Mike Wheeler (NASCAR)

Last updated
Mike Wheeler
Mike Wheeler 2016 (cropped).jpg
Wheeler at Daytona International Speedway in 2016
Personal information
Birth nameMichael Carl Wheeler
Nationality Flag of the United States.svg American
Born (1978-11-04) November 4, 1978 (age 45)
Southold, New York
Sport
Country United States
Sport NASCAR Cup Series
Team23. 23XI Racing

Michael Carl Wheeler [1] (born November 4, 1978), also known by his nickname "Wheels", is a former American NASCAR Crew Chief and is the current Director of Competition for 23XI Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series.

Contents

Wheeler previously worked for Joe Gibbs Racing from 2005 to 2018 as an engineer and a crew chief in both the Cup and Xfinity Series. He moved over to the JGR-aligned Leavine Family Racing for the next two years, working as a crew chief in 2019 and then as the team's competition director for 2020.

Career

Engineering

Wheeler became the No. 11 team's engineer in 2005 with Jason Leffler. [2] Even when Leffler left JGR, he stayed on the team with new driver Hamlin until the end of 2015.

2014: Interim crew chief

His first crew chief experience came in the Cup Series with Hamlin in 2014, when regular crew chief Darian Grubb was suspended six races for car violations. Wheeler guided Hamlin to three top tens and a top five in six races. [3]

2015: No. 20 JGR Xfinity Series team

Wheeler was made crew chief of Joe Gibbs Racing's No. 20 Xfinity Series entry before the start of the 2015 season. He did a fair amount of adjusting during the season, as JGR rotated through eight drivers. Wheeler scored nine pole positions, four wins, one with Erik Jones and three with Hamlin. Hamlin, Jones and Matt Kenseth all scored five or more top ten finishes. [4]

2016–2018: No. 11 JGR Cup Series team

Wheeler was named crew chief for Hamlin before the start of the 2016 season after serving as his race engineer for several seasons. [5] According to both parties, Hamlin had promised Wheeler his head crew chief job six or seven years before he finally got the job. [6] In the first race of the season, Wheeler shepherded Hamlin to a win in the 2016 Daytona 500. [7]

2019–2020: Leavine Family Racing

After leading Hamlin and the No. 11 team for three years, it was revealed in November 2018 that Wheeler would move to Leavine Family Racing for the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series to be crew chief for the organization's No. 95 entry, driven by Matt DiBenedetto. [8] On September 24, 2019, Leavine Family Racing announced that Wheeler would be promoted to competition director for the team in 2020 while Jason Ratcliff would replace him as the crew chief of the No. 95, now driven by Christopher Bell. [9] [10]

2021–present: 23XI Racing

On October 30, 2020, 23XI Racing announced that Wheeler would be the crew chief for their No. 23 with Bubba Wallace in 2021. [11]

In September 2021, 23XI Racing announced that Wheeler would be promoted to Director of Competition.

Personal life

Born on November 4, 1978, in Southold, New York, Wheeler attended Southold High School [12] and later Kettering University to pursue a degree in mechanical engineering. He graduated from the college in 2002, and currently resides in Huntersville, North Carolina. [13]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Denny Hamlin</span> American racing driver and team owner (born 1980)

James Dennis Alan Hamlin is an American professional stock car racing driver and team owner. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 11 Toyota Camry XSE for Joe Gibbs Racing. He also co-owns and operates 23XI Racing with basketball Hall of Famer Michael Jordan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joe Gibbs Racing</span> NASCAR racing team

Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) is an American professional stock car racing organization founded by Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs. His son, J. D. Gibbs, ran the team with him until his death in 2019. Founded in Huntersville, North Carolina, in 1992. JGR has won five Cup Series championships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bootie Barker</span> NASCAR crew chief

Robert Aldridge "Bootie" Barker III is an American professional stock car racing crew chief who currently works for 23XI Racing as the crew chief for the No. 23 Toyota Camry XSE driven by Bubba Wallace in the NASCAR Cup Series. In the past, Barker has worked for Ashton Lewis, Bill Davis Racing, Jasper Motorsports, Hendrick Motorsports and Germain Racing. Barker was also a television co-host on NASCAR Performance, a weekly program on the now-defunct Speed Channel.

Michael “Mike” Ford is an American NASCAR crew chief from Morristown, Tennessee who most recently was known to be working for RSS Racing in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.

