Rice named as crew chief for Scott Wimmer.

Bill Davis Racing has promoted Chris Rice to the position of crew chief for Scott Wimmer's 2003 NASCAR Busch Series effort.

Rice joined Bill Davis Racing during the 2002 season as the shock specialist for the No. 23 NASCAR Winston Cup team and Davis feels Rice is ready for the job.

"Chris is a bright guy that has paid his dues," said Davis. "He has climbed the ladder real quickly and I'm really impressed with what I have seen in him. I like the fact he is young and energetic. I feel it is an advantage that he has worked with the Winston Cup teams already, so he has a strong line of communication with the existing crew chiefs and engineers, and he can continue to draw from those resources. He also has a good relationship with Scott and we can count of them seeing eye-to-eye on setups. I feel he is ready and has all the tools he needs to grow the Busch program."

Wimmer was in complete agreement with Davis on the selection of Rice as crew chief.

"For all parties involved, it was a pretty easy decision that Chris was the one for this job," said Wimmer. "He showed a lot of his talents by helping turn the No. 23 Winston Cup team around. He and I have built a good relationship already. He listened to our team on the radio all year long during practice sessions and the races, so he's real familiar with everyone and how we work together. We have a really good Busch program already, but we needed a good person to come in to the existing program and provide guidance. I'm really excited about working with Chris and continuing to build upon the success that this team has accomplished."

Rice is honoured by the promotion to crew chief and his chance to work with a talented driver, such as Wimmer.

"This is an unbelievable opportunity for me," said Rice. "I am very thankful for everyone's belief in me to do this job. As far as Bill Davis goes, he gives you everything you need, as he's a racer himself. Scott is just an amazing talent. He showed everyone at the end of the 2002 season just how good he is. I've worked with him at tests sessions already, so feel the learning curve shouldn't be difficult at all. I'm really looking forward to building on the success this team has already achieved."