Evernham Motorsports was an American professional
stock car racing
Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses measuring approximately . It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It ori ...
organization that competed in the
NASCAR Cup Series
The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. In 1971, ...
. The team was founded in 2000 by former
Hendrick Motorsports
Hendrick Motorsports (HMS) is an American professional auto racing organization that competes in the NASCAR Cup Series. The team was founded in 1984 as All Star Racing by Rick Hendrick. Hendrick Motorsports has won a NASCAR-record 291 Cup Seri ...
crew chief
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 2 ...
, entering full-time competition as a two-car operation in 2001 and fielding additional full-time entries in alliances with
Ultra Motorsports
Ultra Motorsports was a NASCAR Winston Cup and Craftsman Truck Series racing team. Jim Smith helped start the team and the Craftsman Truck Series. It ran full-time in the Craftsman Truck Series from 1995 to 2005, earning 31 series wins and a ch ...
and the
Valvoline
Valvoline Inc. is an American manufacturer and distributor of Valvoline-brand automotive oil, additives, and lubricants. It also owns the Valvoline Instant Oil Change and Valvoline Express Care chains of car repair centers. , it is the second la ...
corporation. The organization was renamed Gillett Evernham Motorsports in 2007 after former
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...
and
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is a professional football club based in Liverpool, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Founded in 1892, the club joined the Football League the following year and has p ...
owner
George Gillett bought a
controlling interest
A controlling interest is an ownership interest in a corporation with enough voting stock shares to prevail in any stockholders' motion. A majority of voting shares (over 50%) is always a controlling interest. When a party holds less than the majo ...
from founder Evernham, and merged with
Petty Enterprises in 2009 to become
Richard Petty Motorsports
Richard Petty Motorsports (RPM) was an American professional stock car racing team that competed in the NASCAR Cup Series. The team was founded as a result of the merger between Gillett Evernham Motorsports (GEM) and Petty Enterprises, with ...
.
Team history
![Evernham-Motorsports-NASCAR-Garage-July-9-2005](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/72/Evernham-Motorsports-NASCAR-Garage-July-9-2005.jpg)
Evernham Motorsports was founded in 2000 by former crew chief
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 2 ...
, who won three championships atop the pit box for
Jeff Gordon
Jeffery Michael Gordon (born August 4, 1971) is an American former professional stock car racing driver, who is the Vice Chairman for Hendrick Motorsports. He raced full-time from 1993 to 2015, driving the No. 24 Chevrolet for Hendrick M ...
and
Hendrick Motorsports
Hendrick Motorsports (HMS) is an American professional auto racing organization that competes in the NASCAR Cup Series. The team was founded in 1984 as All Star Racing by Rick Hendrick. Hendrick Motorsports has won a NASCAR-record 291 Cup Seri ...
. Evernham was named a team manager and owner for
Daimler Chrysler
Stellantis North America (officially FCA US and formerly Chrysler ()) is one of the " Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is the American subsidiary of the multinational automoti ...
's return to NASCAR's top level through their
Dodge
Dodge is an American brand of automobiles and a division of Stellantis, based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Dodge vehicles have historically included performance cars, and for much of its existence Dodge was Chrysler's mid-priced brand above P ...
brand, leading the development of the
Intrepid R/T race car that debuted in 2001. The team also operated with direct factory backing and sponsorship from Dodge.
The team originally operated out of the former facility of
Bill Elliott Racing
Bill Elliott Racing (formerly known as Charles Hardy Racing, Elliott-Hardy Racing, and Elliott-Marino Racing) was a NASCAR Winston Cup, Busch and Craftsman Truck Series team. It was owned and operated by 1988 NASCAR champion Bill Elliott from 1 ...
.
In August 2007, then
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...
and
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is a professional football club based in Liverpool, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Founded in 1892, the club joined the Football League the following year and has p ...
owner
George N. Gillett Jr.
George Nield Gillett Jr. (born October 22, 1938) is an American businessman. Originally from Wisconsin, he lives in Vail, Colorado.
Biography
Gillett graduated from Lake Forest Academy in 1956. He attended Amherst College and is a 1961 graduate ...
purchased a majority stake in the race team. The operation was renamed Gillett Evernham Motorsports, with Ray Evernham retaining substantial ownership and the role of CEO. Evernham stated the partnership would allow him to focus on "racing operations and team performance", with the Gillett family handling the business end of the operation.
GEM proceeded to hire several financial executives to assist with corporate marketing, including former chairman of
LendingTree
LendingTree is an online lending marketplace headquartered in Charlotte, NC. The business platform allows potential borrowers to connect with multiple loan operators to find optimal terms for loans, credit cards, deposit accounts, insurance, et ...
Tom Reddin to replace Evernham as CEO.
[
At the beginning of the 2008 season, GEM signed a technical and marketing agreement with independent driver ]Robby Gordon
Robert Wesley Gordon (born January 2, 1969) is an American auto racing driver. He has raced in NASCAR, CART, the IndyCar Series, the Trans-Am Series, IMSA, IROC and the Dakar Rally. He is active in top-tier off road motorsports such as BITD, NO ...
, with plans to eventually absorb Robby Gordon Motorsports
Robby Gordon Motorsports is a motorsports constructor owned by Robby Gordon. The company was formed in 2005 as a race team for Gordon's NASCAR career. RGM spent the years of 2005 to 2012 competing in the NASCAR Cup Series, and part-time stints ...
into the GEM stable. Under the terms of the alleged merger, Gordon would sell his one-car-operation to GEM for $23.5 million, then receive a four-year contract worth $12 million to drive for the team. The deal fell through, with GEM suing Gordon for violating the terms of the agreement.
After the 2008 season, turmoil emerged when A. J. Allmendinger
Anthony James "A. J." Allmendinger (born December 16, 1981) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 16 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Kaulig Racing.
