Brief-Motor racing-Eury Jr. replaced as crew chief of Earnhardt

NEW YORK, May 28 (Reuters) - Tony Eury Jr. was replaced as Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s crew chief Thursday in the wake of a 40th place finish by NASCAR's most popular driver at the Coca-Cola 600.

The poor finish in Monday's rain-delayed race at Charlotte, N.C., dropped Earnhardt to 19th in the Sprint Cup Series standings.

Lance McGrew was named the interim crew chief, beginning with the the June 7 race at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway. Team manager Brian Whitesell will be the crew chief this weekend in Dover, Del.

(Writing by Steve Ginsburg in Washington; Editing by Kevin Fylan; To query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)