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Smith, Evernham partner to launch new race car
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By Joe Menzer
August 21, 2010
Bristol, TN — Former NASCAR championship crew chief Ray Evernham has teamed up with Bruton Smith, chairman of Speedway Motorsports Inc., to develop a new race car to run in a new dirt track racing series.
Evernham and Smith announced their new partnership Saturday prior to the Irwin Tools Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway. The new car is a larger dirt track version of the current Legends car being run at various tracks throughout the United States and even in other countries.
The initiative—called U.S. Legends Cars International—will include having the series run initially at East Lincoln Speedway in Stanley, N.C., beginning next year. The hope is to have the series then expand to other top dirt tracks around the country, according to Evernham, who owns the East Lincoln track.
If it seems like these two have big plans and are moving quickly to make them a reality, it’s because they do and they are.
“I went up to Ray’s shop and I’m telling you, we did this deal in less than an hour,” said Don Hawk, SMI vice president of business affairs.
Hawk said that as of Saturday, it had been only 33 days since the deal was struck and already Evernham had produced three cars that were ready for testing. Powered by a Legends car engine, Evernham said the new vehicle has a slightly bigger tire, is designed more like “a 1960s-type sprint car or super modified” and is designed specifically to run on dirt.
Evernham said a complete car will be ready for display before the Oct. 16 NASCAR Banking 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway and that three cars will put on an “exhibition” at the Charlotte Dirt Track that weekend.
“It is an exciting project. It’s something that should allow people to have fun,” Evernham said. “It’s a good, safe car. It allows a little more adjustability for competition. … It’s going to be a good, safe, low-cost way for people to go racing.”
Smith said his company currently is selling Legends cars now in 16 other countries other than U.S., including Russia, Finland, Morocco and Australia. The hope, he and Evernham added, is that the new car catches on in the United States and follows suit into international markets.
“I just think it’s fabulous that all of a sudden we’re in 16 other countries with our product. Gee whiz, I never thought we’d be international but all of a sudden we are,” Smith said.
Smith called the project an important part of a “grass-roots” effort to find “the future Jeff Gordons” of stock-car racing.
Hawk added: “One of the things we’re really committed to as a company is very simply this: we need to find the stars of tomorrow, and we need to give them cars they can afford to race that are safe.”
As the parent of a child who is getting a start in youth racing, Marcus Smith said he welcomes the concept. Marcus Smith is Bruton’s son and also is president of Charlotte Motor Speedway.
“One of the neatest things about this is that this is really Ray Evernham’s baby,” Marcus Smith said. “He’s developed this car from the ground up. We’re really proud to be associated with Ray and to be able to work with him on this project.
“From a parent’s perspective, you’ve got a chance to put a child in a car that’s going to be safe and competitive in a series of cars where it shouldn’t be about whoever spends the most money wins. It should be competitive, fun and also affordable.”
Marcus Smith said that currently the smaller Bandolero race cars for beginning youth drivers cost roughly $7,000 and the current Legends cars for older kids and adults cost $13,000, and added that there is a “robust” used market for both vehicle types. He and Evernham said the new dirt car would be in “the same ballpark” cost-wise, but added that a final price has not yet been determined.
• NASCAR News Archive Index:
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