Allmendinger's professi ...
and Reed Sorenson
Bradley Reed Sorenson (born February 5, 1986) is an American professional stock car racing driver and spotter. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 27 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE for Premium Motorsports, the Nos. 74/ ...
were signed to drive for the team, while Elliott Sadler
Elliott William Barnes Sadler (born April 30, 1975) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 10 Chevrolet Camaro for Kaulig Racing. Sadler is one of 36 dr ...
was released from his ride in the 19 car and planned to sue the team to keep his job. In the midst of a struggling economy, in January 2009 GEM merged with fellow Dodge team Petty Enterprises, which could no longer find sponsors for any of its cars, thus expanding the team to four cars. The organization was renamed Richard Petty Motorsports in the process. Ray Evernham was not involved in the merger negotiations, and both he and Richard Petty
Richard Lee Petty (born July 2, 1937), nicknamed "The King", is an American former stock car racing driver who raced from 1958 to 1992 in the former NASCAR Grand National and Winston Cup Series (now called the NASCAR Cup Series), most notabl ...
only maintained minority shares in the new team.
NASCAR Cup Series
Car No. 7 history
On November 16, 2001, Ultra Motorsports announced they had entered into a joint venture with Evernham Motorsports where the team would switch to Dodge Intrepid
The Dodge Intrepid is a full sized front-wheel drive four-door sedan that was produced by Dodge for model years 1993 to 2004. It is related to the Chrysler 300M, Chrysler Concorde, Chrysler LHS, Chrysler New Yorker, and Eagle Vision which we ...
s from Ford. Casey Atwood, who had been driving Evernham's No. 19 and needed a ride once Jeremy Mayfield
Jeremy Allen Mayfield (born May 27, 1969) is an American stock car racing driver. He drove cars for the Sadler brothers, T.W. Taylor, Cale Yarborough, Michael Kranefuss, Roger Penske, Ray Evernham, Bill Davis, and Gene Haas. In 2009, he drove f ...
became the team's second driver, would take over the 7 car for the 2002 season. The venture was known as Ultra-Evernham Motorsports, with Ultra owner Jim Smith handling day-to-day operations and Evernham handling technical and competition aspects of the team. Ray Evernham described it as "doing two and a half teams." In January 2002, Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio was a satellite radio (SDARS) and online radio service operating in North America, owned by Sirius XM Holdings.
Headquartered in New York City, with smaller studios in Los Angeles and Memphis, Tennessee, Memphis, Sirius ...
was named as the sponsor for the 7 car. In his sophomore season, Atwood struggled severely, with a 29.4 average finish for the year and a best finish of 11th. The poor performance was attributed to a lack of competitive equipment (with the team using second-hand Evernham machines), and a lack of effort on driver Atwood's part. The partnership was dissolved after Smith decided to remove Atwood from the car with two races left in the season. Ultra Motorsports Truck Series driver Jason Leffler
Jason Charles Leffler (September 16, 1975 – June 12, 2013) was an American professional open-wheel and stock car racing driver. Leffler began racing in the open-wheel ranks, competing in the 2000 Indianapolis 500 before moving to primaril ...
was named the interim driver. Jimmy Spencer would take over the car in 2003 for the once again independent Ultra Motorsports Dodge.[
]
Car No. 7 results
Car No. 9 history
Bill Elliott (2001–2003)
The No. 9 debuted in the 2001 Daytona 500 with Dodge's return to NASCAR. After half a decade as a driver and owner, 1988 Winston Cup Series champion Bill Elliott
William Clyde Elliott (born October 8, 1955), also known as Awesome Bill from Dawsonville, Million Dollar Bill, or Wild Bill is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He competes full time in the Camping World Superstar Racing ...
joined Evernham as a driver and re-assumed the No. 9 that he drove with Melling Racing
Melling Racing was a Championship-winning NASCAR Winston Cup Series race team owned by Harry Melling and his son Mark Melling. Harry Melling ran the team from its inception in 1982, to mid-1999. When Harry died after a heart attack in mid-1999, ...
. Elliott won the pole for the Daytona 500
The Daytona 500 is a NASCAR Cup Series motor race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is the first of two Cup races held every year at Daytona, the second being the Coke Zero Sugar 400, and one of three ...
and finished fifth. He marked the season with his first win in seven years at Homestead-Miami Speedway and finished 15th in points. Elliott would score two wins and finish 13th in points in 2002. He scored his final career win at North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
in fall 2003. After a ninth-place finish in the points that season, Elliott announced that due to the pressures of a full Nextel Cup schedule, he would step down from his full-time ride and would race the team's research and development
Research and development (R&D or R+D), known in Europe as research and technological development (RTD), is the set of innovative activities undertaken by corporations or governments in developing new services or products, and improving existi ...
car.
Kasey Kahne (2004–2008)
Elliott was replaced by rookie driver Kasey Kahne
Kasey Kenneth Kahne (; born April 10, 1980) is an American dirt track racing driver and former professional stock car racing driver. He last competed in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series in 2018, driving the No. 95 Dumont Jets/Procore, Procore ...
, a successful open-wheel racer just starting to gain respect in the Busch Series
The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...
, who left a development contract with Ford
Ford commonly refers to:
* Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford
* Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river
Ford may also refer to:
Ford Motor Company
* Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company
* Ford F ...
to sign with Evernham's Dodge team for the 2004 season. Tommy Baldwin Jr.
Thomas S. Baldwin Jr. (born October 27, 1966) is the team majority owner of Tommy Baldwin Racing and Competition Director of Premium Motorsports, the latter for whom he also serves as crew chief of the No. 15 car in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cu ...
would serve as crew chief for the No. 9 team.[ Kahne was arguably the least accomplished driver in a strong rookie class that included Busch Series winners ]Brian Vickers
Brian Lee Vickers (born October 24, 1983) is an American professional stock car and sports car racing driver. He last drove the No. 14 Chevrolet SS for Stewart-Haas Racing as an interim driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for the injured Tony ...
(the 2003 Champion), Scott Riggs
Russell Scott Riggs (born January 1, 1971) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He last competed in the 92 for RBR Enterprises in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
Racing career Early career
Riggs was born in Bahama, Nort ...
, Scott Wimmer
Scott Allan Wimmer (born January 26, 1976) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He has a total of six wins in the Xfinity Series. His brother Chris Wimmer competed in the Busch Series. Wimmer co-owns State Park Speedway in Wausau, ...
