BY TEAM FORD RACING CORRESPONDENT

Bristol, Tenn. — Things keep getting better and better for the No. 21 Motorcraft Ford team. This week’s good news comes in another new hire for the team. This time it’s Hoyt Overbach’s acquisition that raised the stakes at the famed Wood Brothers Racing team.

The Woods hired Overbach, one of the best chassis specialists in the business, yesterday and he reported to duty at Bristol, today, ready to go. Hoyt has been somewhat joined at the hip to Michael "Fatback" McSwain for the past number of years and has been practically as close to Ricky Rudd for nearly as long.

Overbach worked with Fatback and Rudd starting at the driver’s self-owned team, Rudd Performance Motorsports. Overbach then followed the pair to Robert Yates Racing. Ultimately, the chassis guru followed McSwain to Joe Gibbs Racing. Overbach took a bit of a vacation after McSwain left JGR several weeks ago before deciding to join the old gang in the Motorcraft shops.

The Wood’s new chassis man is rather quiet, and would rather have folks notice him by his work. But he did tell www.teamfordracing.com, “I started yesterday and I’m loving it!”

Len Wood piped up saying, “We told him that he had to start before California and he agreed.” Showing his dry sense of humor Overbach started shaking his head as he worked on a shock and muttered, “That was almost the deal breaker right there.” The comment cracked-up both Wood and Overbach, obviously happy to be in each other’s company.

Solid results will take several weeks to show as McSwain works to get the 14 or so Motorcraft Ford Tauruses into fighting trim. However, Hoyt will only shorten that timeframe since Fatback won’t have to worry about taking care of the chassis, Overbach knows what Rudd looks for in his cars due to the years the three have spent together.

CONTENDER
The 21 team made light of Rudd’s and Fatback’s at time charged relationship, buying two pair of boxing gloves. On the business end of the red pair is written Rooster, Rudd’s nickname, and written on the blue pair Fatback.

Fatback poked this TFR correspondent in the stomach and jokingly asked, “Think we’ve got this worked out or what?” as he pointed toward the gloves.

It would appear so as the mood is much improved from a month ago on the 21 truck. Rudd, after practice, gestured driving an imaginary steering wheel, “I’ve got the feel back in the car already. Give these guy a couple of weeks and we should be going pretty good.”

NEW FIELD PRESENCE
Ford Racing Technology’s Interim Field Director, Ben Leslie is here at Bristol Motor Speedway, getting the lay of the land. Leslie looks a little out of place wearing a Ford shirt, like seeing Jeff Burton in AOL colors, the newness of the moves causes a second glance.

Leslie told www.teamfordracing.com his biggest challenge is going to be branching out from his Cup-only routine to taking in all of NASCAR’s top three touring series. “I’ve got to find out what those teams needs are.”

But the breadth of challenges appeals to Leslie as the grind of the Cup Series was getting to him. Or to quote Leslie, “I wasn’t so much burnt out on Cup as I was burnt out on running bad.”

Leslie said the challenge of Cup racing is all encompassing and a true challenge when everything is going smoothly. “But when you’re not running well it amplifies all the troubles going 38 weeks brings.”