Evernham to take on partner/investor
05/29/07 Montreal Canadiens owner George Gillett Jr. is set to add a NASCAR Nextel Cup team to his growing sports empire. According to ESPN.com, Gillett Jr. is close to finalizing a deal to buy a portion of Evernham Motorsports.
"It's not done, but we're working on it pretty hard," said Evernham, who added that the deal could be concluded within the next two to three months.
"We've agreed to go forward, but there's so much legal stuff that's got to be done. It takes months.
"Things are looking really positive, but it's not done."
Evernham would not say what percentage of the company Gillett Jr. would own except that it would be a "substantial stake". He added that he will continue to run the day-to-day operation of the team once the deal goes through.
"Right now we're getting further and further behind, resource-wise, for two reasons," he tells ESPN.com "People like Rick (Hendrick) and Bobby Ginn and (Joe) Gibbs have got a lot more money to spend, and now (Gillett) will fix a lot of that problem for me, for stability."
"George is a visionary. He's out there with the business stuff. He thinks really big. I'm a detail guy. I'm nuts and bolts." TSN.ca
05/07/07 Montreal Canadiens owner George N. Gillett Jr. is close to finalizing a partnership arrangement with Evernham Motorsports, The Sporting News reported on its website Saturday.
According to The Sporting News, Evernham owner Ray Evernham said Saturday afternoon at Richmond International Raceway that talks with Gillett have progressed, that both sides are involved in due diligence and that he would welcome Gillett as a partner.
Gillett met with Evernham during the race weekend at Bristol in late March. "It's got to be the right partner," Evernham said at the time. "It's got to be somebody that can bring more to the table than money. It's somebody that can bring business-to-business and understand how some of the worldwide marketing and things work."
03/24/07 Ray Evernham may be getting closer to finding a business partner for Evernham Motorsports. George Gillett Jr., the owner of the Montreal Canadians of the NHL and co-owner of the Liverpool soccer team in England, will be at Bristol Motor Speedway on Sunday. Gillett also met with Evernham at Las Vegas Motor Speedway two weeks ago. "We're still talking," Evernham said on Friday. "It's a matter of getting the right partner and getting the right timing. It's not about the money. I need the right partner. I want to win a championship." Evernham said he hasn't discussed how much of EMS will be sold. "I just need somebody that's going to come in and bring people that are interested in providing technology and sponsorship to the race team," he said. Evernham would like to find a partner that could take over some of his business duties, such as dealing with sponsors. "I want to work on race cars again," said Evernham, who won three championships as the crew chief for Jeff Gordon at Hendrick Motorsports. "That's what I do, work on the cars with my guys and go fast. I need a partner who can do his side and I can do my side." ESPN.com
03/10/07 A reader writes, Dear AutoRacing1.com, Of course all the Dodges qualified up front for Sunday's Nextel Cup race, it's sponsored by UAW-DaimlerChrysler. Get it, yet another race where NASCAR throws the sponsor a bone by rigging their timing and scoring computers so the Dodges qualified 1-2-3-4 and 7 out of the top-10. This sort of silliness happens almost every race now. NASCAR is a total farce and they deserve to take a fall, a hard fall. Bernie Martin, Ann Arbor, MI
03/09/07 Monkey see Monkey do. Ray Evernham could have more on the line this weekend than just the racing fortunes of his three Dodges in Sunday’s UAW DaimlerChrysler 400. Evernham will also be entertaining a potential partner investor in his race team. Evernham confirmed Friday that George Gillett, the majority owner of the NHL’s Montreal Canadians and a co-owner of a soccer team based in Liverpool, England, will be attending this weekend’s race as the NASCAR team owner’s guest. “When I said I wanted a partner, I am pleased that the phone started ringing," Evernham said. “I met George and we are talking about it." Evernham’s teams certainly are off to a good start in trying to impress Gillett, as all three of the team’s Dodges earned starting spots among the top six in Friday’s Nextel Cup qualifying, with Kasey Kahne earning the pole. Last month, Jack Roush and the Fenway Sports Group announced a deal that changed the name of Roush’s team to Roush Fenway Racing. Evernham said in January that such deals could be the future in stock-car racing as the cost of doing business outstrips the money sponsors might be willing to supply. “I want a guy who owns a sports team," Evernham said of a potential partner. “I want a guy who has a lot of business-to-business contacts. I want a guy who is not just in it for the money. George fits all of those things. “We’re talking. We don’t have anything done yet, but George would be an ideal guy. Whether or not that happens, I don’t know." Gillett, 68, is a resident of Vail, Colo. He helped turn Vail into a major ski resort area and now owns ski resorts in Colorado, Wyoming, California and New Hampshire. He also owns several golf course and several companies in the meat packing industry. ThatsRacing.com [Editor's Note: Is it any coincidence that Evernham's Dodges are up front in qualifying at Las Vegas this weekend. These "coincidences happen every weekend in NASCAR."]