, and Johnny Sauter
Jonathan Joseph "Johnny" Sauter (born May 1, 1978) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, driving the No. 47 Toyota Tundra for G2G Racing, the No. 13 Tundra for Th ...
as well as Craftsman Truck Series
The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck based stock cars. The series is one of th ...
winner Brendan Gaughan
William Brendan Gaughan (born July 10, 1975) is an American professional racing driver who has competed in off-road and stock cars. He is the grandson of Vegas gaming pioneer Jackie Gaughan and son of Michael Gaughan, a hotel and casino magnate.
...
. Kahne would have the strongest performance out of all the young drivers, earning three second-place finishes through the first eleven races and five on the season, including two close finishes with Matt Kenseth
Matthew Roy Kenseth (born March 10, 1972) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He drives the No. 8 car in the Superstar Racing Experience. (SRX)
Kenseth started racing on several short tracks in Wisconsin and won track cha ...
and Elliott Sadler
Elliott William Barnes Sadler (born April 30, 1975) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 10 Chevrolet Camaro for Kaulig Racing. Sadler is one of 36 dr ...
. Kahne earned four poles and 14 Top 10 finishes to score a 13th-place finish in points, winning the Rookie of the Year honors by over 100 points.[ In 2005, he won the spring ]Richmond
Richmond most often refers to:
* Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States
* Richmond, London, a part of London
* Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England
* Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada
* Richmond, California, ...
race, but finished a disappointing 23rd in the final point standings.
Near the end of the 2005 season, Evernham initiated a crew swap between his teams, citing performance issues with both cars. As a result, Kahne received most of what was Mayfield's team from 2005. In 2006, Kahne won six races, including the prestigious Coca-Cola 600
The Coca-Cola 600, originally the World 600, is an annual NASCAR Cup Series points race held at the Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina, on a Sunday during Memorial Day weekend. The first race, held in 1960, was also the first on ...
at Lowe's Motor Speedway
Charlotte Motor Speedway (previously known as Lowe's Motor Speedway from 1999 to 2009) is a motorsport complex located in Concord, North Carolina, outside Charlotte. The complex features a quad oval track that hosts NASCAR racing including th ...
in May. He also made his first Chase for the Nextel Cup
The NASCAR playoffs is a championship Playoffs, playoff system used in NASCAR's three national series. The system was founded as 'The Chase for the Championship' on January 21, 2004, and was used exclusively in the NASCAR Cup Series from 2004 to ...
, finishing eighth in the standings at the end of the season. His six wins were a series high in 2006 and he also tied for the most pole awards with Kurt Busch
Kurt Thomas Busch (born August 4, 1978) is an American professional auto racing driver. He last competed full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 45 Toyota Camry TRD for 23XI Racing. He is the 2004 NASCAR Cup Series champion and the ...
at six. On September 18, 2007, it was announced that Budweiser
Budweiser () is an American-style pale lager, part of AB InBev. Introduced in 1876 by Carl Conrad & Co. of St. Louis, Missouri, Budweiser has become a large selling beer company in the United States.
''Budweiser'' may also refer to an unrelat ...
would sponsor the No. 9 car beginning in 2008, after Dodge
Dodge is an American brand of automobiles and a division of Stellantis, based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Dodge vehicles have historically included performance cars, and for much of its existence Dodge was Chrysler's mid-priced brand above P ...
Dealers/Mopar
Mopar is the parts, service, and customer care division of the former Chrysler Corporation, now owned by Netherlands-based automobile manufacturer Stellantis. It serves as a primary OEM accessory seller for Stellantis brands under the Mopar bran ...
/UAW
The International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace, and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, better known as the United Auto Workers (UAW), is an American Labor unions in the United States, labor union that represents workers in the Un ...
had sponsored the team since 2001. In his first year with the Budweiser sponsorship, Kahne had two wins and finished 14th in points.
Car No. 9 results
Car No. 19 history
;Casey Atwood (2000–2001)
The No. 19 car was Evernham Motorsports' first foray into racing in the Cup series. It debuted in the 2000 Chevrolet Monte Carlo 400
The Federated Auto Parts 400 is an annual NASCAR Cup Series stock car race held at the Richmond Raceway in Richmond, Virginia, being the second of two races at the track with the first one being the Toyota Owners 400 in the spring. As of 2020, ...
at Richmond International Raceway
Richmond Raceway (RR) is a , ''D''-shaped, asphalt race track located just outside Richmond, Virginia in unincorporated Henrico County. It hosts the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. Known as ...
as the No. 19 Motorola
Motorola, Inc. () was an American Multinational corporation, multinational telecommunications company based in Schaumburg, Illinois, United States. After having lost $4.3 billion from 2007 to 2009, the company split into two independent p ...
-sponsored Ford
Ford commonly refers to:
* Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford
* Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river
Ford may also refer to:
Ford Motor Company
* Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company
* Ford F ...
with 20-year-old Busch Series
The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...
driver Casey Atwood as the driver. In that race, the car scored a 19th-place finish. The abbreviated season was capped off by Atwood's tenth-place finish at Homestead that year.
For Evernham's full-time debut in 2001, Atwood was named as the driver of the 19 car, teammate to Bill Elliott
William Clyde Elliott (born October 8, 1955), also known as Awesome Bill from Dawsonville, Million Dollar Bill, or Wild Bill is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He competes full time in the Camping World Superstar Racing ...
in the No. 9. The team was part of Dodge
Dodge is an American brand of automobiles and a division of Stellantis, based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Dodge vehicles have historically included performance cars, and for much of its existence Dodge was Chrysler's mid-priced brand above P ...
's return into NASCAR, with Dodge Dealers sponsoring the entire season. The year was off to a sluggish start when Atwood failed to qualify at the spring Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
race, but picked up steam towards the end of the year, winning the pole at Phoenix International Raceway
Phoenix Raceway is a 1-mile, low-banked tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona, near Phoenix. The motorsport track opened in 1964 and currently hosts two NASCAR race weekends annually including the final championship race since 2020. P ...
, and almost winning the Homestead race before relinquishing the lead to teammate Elliott late in the race. Atwood barely missed wrestling the rookie of the year crown away from Kevin Harvick
Kevin Michael Harvick (born December 8, 1975) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 4 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing.
Harvick is the 2014 Cup Series champio ...
, despite Harvick finishing much higher in the points (ninth) and winning twice.
