The list of legendary crew chiefs who have etched their names in NASCAR’s history books is a short one. When talking about the bests, one name comes to our mind, and it is that of Ray Evernham. He was the one who formed a winning duo alongside Jeff Gordon during the late 90s Cup Series era when the duo clinched three championships. It was Evernham back in the day who initiated the Next Gen pit stop choreography and since then the pit stops have never been the same in NASCAR.

He worked wonders as a crew chief but he had a good eye for talent and therefore also worked as a consultant for Hendrick Motorsports. On July 23rd, 1993, Evernham came across a rather unknown guy named Chad Knaus and what followed next was just history. At the age of 30, Knaus quickly climbed the ladder at HMS and became the new crew chief. And it was Evernham who acted as a mentor for the talented individual. As Knaus collected his Hall of Fame recognition, Evernham once again gave his stamp of approval for Knaus’ time working with HMS.

Ray Evernham lauds Johnson-Knaus’ commitment to NASCAR

A record seven Cup championships to his name as crew chief for NASCAR’s great Jimmie Johnson. Just imagine, the scale of work put in by the duo, the relentless pursuits, the sleepless nights, and of course, the demanding race tracks of NASCAR. Forget about winning seven, if a team or driver wins a couple they think they’ve made it. But that is not how Johnson and Knaus saw it. They kept on persevering, kept on the grind until they could not do it anymore.

2018 may be the year they parted ways but the legacy they leave behind is eternal. They were rightfully inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame and Knaus’ mentor Ray Evernham was proud of this achievement with HMS. Speaking after the red carpet event, he said, “Really it’s an honor to be here in the hall and last night to see Jimmy and Chad both get their jackets. You won’t meet two more committed people than both those guys.

“From a bigger standpoint, we had a picture taken with all the folks from Hendrick Motorsports and what a tribute to Mr Hendrick and the organization he made(…) To see how hard Chad and Jimmie worked and to see how long they were able to do it and the record they set, many of mine they broke you know. I always kid them about it but what an honor to be here and watch them.”

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In the case of Evernham and Knaus, the respect was always mutual as after receiving the Hall of Fame recognition, Knaus credited Evernham’s support during his speech.

Chad Knaus reveals how he got in at HMS with the help of Ray Evernham

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It was in 1992 when Knaus set his target on his dream job. At the time he was working for Stanley Smith and his team unloaded at Talladega. Knaus’ No.49 Pontiac team even went under scrutiny by Richard Childress himself but they passed the technical inspection. This is when he saw Evernham run his team at HMS and the young Knaus could just not get over it. It was at that moment he decided that he wanted to be at Hendrick Motorsports working alongside the best in the sport.

Explaining how he cracked his first interview at HMS, Knaus during his NASCAR Hall of Fame speech said, “In June of 1993, I cold-called Hendrick Motorsports. Receptionist picked up and I said, ‘May I speak to Ray Evernham?’ and she said, ‘Sure, just one moment.’… A few moments later, Ray grabbed the phone in his New Jersey accent. He said, ‘Hello, this is Ray’… I told Ray who I was and how I had grown up and what I wanted to do and he said, ‘Well, just so happens that we let a guy go today. Can you be here tomorrow for an interview?”

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Ray Evernham certainly wouldn’t have imagined that a cold-call guy would go on to create history at Hendrick Motorsports. We are only glad he gave a then-young Knaus a shot at his dreams.