Behind the wheel: Ray Evernham won big as Jeff Gordon's crew chief. Now he's trying to score as a NASCAR team owner.

• Author: Goldberg, Steve
• Position: Feature

Like a statue, Ray Evernham Jr. stands, arms crossed and locked to his chest. He's atop a trailer used to transport equipment for his auto-racing team. Earphones connected to a two-way radio on his belt hold a red baseball cap and sunglasses tight to his head. He's watching his cars practice at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord. The UAW-GM Quality 500, part of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing's Winston Cup series, is two days away.

Atop the 18-wheeler, silhouetted against the afternoon sky, Evernham, 45, looks as if he's top of the world. In his previous job, he was. When Jeff Gordon won three Winston Cup championships -- the most prestigious in NASCAR -- from 1995 to 1999, he was crew chief, in charge of getting the car ready, setting race strategy and changing it, if necessary, during a race. He was the head coach, and Gordon was his star player.

His stint with Gordon was the first time Evemham had truly succeeded in racing, and even he didn't see it coming. In high school, a science teacher told him that he would never amount to anything, and for a long time, he did little to prove the teacher wrong. His driving career had been a disappointment, largely because he was more interested in partying. Hollywood Ray, they called him. But as a crew chief, he seemed to be a different person. His success with Gordon was born of preparation, hard work and a stubborn streak so wide it drove him to argue frequently with -- even throw things at one of -- his bosses.

His success, though, attracted a suitor. Dodge wanted to get back into Winston Cup racing after a 14-year absence, and it wanted Evernham to lead its multimillion-dollar effort. He would spearhead development of new cars for and distribute parts to 10 Dodge-sponsored Winston Cup teams, and he would create and own two of them. The arrangement appealed to his desire for a new challenge. It also held the potential to make him much richer, though he insists money isn't his main goal.

He left Hendrick Motorsports, owner of Gordon's team, in September 1999 to form Evernham Group and its largest subsidiary, Evernham Motorsports, which owns the racing teams. The leap wasn't without risk. As crew chief, his annual income, including salary and endorsements, was well over $1 million. Dodge's money would encourage, but not guarantee, his success. "Like any other business, if it works I'm going to make money," he says. "If it doesn't work, I'm going to lose my ass."

Making it work means persuading Dodge and his other sponsors that they made a wise investment. Sponsorship money accounts for 75% of Evemham Motorsports' revenue. To keep it coming, sponsors have to feel they're getting their money's worth. Dodge, for example, needs to be convinced that its NASCAR program is causing enough car and truck sales to justify the cost. That means getting the Dodge brand in front of potential customers' eyeballs as often as possible. There's a saying in racing: What wins on Sunday sells on Monday. It's the same with Evernham: "If I reach my competition goals, my financial goals will be met."

Since Evernham left Hendrick, Gordon hasn't been as dominant -- he finished ninth in the Winston Cup...