;Jeremy Mayfield (2002–2006)
At the end of the year, though, Evernham made a change. He signed Jeremy Mayfield
Jeremy Allen Mayfield (born May 27, 1969) is an American stock car racing driver. He drove cars for the Sadler brothers, T.W. Taylor, Cale Yarborough, Michael Kranefuss, Roger Penske, Ray Evernham, Bill Davis, and Gene Haas. In 2009, he drove f ...
, who had recorded three wins for Penske Racing
Team Penske (formerly Penske Racing) is an American professional auto racing organization, competing in the NTT IndyCar Series, NASCAR Cup Series, and the FIA World Endurance Championship. Debuting at the 1966 24 Hours of Daytona, the organiza ...
but who had been fired in September 2001 and had not run since, to join Elliott and drive the No. 19. As part of the move, Evernham agreed to the aforementioned deal with Ultra Motorsports which gave Atwood a car to drive. Mayfield struggled in his initial year with Evernham, posting just four top tens and finishing 26th in points. He won a pole at Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega Superspeedway, nicknamed “'Dega”, and formerly named Alabama International Motor Speedway (AIMS) from 1969 to 1989, is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base ...
the next year however, and improved to 19th in points. 2004 was even better, winning at Richmond and barely making the cut for the inaugural
In government and politics, inauguration is the process of swearing a person into office and thus making that person the incumbent. Such an inauguration commonly occurs through a formal ceremony or special event, which may also include an inaugur ...
Chase for the Nextel Cup
The NASCAR playoffs is a championship Playoffs, playoff system used in NASCAR's three national series. The system was founded as 'The Chase for the Championship' on January 21, 2004, and was used exclusively in the NASCAR Cup Series from 2004 to ...
. He claimed one more win in 2005 and qualified once again for the Chase.
However, after the 2006 Allstate 400 at the Brickyard
The Brickyard 400 was an annual NASCAR Cup Series points race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana. The inaugural race was held in 1994 and was the first race other than the Indianapolis 500 to be held at the Indianapolis Mo ...
, where an early-race crash dropped the No. 19 team out of the top-35 in owner points (thus requiring the team to qualify for each race on time), owner Ray Evernham replaced Mayfield with Bill Elliott
William Clyde Elliott (born October 8, 1955), also known as Awesome Bill from Dawsonville, Million Dollar Bill, or Wild Bill is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He competes full time in the Camping World Superstar Racing ...
for the race at Watkins Glen, citing a lack of performance through the 2006 season. However, in affidavits filed in court Mayfield blamed his lack of performance and subsequent termination from the team on Evernham's heavy involvement with development driver Erin Crocker
Erin Mary Crocker Evernham (born March 23, 1981) is an American race car driver and broadcaster with the Motor Racing Network's Winged Nation. In the past, she played soccer, tennis, and varsity lacrosse on both her high school and college teams. ...
, and the "close personal relationship" that developed between the two.
;Elliott Sadler (2006–2008)
On August 16, Elliott Sadler
Elliott William Barnes Sadler (born April 30, 1975) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 10 Chevrolet Camaro for Kaulig Racing. Sadler is one of 36 dr ...
, after leaving Robert Yates Racing
Yates Racing was an American stock car racing team that competed in NASCAR through the 2009 season, after which it merged into Richard Petty Motorsports. Previously known as Robert Yates Racing, the team was owned by Doug Yates, who has officia ...
, was officially named the driver of the No. 19 car for the remainder of the 2006 season, as well as being named the driver for the 2007 season. In his first race, Sadler qualified second and finished tenth. This was the No. 19 car's best finish of the 2006 season until Sadler scored a sixth-place finish at New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
several weeks later. Sadler finished 22nd in driver points, while the No. 19 team finished 34th in owner points, guaranteeing it a spot in the first five races of the 2007 season. Sadler would score only two top tens in 2007, finishing 25th in points.
In November 2007, Best Buy
Best Buy Co. Inc. is an American multinational consumer electronics retailer headquartered in Richfield, Minnesota. Originally founded by Richard M. Schulze and James Wheeler in 1966 as an audio specialty store called Sound of Music, it was rebra ...
was announced as the new sponsor for fifteen races in the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup season. Later Stanley
Stanley may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
Film and television
* ''Stanley'' (1972 film), an American horror film
* ''Stanley'' (1984 film), an Australian comedy
* ''Stanley'' (1999 film), an animated short
* ''Stanley'' (1956 TV series) ...
and McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechri ...
were announced as the two other primary sponsors on the No. 19. In May, Sadler reached a two-year contract extension with the team. However, on December 27, 2008, GEM announced that A. J. Allmendinger
Anthony James "A. J." Allmendinger (born December 16, 1981) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 16 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Kaulig Racing.
Allmendinger's professi ...
, who drove the team's No. 10 car at the end of the season, would be replacing Sadler in the No. 19 for the 2009 season. At the same time the team also announced several of its sponsors were considering leaving the team and that Ray Evernham had cleared his personal belongings out of the team's race shop, but it was not clear whether it was related to the hire. On January 3, 2009, Sadler's attorney announced that he would be seeking a breach of contract lawsuit against GEM for the dismissal. Looking to avoid the lawsuit GEM and Sadler's attorneys reached a settlement six days later that would return Sadler to the No. 19 for 2009 while keeping Allmendinger with the team.
Car No. 19 results
Car No. 91 history
2002–2005: No. 91 Research & Development Dodge
The 98 car started as the 91 car in 2002. Three drivers drove the No. 91: Dick Trickle
Richard Leroy Trickle (October 27, 1941 – May 16, 2013) was an American race car driver. He raced for decades around the short tracks of Wisconsin, winning many championships along the way. Trickle competed in the ASA, ARTGO, ARCA, All ...
at Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega Superspeedway, nicknamed “'Dega”, and formerly named Alabama International Motor Speedway (AIMS) from 1969 to 1989, is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base ...
(failing to qualify); Hank Parker Jr. at Rockingham Speedway
Rockingham Speedway, formerly North Carolina Motor Speedway and later North Carolina Speedway is a racetrack located near Rockingham, North Carolina. It is also known as The Rock and previously hosted NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series, ...
with sponsorship from USG Corporation
USG Corporation, also known as United States Gypsum Corporation, is an American company which manufactures construction materials, most notably drywall and joint compound. The company is the largest distributor of wallboard in the United States ...
