NEFF "REASSIGNMENT NOT WHAT I WANTED"
In a move reminiscent of
last year’s Whit Bazemore dismissal, Don Schumacher has demoted Mike “Zippy”
Neff to the role of “advisor” on the Mopar Oakley Dodge driven by Gary Scelzi.
Todd Okuhara will step away from the Jack Beckman operation to replace Neff.
Phil Shuler, Okahara’s
assistant, will assume the tuner role for Beckman.
“Todd and Phil have worked
together for about a year and Don wants to put them on their own to see if they
can handle it,” Neff said. “That way he’ll know for sure what he needs to do
for next year.”
Don Schumacher said there
was no demotion.
“There wasn’t a demotion,” Schumacher said. “He’s going to be an advisor for both the Mopar Oakley, MTS and Brut teams. With Mike’s decision to join John Force Racing, I needed to look toward the future for what we are going to do going forward. It was time to make an appropriate move in my mind. I wanted to put all three of my Funny Cars in the best position to win a championship.”
In a move reminiscent of
last year’s Whit Bazemore dismissal, Don Schumacher has demoted Mike “Zippy”
Neff to the role of “advisor” on the Mopar Oakley Dodge driven by Gary Scelzi.
Todd Okuhara will step away from the Jack Beckman operation to replace Neff.
Phil Shuler, Okahara’s
assistant, will assume the tuner role for Beckman.
“Todd and Phil have worked
together for about a year and Don wants to put them on their own to see if they
can handle it,” Neff said. “That way he’ll know for sure what he needs to do
for next year.”
Don Schumacher said there
was no demotion.
“There wasn’t a demotion,”
Schumacher said. “He’s going to be an advisor for both the Mopar Oakley, MTS and
Brut teams. With Mike’s decision to join John Force Racing, I needed to look
toward the future for what we are going to do going forward. It was time to
make an appropriate move in my mind. I wanted to put all three of my Funny Cars
in the best position to win a championship.”
Neff was taken aback by
Schumacher’s decision.
“It’s definitely not what
I wanted to do,” Neff said. “It’s not fair to my team and
According to Neff, because
of this arrangement and the Schumacher’s preparation for next year, he will be
allowed to make test runs for John Force Racing in order to become acclimated
to driving.
“Basically we agreed that
I would help him to prepare for what he needed to do next year if he allowed me
to do the same,” Neff said. “That’s where it’s at now. It should work well for
both us although it really wasn’t what I wanted to do.
“Don wants me there in
case this doesn’t work that he can put them back together and I can take back
over. That’s the main reason he wants me to stay.”
Schumacher confirmed that
Neff was a full-time employee for DSR and when he has an off opportunity that
he’ll grant Neff permission to test with JFR.
Schumacher said that he
manages the race teams on a day-to-day basis and when asked if immediate
success by Okahara and Shuler would make Neff’s existence expendable, he stated
that no one is ever really expendable.
“Changes always take place
and no one is ever expendable on a team,” Schumacher said. “I don’t know what
the future will hold for my team.”
Schumacher wants it
perfectly clear this season is not sacrificed for the Mopar Oakley team.
“I believe in making this
move will make our overall team better,” Schumacher said. “I look for