Ray Evernham
Raymond Donald Evernham Jr. (born August 26, 1957) is an American consultant for Hendrick Companies, formerly an auto racing crew chief for Bill Davis Racing and Hendrick Motorsports, owner of his own team Evernham Motorsports from 2001 to 2010, and analyst for ESPN's NASCAR coverage. A three time Winston Cup Series Champion with driver Jeff Gordon, in 1999, Evernham won the NASCAR Winston Cup Illustrated "Person of the Year". Evernham was inducted to the NASCAR Hall of Fame, Class of 2018.
Ray Evernham
Consultant
- Former crew chief for Jeff Gordon
- Founder of Evernham Motorsports then Gillett Evernham Motorsports (eventually merged with Petty Enterprises and sold)
2
Evernham is the co-founder of the racing series Superstar Racing Experience (SRX).
Racer[edit]
Evernham was a modified racer. When he was 26 years old, he was hired by the International Race of Champions (IROC) as a chassis specialist. Drivers were impressed that he could translate what they were saying about the car's handling into technological adjustments.[1]
He crashed at Flemington Speedway in the middle of the 1991 season.[1] He damaged his brain stem, which left depth perception impairment.[1] He said, "When you wreck that bad, you don't remember anything about it."[1] As a driver, he added, "I couldn't meet my own expectations, and that frustrated the hell out of me." His accident prompted officials to put foam blocks in the corners to lessen impacts.[1]
Television career[edit]
Evernham has dipped into television several times as an analyst. He has worked three separate stints for ESPN/ABC: in 2000, 2008–2010, and 2012–2013. He has worked both race coverage and studio coverage at various points.
Evernham is host of the show AmeriCARna on Velocity since 2013.
Evernham works on NBCSN since 2015 as a color analyst and is paired up with Ralph Sheheen on broadcasts of the Whelen Modified Tour and Whelen Southern Modified Tour.
Controversies[edit]
During the 2006 season, former Evernham driver Jeremy Mayfield was fired from the No. 19 car for 'lack of performance,' as stated by the Evernham team. Court documents reveal that Mayfield blames Evernham's personal life, included a claim that a "close personal relationship" had developed between the then-married Evernham and development driver Erin Crocker, and "sub-par" equipment as the reasons he had not won a race in 2006.[11] Evernham admitted that he had an ongoing relationship with Crocker. Furthermore, he said about Crocker, "The proper thing to do and something her and I would like to do is move her to another race team."[12] Evernham and Crocker eventually were married at a private ceremony in Las Vegas on August 26, 2009.[13]
Evernham is also known for a 1995 penalty which was then the largest fine in NASCAR history. The $60,000 fine ($120,000 today) was imposed for using unapproved suspension parts on Jeff Gordon's car in a May 1995 race.