; and Casey Atwood at Homestead-Miami Speedway with a sponsorship from Mountain Dew
Mountain Dew, stylized as Mtn Dew, is a carbonated soft drink brand produced and owned by PepsiCo. The original formula was invented in 1940 by Tennessee beverage bottlers Barney and Ally Hartman. A revised formula was created by Bill Brid ...
(after being released from the No. 7 car). The car returned in 2003 at Pocono Raceway
Pocono Raceway (formerly Pocono International Raceway), also known as ''The Tricky Triangle'', is a superspeedway located in the Pocono Mountains in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. It is the site of three NASCAR national series races and an ARCA M ...
and Indianapolis Motor Speedway
The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is an automobile racing circuit located in Speedway, Indiana, an enclave suburb of Indianapolis, Indiana. It is the home of the Indianapolis 500 and the Verizon 200, and and formerly the home of the United State ...
, with Atwood driving the 91 Mountain Dew Live Wire-sponsored Dodge at Pocono and an unsponsored entry at Indy. In 2004, Bill Elliott
William Clyde Elliott (born October 8, 1955), also known as Awesome Bill from Dawsonville, Million Dollar Bill, or Wild Bill is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He competes full time in the Camping World Superstar Racing ...
relinquished his full-time duties to drive the No. 91 in a part-time deal at Las Vegas, Texas, and Indianapolis. Elliott also ran three races in a No. 98 Dodge under his own Bill Elliott Racing
Bill Elliott Racing (formerly known as Charles Hardy Racing, Elliott-Hardy Racing, and Elliott-Marino Racing) was a NASCAR Winston Cup, Busch and Craftsman Truck Series team. It was owned and operated by 1988 NASCAR champion Bill Elliott from 1 ...
banner, utilizing Evernham equipment and crew members and the owners points of Mach 1 Racing
Mach 1 Racing was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series team. It was owned by Hollywood stuntman Hal Needham and actor Burt Reynolds.
The team made its debut in 1981, fielding the No. 22 Skoal Pontiac driven by Stan Barrett. Barrett ran ten races for t ...
, in part to avoid conflict with sponsor Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlanta ...
(Evernham's No. 9 and No. 19 cars were both sponsored by Mountain Dew
Mountain Dew, stylized as Mtn Dew, is a carbonated soft drink brand produced and owned by PepsiCo. The original formula was invented in 1940 by Tennessee beverage bottlers Barney and Ally Hartman. A revised formula was created by Bill Brid ...
). He returned to drive the 91 in a part-time deal in 2005 in nine races held at Fontana, Atlanta, Texas, Charlotte, Michigan, Indianapolis, Michigan, Fontana, and Texas. Elliott had sponsorships from UAW
The International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace, and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, better known as the United Auto Workers (UAW), is an American Labor unions in the United States, labor union that represents workers in the Un ...
, Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlanta ...
, McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechri ...
, Stanley Tools, Auto Value / Bumper to Bumper, and Visteon
Visteon Corporation (VC) is an American global automotive electronics supplier and Fortune 500 company spun off from the Ford Motor Company in 2000. Visteon is composed of multiple businesses that design, engineer, and manufacture vehicle cockpit ...
.
2006–2008: No. 10 Valvoline-Evernham Racing Dodge
;Scott Riggs (2006–2007)
In 2006, the team became full-time and was renumbered as the No. 10 car, as Scott Riggs
Russell Scott Riggs (born January 1, 1971) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He last competed in the 92 for RBR Enterprises in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
Racing career Early career
Riggs was born in Bahama, Nort ...
and his Valvoline
Valvoline Inc. is an American manufacturer and distributor of Valvoline-brand automotive oil, additives, and lubricants. It also owns the Valvoline Instant Oil Change and Valvoline Express Care chains of car repair centers. , it is the second la ...
sponsorship moved over from struggling MB2 Motorsports
MB2 Motorsports was a NASCAR Cup Series team based in Mooresville, North Carolina, near the sport's hub in Charlotte, North Carolina, Charlotte. The team was founded by Read Morton, Tom Beard, and Nelson Bowers, from which the original team name ...
. In addition to sponsoring 22 races in 2006, Valvoline also maintained an ownership stake in the team through Senior Vice President James Rocco (like with MBV), called Valvoline-Evernham Motorsports (also written as Valvoline-Evernham Racing). The team nearly won on several occasions including Charlotte, Talladega, and Texas — where he crashed out in second place with two laps to go. He finished 18th in the final standings despite missing the Daytona 500. Going into 2007 with high hopes, Evernham's performance suffered; Riggs failed to qualify for six races and had five DNF's with only one Top 10 finish all season. He was released with two races remaining in favor of former CART
A cart or dray (Australia and New Zealand) is a vehicle designed for transport, using two wheels and normally pulled by one or a pair of draught animals. A handcart is pulled or pushed by one or more people.
It is different from the flatbed tr ...
driver Patrick Carpentier
Patrick Carpentier (born August 13, 1971) is a retired Canadian professional auto racing driver. In the Champ Car World Series and the IndyCar Series, he achieved five wins and 24 podiums, as well as two third place championship finishes in 2002 ...
, who had also replaced him at Watkins Glen.
;Patrick Carpentier (2007–2008)
Carpentier, who was 36 years old at the time, became the full-time driver for 2008, part of a unique rookie class stacked with open wheel veterans all trying to emulate the success found by Juan Pablo Montoya
Juan Pablo Montoya Roldán (; born September 20, 1975) is a Colombian racing driver.
He won the International F3000 championship in 1998, the CART FedEx Championship Series in 1999 in his debut year in the series, and the IMSA WeatherTech S ...
the previous year. This included IndyCar Series
The IndyCar Series, currently known as the NTT IndyCar Series under sponsorship, is the highest class of regional North American open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars in the United States, which has been conducted under the auspices of ...
Champions Dario Franchitti
George Dario Marino Franchitti, MBE (born 19 May 1973) is a British former racing driver and current motorsport commentator from Scotland. He is a four time IndyCar Series champion ( 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011), a three-time winner of the Indiana ...
and Sam Hornish Jr.
Samuel Jon Hornish Jr. (born July 2, 1979) is an American semi-retired professional auto racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 22 Ford Mustang for Team Penske in 2017.
