Hamlin takes some blame for lack of success with Grubb

LAS VEGAS – Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch will have new crew chiefs next season as part of Joe Gibbs Racing's changes as it expands to four teams.

But while Hamlin indicated Thursday he was ready for a change from working with crew chief Darian Grubb, Busch said he would have been fine continuing with Dave Rogers.

Instead, Hamlin will have Rogers atop the No. 11 team's pit box next season, Grubb will move to newcomer Carl Edwards and Busch will team with Adam Stevens, who worked on the Xfinity Series (formerly Nationwide). Matt Kenseth remains with Jason Ratcliff.

Asked why his relationship with Grubb never produced the magic the team hoped, Hamlin took part of the blame. He was so comfortable with now-former engineer Mike Wheeler (who was promoted to Xfinity Series crew chief Thursday) that it impacted his communication with Grubb, Hamlin acknowledged.

Hamlin said his communication with Grubb was never what it should have been from the start because he was "almost kind of shy to kind of talk to the new guy coming in."

"A lot of it was my fault, because immediately I get out of the race car and go to 'Wheels' to talk about what the car is doing and adjustments because I had such a good communication with him for so many years," Hamlin said. "So Darian was always kind of the next guy I talked to and never really got a fair shake at it.

"I think now that 'Wheels' is moving on and going to be a crew chief, I start fresh with a new crew chief with Dave, and I think that's what it's going to take for the communication to be good."

Hamlin said it might hurt losing Wheeler, given their longtime bond, but expressed optimism about working with Rogers. The two had good communication while winning races in the Xfinity Series and have continued to talk and trade text messages throughout the years.

"My communication off the racetrack is just as (good) with Dave as it is with Darian," Hamlin said. "When I get out of the race car, I'm going to go back to my old Nationwide crew chief and talk things over. … It's really the perfect situation for me."

Meanwhile, Busch said he would have been satisfied if there were no changes on his pit box. Busch and Rogers' relationship had not frayed "one bit," he said, despite their bickering on the radio.

He compiled a wish list of Cup crew chiefs who might work with him, but the team ultimately decided to promote Stevens, who guided Busch to many wins in the Xfinity Series.

"There was definitely a wish list on my end, and there was definitely a, 'Hey, you're getting Adam Stevens' on their end," Busch said. "At the end of the day, it just all came down to bringing Adam up."

The move has worked with other JGR crew chiefs such as Rogers and Ratcliff after they first developed in the lower-tier series.

"You only hope it works for the best," Busch said. "The relationship Adam and I have developed over the last couple years has been good, it's been fun, but it's obviously been at a completely different level than what this is."

Rogers was good at keeping Busch in check when the driver would lose his temper. So will Stevens be able to handle Busch when things don't go well?

"The relationship I've had with Adam from the start is we've told each other, 'Hey, I'm not yelling at you, I'm yelling at the situation, alright? It's not personal,' " Busch said. "We've got that relationship already."

There are more changes coming to JGR.

The team confirmed Thursday it has hired former Furniture Row Racing crew chief Todd Berrier to be its new Director of Inspections.

Follow Gluck on Twitter @jeff_gluck