PHIL GOULD - 04/23/1977
Gould, from Kendall Park section of South Brunswick in Middlesex County, NJ. Racing has commanded his attention since he started building his first car at 15. He raced for the first time at Wall Stadium just one week after his 18th birthday — the legal age for racers then. He moved to North Carolina, the home base for almost all racing teams, on a whim in 2000, after he talked to an old racing buddy. He lived with his brother and had no job for almost a month before signing on with a Xfinity Series team. Anything, he said, for a job in racing. In 2001, Gould moved to Evernham Motorsports, working on Bill Elliott’s #9 team as a mechanic and rear tire carrier. Gould helped secure victories with the #9 team at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2001, and in the Brickyard 400 in 2002. Gould joined Richard Childress Racing in 2003 as a mechanic on the #21 Xfinity Series Chevrolet. He was a valued asset as the team captured the Xfinity Owner’s title with Kevin Harvick and Johnny Sauter. In 2004, Gould became the car chief of the #2 Xfinity Chevrolet at RCR with Ron Hornaday and then with Clint Bowyer in 2005. Starting in 2006, Gould served as the car chief of the #07 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Chevrolet at RCR working with Clint Bowyer and Casey Mears. Midway through the 2009 season, Gould transferred over to a new role as
the car chief of the #29 Cup Series Chevy with Kevin Harvick. Gould was a part of the team that earned back-to-back third-place finishes in the Chase for the NASCAR Cup in 2010 and 2011. Gould first became a NASCAR crew chief in 2013 when he went to work for Richard Childress, and led the efforts of Brian Scott full time in the Xfinity Series. They had a good season, as the posted three top five finishes; including a second on the 2 1/2 mile of track at Indianapolis and also one at Richmond. 2014 saw the duo improve, and although they didn't get a win, they had six top five, and 23 top tens, and finished fourth in points. He left Childress to go to work for Jack Roush, and lead Elliott Sadler. The pair combined for four top five, and 17 top ten finishes. In 2016 Roush moved Gould to work with Ryan Reed. They started the year with six finishes between 13th and 16th. They had a season best of fifth at Elkhart Lake and ended the year with only one top five result. He did have seven top tens; and 25 top 16 finishes in 33 starts. It was during this year that Reed and Gould paired together to make their only Cup start to date. They raced at Talladega where they would start 18th and finish 26th in the lead pack. The following season saw both of them together again; and they both got their first Xfinity win. This came as the season kicked off at Daytona, they led nine laps as he, Kasey Kahne and Brad Keselowski battled over the final laps. Reed managed to take the lead with two laps to go, and held off the pack to get the win. The rest of the season played out pretty much like 2016 did. He had two top five finishes; added seven top tens, and 18 top 15's. 2018 was the final year for Gould to work with Reed. It was much like the previous year. They had a season best of third at Daytona for their best finish. They had two top fives; ten top tens, and 19 top 15's. All and all, this combination just proved to be an outfit that rarely were able to compete for a win. In 2019, Gould was hired by new comer Al Niece to work with his driver Ross Chastain in the Truck series. “I’m excited for the opportunity to join Niece Motorsports,” said Gould. “Niece Motorsports has really built a strong program in the last few years". This pairing bore fruit as Chastain grabbed three wins, and ten top fives. The pair had 18 top tens in 22 starts together. They also finished second in the points as Matt Crafton claimed the title. Chastain moved to the Xfinity Series in 2020, leaving Niece fielding several different drivers with Gould. Trevor Bayne was able to finish second at Talladega, as it was the only one any of the drivers would have that year. 2021 saw Gould work with Carson Hocevar for 15 races; six with Brett Moffitt and one with Bayley Currey. Hocevar finished in the top five twice; with a best finish of second at Charlotte. Hocevar run the Truck Series full time in 2022, with Gould calling the shots. They had seven top five finishes; with three second place results. He had bad luck, and just couldn't seem to pull off the win. He was second at Bristol on the dirt; followed by a second the next week. He also finished second at Kansas. He was in the running to win on several occasions, but bad luck or someone spinning him out cost him the win. Gould and Hocevar was back together in 2023 and had a good season. Gould’s biggest job seemed to be reigning in Carson to keep him from driving over his head. On several occasions Hocevar would get to racing someone hard; and over-drive his car and wreck himself of someone else. They got their first win at Texas. Starting at Darlington; race #9 of the season saw them go on a nice run; with no finish worse then a 12th over the next 14 races. During that time, they added three more wins and ten top five finishes. They advanced to the Championship race at Phoenix to contend for the championship. Oddly enough this race would be one of those races when he over-drove with ill effects. With about 30 laps to go, he and Corey Heim seemed to have the best trucks and were in a stiff battle for the win. On a restart, Hocevar dove down onto the apron to try and pass Heim, and Carson slid up into him; spinning them both. This ruined both teams chances to win the championship; and with two laps to go Heim exacted his revenge and crashed Hocevar as pay-back. For the season the duo paired together for four wins, eleven top five and 13 top ten finishes. Hocevar has been hired by TrackHouse Racing to race full time in the Cup series in 2024. Gould will remain with the #42 track to call the shots.
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