He began his top-tier raci ...
, and CART
A cart or dray (Australia and New Zealand) is a vehicle designed for transport, using two wheels and normally pulled by one or a pair of draught animals. A handcart is pulled or pushed by one or more people.
It is different from the flatbed tr ...
and Formula One
Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...
champion Jacques Villeneuve
Jacques Joseph Charles Villeneuve ( born 9 April 1971) is a Canadian professional racing driver and amateur musician who won the 1997 Formula One World Championship with Williams. In addition to Formula One (F1) he has competed in various ot ...
, as well as DEI development drivers Regan Smith and Aric Almirola
Aric Michael Almirola (born March 14, 1984) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 10 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing. A graduate of Hillsborough High School in T ...
. With Valvoline
Valvoline Inc. is an American manufacturer and distributor of Valvoline-brand automotive oil, additives, and lubricants. It also owns the Valvoline Instant Oil Change and Valvoline Express Care chains of car repair centers. , it is the second la ...
taking a backseat role in 2008 and Stanley Tools moving to the No. 19 car, GEM signed LifeLock
LifeLock Inc. is an American identity theft protection company based in Tempe, Arizona. LifeLock's system monitors for identity theft, the use of personal information, and credit score changes.
LifeLock was acquired by computer security compan ...
for eight races, an identity security company making a large entrance investment into NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...
. Charter Communications
Charter Communications, Inc., is an American telecommunications and mass media company with services branded as Spectrum. With over 32 million customers in 41 states, it is the second-largest cable operator in the United States by subscribers, ...
and Auto Value/Bumper to Bumper also sponsored several races. Carpentier won the pole at Loudon but otherwise struggled, as did his fellow open-wheel counterparts. He had no Top 10s, missed five races — including the Daytona 500
The Daytona 500 is a NASCAR Cup Series motor race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is the first of two Cup races held every year at Daytona, the second being the Coke Zero Sugar 400, and one of three ...
— and was out of the Top 35 in points when he was released after Kansas
Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...
. Second-year driver A. J. Allmendinger
Anthony James "A. J." Allmendinger (born December 16, 1981) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 16 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Kaulig Racing.
Allmendinger's professi ...
replaced Carpentier, after being released from Red Bull Racing
Red Bull Racing, also simply known as Red Bull or RBR and currently competing as Oracle Red Bull Racing, is a Formula One racing team, racing under an Austrian licence and based in the United Kingdom. It is one of two Formula One teams owned ...
in favor of Scott Speed
Scott Andrew Speed (born January 24, 1983) is an American race car driver who has competed in numerous disciplines, including open-wheel, stock car, and rallycross racing.
In , Speed became the first American driver to race in Formula One since ...
. In his five races for GEM, Allmendinger was impressive, posting three Top 15s and often outrunning his teammates. Allmendinger was initially rewarded with a full-time ride in the No. 19 car, replacing Elliott Sadler
Elliott William Barnes Sadler (born April 30, 1975) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 10 Chevrolet Camaro for Kaulig Racing. Sadler is one of 36 dr ...
. This was derailed when Sadler intended to sue the team and Allmendinger to keep his job, when Reed Sorenson
Bradley Reed Sorenson (born February 5, 1986) is an American professional stock car racing driver and spotter. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 27 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE for Premium Motorsports, the Nos. 74/ ...
was signed as a third driver,[ and when several sponsors threatened to leave the team in response to the recent moves.
]
Car No. 91 results
Xfinity Series
Car No. 9 history
;Tommy Baldwin Racing (2002–2004)
The No. 9 Ultimate Chargers Busch team started as the No. 6 Pepsi
Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by PepsiCo. Originally created and developed in 1893 by Caleb Bradham and introduced as Brad's Drink, it was renamed as Pepsi-Cola in 1898, and then shortened to Pepsi in 1961.
History
Pepsi was ...
-sponsored Dodge Intrepid
The Dodge Intrepid is a full sized front-wheel drive four-door sedan that was produced by Dodge for model years 1993 to 2004. It is related to the Chrysler 300M, Chrysler Concorde, Chrysler LHS, Chrysler New Yorker, and Eagle Vision which we ...
for Tommy Baldwin Racing
Tommy Baldwin Racing is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the modified ranks. The team is based in Mooresville, North Carolina, and is owned by former crew chief Tommy Baldwin Jr., son of the late modified ...
. The team made its debut in 2002 at the fall Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
Busch Series race, where Wally Dallenbach Jr. drove the team to a 14th-place finish. Dallenbach finished in the top ten in his other two starts in the car that year, splitting the car with Damon Lusk
Damon Lusk (born September 18, 1977) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He primarily competed in the ARCA Re/Max Series, where he scored two wins in 53 starts between 2000 and 2009. In addition, he ran part-time in the NASCAR B ...
. Lusk took over on a limited basis for 2003 but did not finish in the top 10.
In 2004, primary sponsor Unilever
Unilever plc is a British multinational consumer goods company with headquarters in London, England. Unilever products include food, condiments, bottled water, baby food, soft drink, ice cream, instant coffee, cleaning agents, energy drink, t ...
backed the Hungry Drivers program to allow for young drivers to compete for a full-time seat in NASCAR. Four drivers were chosen to compete for the seat and the chosen drivers were Scott Lynch, Mark McFarland
Mark M. McFarland (born February 1, 1978) is a former NASCAR driver who works for Kyle Busch Motorsports as the crew chief for their No. 18 car in the ARCA Menards Series and ARCA Menards Series East. In 2021, he won championships in both series ...
, Tracy Hines
Tracy Lee Hines (born May 1, 1972) is an American professional stunt driver. He was the 2000 USAC Silver Crown Champion and 2002 USAC National Sprint Car Champion. He currently does not have a full-time ride in NASCAR as he competes for Tony Stew ...
, and Paul Wolfe
Paul Stuart Wolfe (born April 24, 1977) is an American NASCAR crew chief and former driver. The second son of Charles F. Wolfe, Jr. and Susan M. (Farmer) Wolfe. Wolfe graduated from Milford Central School in 1995. He competed in the NASCAR Bus ...
. Each driver was given three races to prove their talent. After scoring 2 top-20 finishes, including a 12th-place effort at New Hampshire, Wolfe was awarded the No. 6 Busch seat for the 2005 season.
