Ray Evernham’s stint as Jeff Gordon’s crew chief may be drawing to an end. Evernham met with members of Gordon’s team Sunday morning and informed them he would be discontinuing his role as Gordon’s crew chief in the near future, according to sources. It was not clear whether Evernham would continue to work with Hendrick Motorsports in another role or leave the organization altogether. See the complete That’s Racin’ article at Evernham appears ready to move on by Jim Utter — UPDATE: Hendrick Motorsports has contacted Lowes Motor Speedway about scheduling a news conference at Evernham and Gordons BGN shop during the October race weekend at Concord, NC. Following yesterdays team meeting, Hendrick Motorsports representatives said that it was not out of the realm of possibility to suggest that Evernham soon would be changing his role. They would not speculate on whether Evernham would remain in a management role with Hendrick Motorsports or leave the organization. The crew chief has a contract with Hendrick Motorsports through the 2006 season(Times-Dispatch) — UPDATE 2: Ray Evernham’s future with Jeff Gordon seems cloudy today. Evernham told his crew Sunday he wouldn’t be back as crew chief, according to members of the team. John Hendrick, however, insisted that Evernham isn’t leaving, at least not until the end of the year. Evernham has been searching for a crew chief for Gordon for next year. His first two choices turned down the offer. It’s unclear now whether Evernham is turning that job search over to Hendrick(PitNow) AND from GoRacing (an arm of Action Performance): Speculation centers on Evernham and Gordon forming their own Winston Cup team in the near future, under the umbrella of the Hendrick organization. Sources out of Charlotte say they already have their eye on a young open-wheel driver who is already being groomed to become a teammate to Gordon( GoRacing ) AND Evernham appears to be working toward a logical move for this stage of his career. He has two very sound options: a move up in management at Hendrick Motorsports or a move to full-time car ownership at Gordon-Evernham Motorsports. Some combination of those two seems the most likely. Hendrick Motorsports is reportedly planning a press conference subject unknown during the Oct. 8-10 Lowes Motor Speedway race weekend( Racer Magazine )..well, I think that covers it…..for now — UPDATE 3: RPM2Nite reported that a Charlotte TV station reported that Evernham had cleaned out his office at Hendrick Motorsports and would serve his last race as the #24 crew chief at Dover, but RPM2Nite said a crew member told host John Kernan that Evernham had not cleaned out his desk/office and would be at Dover. I am hearing that Dover could be Evernham’s last race as crew chief of the #24, also a story on the subject at TNN: Rumors, Strong Rumors, And Reality