Since its introduction to motorsport in the early 1970s, Toyota has been involved in a number of motorsport activities, most notably in Formula One, NASCAR, IndyCar, sports car racing, various off-road rallies and the WRC. Currently, Toyota participates in the Toyota Racing Series, Super Formula, Formula Three, Formula Drift, NHRA, USAC, Super GT, NASCAR, the WRC and the WEC. All of Toyota's motorsport activities are handled by Toyota Gazoo Racing.

David B. Rogers is an American NASCAR crew chief who works as the performance director for 23XI Racing. He previously worked as a crew chief for Joe Gibbs Racing in both the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series as well as the technical director for JGR's Xfinity operations. He has over a decade of experience as a crew chief, all with JGR. Over the course of his career, he has worked in the NASCAR Cup Series and Xfinity Series with drivers Jason Leffler, Denny Hamlin, Aric Almirola, Tony Stewart, Travis Kittleson, J. J. Yeley, Kyle Busch, Joey Logano, Brad Coleman, Matt DiBenedetto, Michael McDowell, Carl Edwards, Daniel Suárez, Matt Tifft, Kyle Benjamin, Riley Herbst, and Daniel Hemric. Hemric and Rogers won the 2021 NASCAR Xfinity Series championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jason Ratcliff</span> NASCAR crew chief

Jason Mederic Ratcliff is an American retired NASCAR crew chief, who previously was employed by Joe Gibbs Racing as the crew chief for their No. 19 Toyota Supra in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driven by multiple drivers. He has worked for JGR since 2005 and prior to that was a crew chief for Brewco Motorsports and a pit crew member with LAR Motorsports and Sadler Brothers Racing. He is the 2009 NASCAR Nationwide Series championship-winning crew chief, winning the championship with driver Kyle Busch.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bubba Wallace</span> American racing driver (born 1993)

William Darrell "Bubba" Wallace Jr. is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 23 Toyota Camry XSE for 23XI Racing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adam Stevens (NASCAR)</span> American NASCAR crew chief (born 1978)

Adam Gregory Stevens is a NASCAR Cup Series crew chief for Christopher Bell since 2021. In 2015, he became the first crew chief since Jeff Hammond in 1982 to win the championship in his rookie season as the crew chief for Kyle Busch.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Billy Scott (crew chief)</span> American crew chief

Billy Scott is an American NASCAR crew chief who works for 23XI Racing as the crew chief for their No. 45 Toyota Camry driven by Tyler Reddick.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series</span> 71st season of NASCAR Cup Series racing

The 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series was the 71st season of NASCAR professional stock car racing in the United States, and the 48th modern-era Cup series season. The season began at Daytona International Speedway with the Advance Auto Parts Clash, the Gander RV Duel qualifying races and the 61st running of the Daytona 500. The regular season ended with the Brickyard 400 in September. The playoffs ended with the Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead–Miami Speedway on November 17, 2019. Joey Logano of Team Penske entered as the defending series champion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 NASCAR Cup Series</span> 72nd season of NASCAR Cup Series racing

The 2020 NASCAR Cup Series was the 72nd season for NASCAR professional stock car racing in the United States and the 49th season for the modern era Cup Series. The season began at Daytona International Speedway with the Busch Clash, the Bluegreen Vacations Duel qualifying races, and the 62nd running of the Daytona 500. The regular season ended with the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona on August 29. The NASCAR playoffs ended with the Season Finale 500, the first finale at Phoenix Raceway on November 8.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ty Gibbs</span> American racing driver

Tyler Randal Gibbs is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 54 Toyota Camry XSE for Joe Gibbs Racing and part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the Nos. 19 and 20 Toyota GR Supras for JGR. Gibbs was the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion and 2021 ARCA Menards Series champion. He is the grandson of former NFL coach and NASCAR team owner Joe Gibbs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2021 NASCAR Cup Series</span> 73rd season of NASCAR Cup Series racing

The 2021 NASCAR Cup Series was the 73rd season for NASCAR professional stock car racing in the United States and the 50th season for the modern era Cup Series. The season started at Daytona International Speedway with the Busch Clash, where it was the first year that the non-points event was run on the track's road course layout instead of the oval. That race was followed by the Bluegreen Vacations Duel qualifying races, and the 63rd running of the Daytona 500, the first points race of the season. The regular season also ended at Daytona with the 2021 Coke Zero Sugar 400 on August 28, where Kyle Larson won the Regular Season Championship. Following the 2021 Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway on October 31, Chevrolet claimed its 40th Manufacturer's Championship and its first since 2015. The NASCAR playoffs ended with the NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway on November 7 with Larson earning his first Cup Series championship after a 10-win season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 NASCAR Cup Series</span> 74th season of NASCAR Cup Series racing