;Evernham Motorsports (2005–2008)
In October 2004, Evernham Motorsports acquired Tommy Baldwin Racing, and with it, the Hungry Drivers program. Paul Wolfe started out the 2005 season, but was let go after the first four races due to poor performance. Kasey Kahne and Jeremy Mayfield took the brunt of the driving duties of the No. 6 team with Kahne scoring the team's first win at Kansas in October. Other drivers would also share in the driving duties of the car, including Mike Wallace
Myron Leon Wallace (May 9, 1918 – April 7, 2012) was an American journalist, game show host, actor, and media personality. He interviewed a wide range of prominent newsmakers during his seven-decade career. He was one of the original correspo ...
, Tracy Hines
Tracy Lee Hines (born May 1, 1972) is an American professional stunt driver. He was the 2000 USAC Silver Crown Champion and 2002 USAC National Sprint Car Champion. He currently does not have a full-time ride in NASCAR as he competes for Tony Stew ...
, Bill Elliott
William Clyde Elliott (born October 8, 1955), also known as Awesome Bill from Dawsonville, Million Dollar Bill, or Wild Bill is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He competes full time in the Camping World Superstar Racing ...
, Casey Atwood, and also Paul Wolfe for three races. Erin Crocker
Erin Mary Crocker Evernham (born March 23, 1981) is an American race car driver and broadcaster with the Motor Racing Network's Winged Nation. In the past, she played soccer, tennis, and varsity lacrosse on both her high school and college teams. ...
would also make her Busch Series racing debut with the team at Richmond.
For the 2006 season, a number of changes were made to the team. First, a number switch with Roush Racing Roush is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
Politics
*Glenn Roush (1934–2020), American politician in Montana
* J. Edward Roush (1920–2004), United States Representative for Indiana, namesake of:
** J. Edward Roush Lake, a re ...
gave Evernham the No. 9 to use for his team while the No. 6 went with Mark Martin's Busch team. Also, Unilever's sponsorship of the team was expanded. Now called the Ultimate Chargers team, it would feature Kasey Kahne, Jeremy Mayfield
Jeremy Allen Mayfield (born May 27, 1969) is an American stock car racing driver. He drove cars for the Sadler brothers, T.W. Taylor, Cale Yarborough, Michael Kranefuss, Roger Penske, Ray Evernham, Bill Davis, and Gene Haas. In 2009, he drove f ...
, and Scott Riggs as the main drivers of the car throughout the year. Crocker, who competed under the No. 98 with sponsorship from General Mills
General Mills, Inc., is an American multinational manufacturer and marketer of branded processed consumer foods sold through retail stores. Founded on the banks of the Mississippi River at Saint Anthony Falls in Minneapolis, the company orig ...
, and Boris Said
Boris Said III (born September 18, 1962) is an American semi-retired professional racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 66 Ford Mustang for MBM Motorsports and in the Trans-Am Series, driving the No. 2 ...
also shared driving duties in the car. Kahne, who drove the majority of races for the team, won twice at Las Vegas in the spring and Fontana in the fall. In 2007, Kahne won the spring race at Charlotte and the fall race at Bristol with sponsorship again from Unilever. Kahne, Elliott Sadler
Elliott William Barnes Sadler (born April 30, 1975) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 10 Chevrolet Camaro for Kaulig Racing. Sadler is one of 36 dr ...
, Scott Riggs
Russell Scott Riggs (born January 1, 1971) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He last competed in the 92 for RBR Enterprises in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
Racing career Early career
Riggs was born in Bahama, Nort ...
, Boris Said
Boris Said III (born September 18, 1962) is an American semi-retired professional racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 66 Ford Mustang for MBM Motorsports and in the Trans-Am Series, driving the No. 2 ...
, and Chase Miller shared the brunt of the driving duties in the car. Deac McCaskill
Deac McCaskill (born September 26, 1977) is an American professional stock car racing driver from Raleigh, North Carolina. He currently drives the No. 08 Puryear Tanklines Chevrolet in the Late Model Stock class at South Boston Speedway in Vir ...
drove for the team in a single race at O'Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis
Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park (formerly Indianapolis Raceway Park, O'Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis, and Lucas Oil Raceway) is an auto racing facility in Brownsburg, Indiana, United States, about northwest of Downtown Indianapolis, do ...
.
In 2008, Unilever
Unilever plc is a British multinational consumer goods company with headquarters in London, England. Unilever products include food, condiments, bottled water, baby food, soft drink, ice cream, instant coffee, cleaning agents, energy drink, t ...
, along with additional backing from AutoValue/Bumper-to-Bumper and Ingersoll Rand
Ingersoll Rand is an American multinational company that provides flow creation and industrial products. The company was formed in February 2020 through the spinoff of the industrial segment of Ingersoll-Randplc (now known as Trane Technologies) ...
, continued sponsorship of the team with Kahne, Sadler, Patrick Carpentier
Patrick Carpentier (born August 13, 1971) is a retired Canadian professional auto racing driver. In the Champ Car World Series and the IndyCar Series, he achieved five wins and 24 podiums, as well as two third place championship finishes in 2002 ...
, and Chase Miller sharing driving duties in the car through the year. Results were mixed for the Nationwide GEM team. For the first time since the program's inception, the team failed to record a win. The car's best results were two second-place finishes. The first was recorded by Kasey Kahne in the spring race at Bristol while Patrick Carpentier finished 2nd in the race at Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
.
Later in the year, it was announced that primary sponsor Unilever
Unilever plc is a British multinational consumer goods company with headquarters in London, England. Unilever products include food, condiments, bottled water, baby food, soft drink, ice cream, instant coffee, cleaning agents, energy drink, t ...
would move to the No. 5 of JR Motorsports
JR Motorsports (pronounced "Junior Motorsports") is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series, CARS Tour, and occasionally in the NASCAR Advance Auto Par ...
. As a result of the loss of the sponsor, the organization announced that the car would move to a part-time schedule for the 2009 season. With the cutback, the team also let go about 65 employees, some of whom were also from the engine shop.
