Grubb moves to Joe Gibbs Racing

NASCAR championship crew chief Darian Grubb will work with Denny Hamlin for the 2012 Sprint Cup season.

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Grubb has been hired to lead the No. 11 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing announced Friday, and will replace Mike Ford.

“Darian is a great addition to our organization and person to lead our No. 11 FedEx team,” said Joe Gibbs, owner of Joe Gibbs Racing. “Obviously he has proven the ability to guide a team to a championship and we are excited to have him working with Denny toward achieving that goal here at Joe Gibbs Racing.”

Grubb won the championship with Tony Stewart this season, leading the Stewart-Haas Racing driver to five wins in the 10 Chase for the Sprint Cup races. Grubb spent the past three seasons as crew chief for Stewart. Before that, Grubb spent six years with Hendrick Motorsports.

“I’m thrilled to join Joe Gibbs Racing,” Grubb said. “The chance to work with Denny is something I’m excited about. When you sit down with Joe and (president) J.D. Gibbs, you can’t help but be excited about this opportunity and the team aspects of JGR. There is no question about the level of support you get here and I’m looking forward to working with everyone across the entire organization.”

Grubb has 11 career wins with Stewart. At Hendrick, he worked as a crew chief with Casey Mears in 2007 and also served as interim crew chief for Jimmie Johnson for the first four races of the 2006 season with the team winning two of those four races, including the Daytona 500.