GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Life is full of difficult decisions. When it comes to leaving a job someone’s worked for over a decade, it makes it more difficult to go somewhere else.
In the case of crew chief Dickie Venables, departing from Tony Stewart Racing and driver Matt Hagan, who he’d worked alongside for 13 years, was a tough but necessary breakup.
“It was difficult in that I probably got in the comfort zone working over there with the same driver and crew for basically 13 years,” Venables said. “Obviously the same driver and the core group of of the crew as well.
“But it was time. They were wanting to head in a different direction. They still wanted me to be a part of that over there, but kind of oversee both cars and stuff. Not really be in during the week in person. I was brought up in the sport… I’m at the shop every day and I just always like to be around and that’s what makes somebody good.
“I feel like you got to live what you’re doing out here. It’s kind of a passion. It wasn’t a job, really. It was time, they had a direction they wanted to go and I was looking to do something else.”
Then came a call from Kalitta Motorsports General Manager Chad Head, who gave the four-time champion a new adventure in his storied career — working with J.R. Todd and his DHL Funny Car team.
Now with a new team to lead, Venables’ drive to compete is burning as much as ever.
“That’s what drives crew chiefs. It’s no different than a driver,” Venables said. “It’s competitive. The drivers, they compare themselves to each other and so do the crew and crew chiefs and stuff.
“I was fortunate to win three championships with Hagan and won one with Tony (Pedregon). I kind of look at it as hopefully I can be a part of getting one done for J.R.”
Todd and his DHL team enjoyed a win in the season-opening NHRA Gatornationals last year, however, endured more consistent struggles once the Countdown to the Championship started.
“We just fell on the toilet for whatever reason,” Todd said. “There’s not one thing that you can pinpoint what we did or should have done.”
Once Venables entered the equation during the offseason, however, it’s become a solid reset for the team as it aims for better results.
“After a while, I feel like you kind of don’t know the things you don’t know until somebody like Dickie comes in, like, ‘Hey, this is what you’re doing over here. This is what I like to do.’
“It’s just completely different than what we have done in years past,” Todd said. “Kind of just changes the mindset here and it’s definitely been a breath of fresh air seeing the guys attitudes upbeat this year, knowing that I think we all have expectations of going out there and winning races and competing for a championship, given Dickie’s track history.”
Venables résumé speaks for itself. The multi-time champion has found immense success with some of NHRA’s greats in Hagan and Pedregon.
But it’s not going to be that easy to flip Kalitta Motorsports’ lone Funny Car team around. Since Todd’s first title in 2018, the DHL team hasn’t finished better than sixth (2020) in the points chase.
With that in mind, Todd knows it won’t be a simple, flip-of-the-switch fix.
“It’s not like Dickie shows up and waves a magic wand on the car, it’s like, ‘All right, here we go, this thing’s gonna rip,'” Todd explained.
“It’s gonna take races before we get a handle on things. I’m OK with that.”
Patience in drag racing is an ironic concept, considering the sport prides itself on quickness and smashing elapsed time and speed records.
Nonetheless, Venables is eying the long game. According to the 60-year-old, the team has made roughly 20 passes tentering this weekend’s NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville (Fla.) Raceway.
That’s become the baseline for a checklist.
“We’re certainly closer. Each run we are learning,” Venables said. “We’re checking off boxes of the stuff that needs to be addressed, but it’s kind of a one at a time.
“A nitro car is… you have to kind of massage it into a position to where you can run it quick. You can’t force it or they can blow up, they can do all kinds of weird stuff. I’ve been doing it long enough to know you can’t force it. You can’t get mad at it. Just turn everything to the right. Make it go fast, because it’ll remind you, ‘Hey, you shouldn’t do that.’
“It’s dangerous, it’s expensive, so there’s a process,” Venables continued. “We probably made 10 half passes or less before we try to run it to the finish line.
“Making sure everything’s right. So ‘OK, take it another little further down the track.'”
As for this weekend, the team is in an odd position as he stated they’re “still in test mode, but we are at a race.”
“We certainly want to qualify and do well,” Venables said. “But that being said, Race day is a different story.
“Sometimes you do whatever it takes. That’s where the nobs might get turned to the right. But then there’s a process you have to take or it’ll bite you.”
That process can be grueling and frustrating, especially for a driver who’s a proven champion. But for Todd, he’s firmly at peace and trusts Venables’ direction.
“Kind of taking baby steps,” Todd affirmed. “When you take big swings and it doesn’t work, or whatever, kind of get yourself lost.
“I told myself, before we even start the season, like, just be patient and trust the process.”
Todd qualified 11th for Sunday’s Gatornationals as he’ll take on Bobby Bode III in the first round of eliminations.