Car No. 19 history
;Evernham No. 79 (2003, 2005)
In the 2003 season, the team debuted with Jeremy Mayfield
Jeremy Allen Mayfield (born May 27, 1969) is an American stock car racing driver. He drove cars for the Sadler brothers, T.W. Taylor, Cale Yarborough, Michael Kranefuss, Roger Penske, Ray Evernham, Bill Davis, and Gene Haas. In 2009, he drove f ...
driving the No. 79 Dodge Intrepid
The Dodge Intrepid is a full sized front-wheel drive four-door sedan that was produced by Dodge for model years 1993 to 2004. It is related to the Chrysler 300M, Chrysler Concorde, Chrysler LHS, Chrysler New Yorker, and Eagle Vision which we ...
, with Mountain Dew
Mountain Dew, stylized as Mtn Dew, is a carbonated soft drink brand produced and owned by PepsiCo. The original formula was invented in 1940 by Tennessee beverage bottlers Barney and Ally Hartman. A revised formula was created by Bill Brid ...
sponsoring, at Rockingham. He finished 4th in the only race for the team that year. The team returned for the 2005 season, operating as a 2nd Busch team. Sponsorship for this car came mainly from Trus Joist and Auto Value. Kahne and Mayfield shared the driving duties for the three races the team ran with a best finish of 4th at Richmond in May. Kahne also drove the car to a 12th-place finish at New Hampshire and Mayfield had a best finish of 29th at Charlotte. While the team didn't run in 2006, a couple of the chassis from the No. 79 were run by Erin Crocker in her first couple of races.
;Evernham No. 19 (2007–2008)
In the last race of the 2007 season at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Patrick Carpentier
Patrick Carpentier (born August 13, 1971) is a retired Canadian professional auto racing driver. In the Champ Car World Series and the IndyCar Series, he achieved five wins and 24 podiums, as well as two third place championship finishes in 2002 ...
made his second Busch Series
The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...
start. The car was the No. 19 sponsored by Stanley
Stanley may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
Film and television
* ''Stanley'' (1972 film), an American horror film
* ''Stanley'' (1984 film), an Australian comedy
* ''Stanley'' (1999 film), an animated short
* ''Stanley'' (1956 TV series) ...
.
Chase Miller drove the car as a second GEM car in select Nationwide Series races in 2008, with sponsorship from Cellco Partnerships (a joint venture of Verizon
Verizon Communications Inc., commonly known as Verizon, is an American multinational telecommunications conglomerate and a corporate component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The company is headquartered at 1095 Avenue of the Americas in ...
and Vodafone
Vodafone Group Public limited company, plc () is a British Multinational corporation, multinational Telephone company, telecommunications company. Its registered office and Headquarters, global headquarters are in Newbury, Berkshire, England. It ...
) on the car. The team was retired once the Braun-Petty deal was announced.
Truck Series and ARCA
Casey Atwood (2002)
In 2002, Casey Atwood ran a Dodge-sponsored No. 19 car at Pocono Raceway
Pocono Raceway (formerly Pocono International Raceway), also known as ''The Tricky Triangle'', is a superspeedway located in the Pocono Mountains in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. It is the site of three NASCAR national series races and an ARCA M ...
in the ARCA Racing Series
The ARCA Menards Series is an American stock car series, the premier division of the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA). It is considered a minor, semi-professional league of stock car racing, used as a feeder series into the three national ...
, winning the race from the pole.
Erin Crocker (2005–2007)
In 2005, Erin Crocker
Erin Mary Crocker Evernham (born March 23, 1981) is an American race car driver and broadcaster with the Motor Racing Network's Winged Nation. In the past, she played soccer, tennis, and varsity lacrosse on both her high school and college teams. ...
made her ARCA Racing Series
The ARCA Menards Series is an American stock car series, the premier division of the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA). It is considered a minor, semi-professional league of stock car racing, used as a feeder series into the three national ...
debut in a No. 98 Dodge
Dodge is an American brand of automobiles and a division of Stellantis, based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Dodge vehicles have historically included performance cars, and for much of its existence Dodge was Chrysler's mid-priced brand above P ...
at Nashville Superspeedway
Nashville Superspeedway is a motor racing complex located in Gladeville, Tennessee, United States (though the track has a Lebanon postal address), about southeast of Nashville. The track was built in 2001 and is currently hosting the Ally 400, ...
. Crocker won the pole, and finished 12th after leading 28 laps. Crocker would run six more races with another pole at Kentucky
Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...
and five top five finishes. Crocker ran seven more ARCA races in 2006, and moved up to NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...
's Craftsman Truck Series
The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck based stock cars. The series is one of th ...
full-time with sponsorship from General Mills
General Mills, Inc., is an American multinational manufacturer and marketer of branded processed consumer foods sold through retail stores. Founded on the banks of the Mississippi River at Saint Anthony Falls in Minneapolis, the company orig ...
brands Cheerios
Cheerios is a brand of cereal manufactured by General Mills in the United States, consisting of pulverized oats in the shape of a solid torus. In some countries, including the United Kingdom, Cheerios is marketed by Cereal Partners under the ...
and Betty Crocker
Betty Crocker is a brand and fictional character used in advertising campaigns for food and recipes. The character was originally created by the Washburn-Crosby Company in 1921 following a contest in the '' Saturday Evening Post''. In 1954, ...
. Crocker would score another Kentucky pole and three top tens in ARCA, but the success would not translate in the Truck Series, with a best finish of 16th twice leading to a 25th finish in the championship standings. General Mills would leave at the end of the season, leading the Truck Series team to close. Crocker returned to ARCA for 12 races in 2007, with Mac Tools
Mac Tools (previously, Mechanics Tool and Forge Company) is an American company that distributes and markets professional tools and related equipment. It is headquartered in Westerville, Ohio, United States. The Mac Tools line consists of over 8, ...
sponsoring five races. Crocker won the pole at Daytona and her third consecutive Kentucky pole, scoring six top fives and eight total top ten finishes.
References
External links
Richard Petty Motorsports (Official website)
*
Ray Evernham
owner statistics at Racing-Reference
Gillett Evernham Motorsports
owner statistics at Racing-Reference
{{Petty GMS Motorsports
American auto racing teams
Companies based in Charlotte, North Carolina
NASCAR teams
ARCA Menards Series teams
Auto racing teams established in 2001
Auto racing teams disestablished in 2008