There are two things you need to know about Chip Ganassi: He hates to lose, and he's exceedingly blunt about the reasons why he doesn't win.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Jamie McMurray's No. 1 Earnhardt Ganassi Racing team made a couple key changes in the offseason. That left McMurray and his teammate, Juan Montoya, who's working with a new crew chief, anxious to begin Thursday's Preseason Thunder test session at Daytona International Speedway.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Earnhardt Ganassi Racing suffered through a subpar 2011 Sprint Cup season as a group and after some major changes to EGR's structure, no one's readier for the 2012 season to begin than Jamie McMurray and his teammate, Juan Montoya.

Juan Montoya's duties in South Florida began well before the driver arrived at the race track. His first appearance during NASCAR's recent season-ending weekend was not in a firesuit, but in a sport coat. The scene was not Homestead-Miami Speedway, but a ballroom in the lavish Ritz-Carlton on Miami Beach. And he was surrounded not by race fans, but by the bold and the beautiful of the region's Latin community, impeccably-dressed men and high-heeled women brought together by a cause.

Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates announced Tuesday that Chris Heroy has been named crew chief of the No. 42 Chevrolet with driver Juan Montoya. Heroy takes the role effective immediately in preparation for the 2012 season.