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10 Questions Evernham discusses Gordon, motor oil, Charlotte dining
Posted: Thursday May 25, 2000 08:07 PM
Evernham Motorsports owner Ray Evernham joined CNNSI.com for a few minutes after making the interview rounds after the Dodge team announcement Thursday morning. He spoke just outside of Victory lane at Lowe's Motor Speedway. 1. How soon can you get to back Victory Lane? I don't know. You can't be focused on winning or you will forget everything else. You have to work on the car and the team first, and do the things that eventually will get you there. 2. Do you have any regrets about leaving the Hendrick team and Jeff Gordon? I don't want to get philosophical, but whenever you do something like this and change what you do, you have some feelings. It was the right career move for me, but I'm not totally happy [yet]. I love Rick Hendrick, and Jeff Gordon was like a brother to me. I miss them. 3. Is there any reason for anyone to hate Jeff Gordon? No, not unless you have to race against him. 4. C'mon. Nothing? I used to tell Jeff that when he'd get upset about the hateful feelings that hey, he's extremely talented, he's good-looking, he's got a beautiful wife and he has a Lear Jet. [Laughing] If I wasn't his friend, I'd hate him, too. 5. What is the required number of sponsor mentions in a single interview? I honestly don't know. Well, the only time sponsors get their names out there is when you see it on the car, or the TV mentions it, or it's in an interview. It may not be the best thing that it's all through an interview but it's really important that we mention the sponsor. 6. Seems like with all this fat TV money all you guys are going to get rich. Have things changed? Well, I don't know that everybody's getting rich. But I think the drivers deserve [the money and celebrity]. They're finally being recognized as legitimate athletes. When you think of sales revenue out there in the major sports, it's NFL, MLB, NBA and then NASCAR. 7. What's keeping you busy these days? Oh boy, it's lots and lots ...and lots of different things. Really it's been setting up the business structure. You know lining up sponsors, getting drivers, finding real estate, getting equipment. We're about done with all that setup. It's finally time to get to the fun stuff -- the car itself. 8. Is there a good place to eat around here? Man, there are lots of great places to eat in Charlotte. We like going to Mickey and Mooch. They have great side items -- some of the best coleslaw and cabbage -- there, and steaks and fish, too. We also like the South End Brewery. 9. Do I really have to change the oil in my car every 3,000 miles. Oh, I would. 10. And that oil would be...? I don't know. We haven't signed our oil deal yet.
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