NASCAR Visionary and Motorsports Industry Innovator
Andy Papathanassiou became NASCAR’s first pit crew coach when hired by Hendrick Motorsports in 1992, as an original member of Jeff Gordon’s Dupont #24 race team. Prior to racing, Andy attended Stanford University on a football scholarship and started four years on the offensive line. He graduated with his Bachelor’s in Economics and Master’s in Organizational Behavior. His philosophy and views as an outsider to NASCAR ultimately shifted the paradigm of how pit crews recruit, select and develop team members. Previously, pit crews were comprised of mechanics who devoted little time to practicing pit stops - relying instead on their vast, individual knowledge of car building and racing experience. Andy employed an athletic mindset and problem-solving approach, which centered on practice and repetition, coaching and review, innovation, and process improvement. Collectively, he calls this philosophy, Over the Wall™. Over The Wall thinking changed the paradigm of how all NASCAR teams select, train, and compete. After a 30-year racing career, with over 250 wins and 16 series championships, Andy speaks, conducts experiential events, and consults around high-performing teams, transformative leadership, culture, paradigms, disruptive thinking and athletic mindset.