“You know when you’re stepping into a nice-looking race car and something that you’re proud of.” William Byron said this while driving for Hendrick Motorsports in the Daytona 500. Most NASCAR conversations about team dominance eventually circle back to the sprawling campus of Hendrick Motorsports. At this year’s Daytona 500, the garages buzzed with talk of Team Penske making waves, and they did by leading over 100 laps. And yet, Hendrick’s presence loomed large, with William Byron securing his second and record-breaking 10th Daytona 500 for HMS. So, what makes Rick Hendrick’s team so special?
Insiders cite not lavish resources or engineering secrets but something more elusive: Rick Hendrick’s almost uncanny intuition for recognizing potential in places others might overlook. Ray Evernham and Jeff Gordon, two products of that intuition, have spoken at length about Hendrick’s golden eye, and recently, Ray Evernham gave a bold take on why Mr.H is simply the best.
The talent and intuition of Rick Hendrick
Ray Evernham was Jeff Gordon’s championship-winning crew chief from 1992 to 1999, amassing 47 wins and three Cup Series Championships in their time at Hendrick Motorsports. But how did they get there? Well, Evernham had just stormed out of Alan Kulwicki’s garage in 1992 and joined Bill Davis Racing to team up with a young Jeff Gordon in the Busch (now Xfinity) Series. Rick Hendrick already had his eye on Gordon, and once the California native showed his class, he was pushed up to Cup along with Evernham.
Hendrick just promoted a lower-tier driver/crew chief team after just one season of working together, despite knowing they would have to change manufacturers from Ford to Chevrolet. This seemed like a huge gamble at first, but as you know, the results paid tenfold. This is what makes Mr.H so special, and Ray Evernham put it bluntly while telling RACER, “I will always give Rick Hendrick credit. Rick Hendrick can just see stuff in people that they don’t even see themselves, and identify that, and then give them the tools to become what they are. He did that for Jeff. He did it for me.”
Evernham’s reflection isn’t nostalgia, it’s a current reality. Hardened by decades in NASCAR, Hendrick’s process remains both art and science. It’s not simply about scouting stats sheets or picking flashy rookies. It comes down to evaluating character, drive, and a deeper understanding of what separates a good racer from a generational competitor.
Recently, Jeff Gordon was highlighted for his growing influence in scouting prospective drivers, taking us back to when Hendrick decided to trust Gordon’s instincts that set the template. Jeff Gordon famously pushed Rick Hendrick to sign Jimmie Johnson back in 2002, despite Jimmie Johnson’s resume being fairly thin. The result? Johnson delivered 83 wins and seven championships. Evernham also pointed out how keen Gordon’s eye is after working with Rick for his entire career.
Evernham continued, “If you see a guy on the racetrack, you know whether he’s any good or not. There’s been some guys I’ve said to Jeff [Gordon], ‘they’re doing pretty good,’ and Jeff will go, ‘yeah, he’s not that good.’ He’ll say something about another guy that if he does this, this, and this, he’s gonna be good. They can see that.” Examples for drivers like these are probably HMS’ talent pool right now, with Corey Day at the forefront.
Kyle Larson called Corey Day “better than I was at that age,” and Gordon and Hendrick have also spoken highly about Day. The driver has made part-time appearances for HMS in the Xfinity Series and Spire Motorsports in Trucks, aiming to prove Rick Hendrick and his team right after the potential they saw in him. This pattern of belief, seeing an unpolished gem and crafting the right environment, is what keeps Hendrick ahead of the curve. Rick Hendrick himself is modest about the secret in 2007, admitting, “I’ve watched it and done it enough and driven myself, and I look for things in drivers and have been able to identify things I think work… I’ve just been doing it a long time”.
These instincts have led to an enviable history of giving platforms to soon-to-be legends. Hendrick’s knack for picking and nurturing talent isn’t confined to drivers; it extends to crew chiefs, engineers, and every corner of the organization. And the results are indisputable. Over 290 Cup Series wins and record-breaking championships, Hendrick Motorsports is simply a cut above the rest.
Hendrick’s standard in a changing NASCAR landscape
The NASCAR landscape is evolving rapidly, marked by the rise of new team owners like Jimmie Johnson and Brad Keselowski. Yet, despite the fresh energy, industry observers and rivals still measure success against the Hendrick Motorsports playbook. Even as organizations innovate and expand, there’s a palpable sense that the structures Hendrick put in place, especially his methods for identifying and empowering talent, remain the standards to beat.
Nowhere is Hendrick’s talent pipeline more visible than in the recent performances of drivers like Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott, both of whom transitioned into Cup Series leadership roles at a young age and have already collected crucial wins and playoff runs. Evidence of Hendrick’s continued excellence is seen in the seamless integration of young drivers and the rapid performance uptick of those under his wing.
After Hendrick’s teams swept four of the top five spots en route to their 269th organizational win, Hendrick remarked on the atmosphere at his shop: “All the cars are fast, the guys are doing a great job. Pit crews are doing well… It feels good. I can’t believe we got 269“. This organizational health is not just a byproduct of engineering but a testament to the talent pipeline that he oversees.
Rick Hendrick has also shown open support and respect for the new generation of owners building their own programs. “If you look at the future of the sport, you look at Jimmie [Johnson, Legacy Motor Club], you look at Jeff [Dickerson of Spire Motorsports], you look at Dale [JR Motorsports], you look at Brad [Keselowski of RFK Racing], and you look at those kinds of guys who are sticking their necks out to build something—that’s good for the sport” Hendrick stated after the 2025 Daytona 500. But the underlying implication is clear: the bar has long since been set.
Through all eras, championship runs, driver changes, and crew chief turnovers, one constant has defined Hendrick Motorsports. It is the deliberate, persistent cultivation of talent at every level, ensuring the team never just survives but leads. And those closest to Rick Hendrick know it’s still his eye for people, not just racing, that guarantees his teams remain the gold standard amid NASCAR’s continuous change.
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