CORNELIUS, N.C. – Michael Waltrip Racing today named industry veteran Scott Miller as executive vice president of competition effective at the conclusion of the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup season.
Miller has served in several roles throughout his 16-year stint in NASCAR, most recently as director of competition at Richard Childress Racing. Miller has been a winning crew chief and has repeatedly guided teams into the Chase for the Sprint Cup from his management role.
Co-owner Michael Waltrip said the addition of Miller is part of his and co-owner Rob Kauffman’s commitment to consistent race winning and on-track performance.
“This is the highest ranking role in our competition department and we needed a person with great knowledge of our sport, experience in managing highly competitive personnel, and a vast technical background,” said Waltrip. “Scott is exactly all of those things. This is such an important hire for our organization.
“Scott is used to winning, and we expect a lot of each other. As owners, our job is to provide our teams the human and capital resources needed to be successful. This is another step in that maturing process.”
Miller will manage all competition aspects, including design, manufacturing and engineering, as well as the technical relationship between Toyota Racing Development’s resource facilities in Salisbury, N.C., and Costa Mesa, Calif.
“Michael Waltrip and Rob Kauffman have presented me with a great opportunity to assist them in moving their organization to the next level,” Miller said. “While the team is currently performing well, the ultimate goal is to become one of the elite teams in the sport, winning races and competing for championships. MWR appears to have assembled many of the necessary resources. It will be my responsibility to use them to their full potential.”
A native of Bardstown, Ky., Miller worked his way through the Indy Lights Series and Indy cars before moving to North Carolina in 1995 to join Tri-Star Motorsports as a shock specialist. Miller has worked at Childress since 1997 except for a stint at PPI Motorsports in 2000 and 2001.
He served as team engineer for Jeff Green in 2002 and worked with Kevin Harvick and Robby Gordon before serving as Dave Blaney’s crew chief in August 2005. In November 2005 he became Jeff Burton’s crew chief before moving to competition director.
MWR fields Toyota Camrys in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for Waltrip, David Reutimann and Martin Truex Jr. as well as a K&N Pro Series East entry for Brett Moffitt. The team also maintains Tad and Jodi Geschickter’s JTG-Daugherty’s No. 47 Toyota Camry driven by Bobby Labonte.