The 2022 NASCAR Cup Series was the 74th season for NASCAR professional stock car racing in the United States and the 51st season for the modern Cup Series. The 2022 season marked the debut of the Next Gen Car, which was originally supposed to debut in 2021, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, this was the first season to have races covered by USA Network, which took over for the now-defunct NBCSN.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Gabehart</span> NASCAR crew chief

Christopher Allen Gabehart is an American NASCAR crew chief and former stock car racing driver. He currently works for Joe Gibbs Racing as the crew chief for Denny Hamlin in the No. 11 Toyota Camry in the NASCAR Cup Series, a position he has held since 2019. He's previously worked for Gibbs as a crew chief in the NASCAR Xfinity Series for Brandon Jones, Erik Jones, Kyle Benjamin, and Ryan Preece. Before becoming an engineer and crew chief, Gabehart was a driver himself and won the CRA Super Series championship in 2007 and won the All American 400 in 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">23XI Racing</span> NASCAR team

23XI Racing is an American professional auto racing organization that competes in the NASCAR Cup Series. It is owned and operated by Hall of Fame basketball player Michael Jordan, along with current Joe Gibbs Racing driver and three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin. The team name represents a combination of Michael Jordan's No. 23 he wore during most of his NBA career and Denny Hamlin's No. 11 which he has driven his entire career in the Cup series. The organization fields the Nos. 23, 45, and 50 Toyota teams for drivers Bubba Wallace, Tyler Reddick, and three other drivers, including Kamui Kobayashi, Corey Heim, and Juan Pablo Montoya. They currently have a technical alliance with JGR.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2023 NASCAR Cup Series</span> 75th season of NASCAR Cup Series racing

The 2023 NASCAR Cup Series was the 75th season for NASCAR professional stock car racing in the United States and the 52nd season for the modern-era Cup Series. The season started with the Busch Light Clash at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on February 5. That race was followed by the Daytona Duel qualifying races and the 65th running of the Daytona 500 on February 19, both at Daytona International Speedway. The season ended with the NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway on November 5.

Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) is an American professional stock car racing organization founded by Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs. His son, J. D. Gibbs, ran the team with him until his death in 2019. Founded in Huntersville, North Carolina, in 1992. JGR has won five Cup Series championships.

References

  1. ↑ "Michael Carl Wheeler from Huntersville, NC". Radaris.com. Retrieved 14 August 2024.
  2. ↑ "Engineering in the fast lane". Kettering University. Retrieved 2016-05-16.
  3. ↑ "NASCAR America: Is Mike Wheeler ready to call the shots for Denny Hamlin?". NBC Sports. 2014-08-01. Retrieved 2016-05-16.
  4. ↑ "Michael Wheeler Crew Chief Statistics - Racing-Reference.info". racing-reference.info. Retrieved 2016-05-16.
  5. ↑ "Joe Gibbs Racing to make crew chief changes for 2016". Motorsport.com. Retrieved 2016-05-16.
  6. ↑ Turner, Jared. "'Wheels' up: Denny Hamlin expects to be with new Sprint Cup crew chief for long haul". FOX Sports. Retrieved 2016-05-16.
  7. ↑ "Denny Hamlin promised Mike Wheeler the crew chief job for the No. 11 team, and the pairing finally happened this year". accesswdun.com. Retrieved 2016-05-16.
  8. ↑ "Door Bumper Clear 122 - Grinning Like a Possum". player.fm. Retrieved 13 November 2018.
  9. ↑ "Christopher Bell to compete in No. 95 with Leavine Family Racing in 2020". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. September 24, 2019. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
  10. ↑ Page, Scott (September 24, 2019). "Christopher Bell joins Leavine Family Racing for 2020". Jayski's Silly Season Site . NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
  11. ↑ "Bubba Wallace, Denny Hamlin reveal manufacturer, technical alliance for 23XI Racing". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. October 30, 2020.
  12. ↑ Parpan, Grant (September 10, 2015). "Southold native is living his dream as a NASCAR crew chief". The Suffolk Times. Times Review Media Group. Retrieved August 18, 2019.
  13. ↑ "Meet Crew Chief Mike Wheeler". Toyota Racing Development . Toyota. September 30, 2015. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.