home in Big Apple No. 88 in '99: Jarrett's championship season | ||||||||||
