BucketBoy
Rookie
Posts: 93
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« Reply #12 on: February 28, 2005, 10:36:06 pm » |
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This has been asked a few times before over on the Speed TV 'Insider' message forums, where I hang out - and where I've posted the entire 'Andy Evans Story'. Andy Evans wrote himself into the sportscar history books in the 1990's and his rise to importance came almost as quickly as his demise, but like him or hate him, the fact is that he left his mark. Bill France and Don Panoz likely wouldn't be in control of their respective road-racing series if it weren't for Andy's vision, greed, and apparent impulsiveness. Who knows where things might have led? Anyhow, here's what I wrote last time (maybe I should add in the $10 cooler-tax and the 'extra-fee-grandstands'? Let me know if there's any corrections or omissions!  To the best of my knowledge, here is an accurate summation of Andy Evans and his motorsports involvement.
1963
- Andy Evans goes to a Can-Am race at age 12. He falls in love with motorsports.
Mid-1970's
- Evans works in the securities/financial business as a trader, broker and investor. Is founder & President of Dominion Income Management Corp, based out of Seattle, Washington.
1980's
- Evans starts to race competitively, starting in 1982. Races in SCCA Sports 2000
- Evans Llewllyn Securities investment firm is set up. Bill Gates, Microsoft founder, is a board member.
1986
- Andy Evans and his wife Ann Llewellyn are convicted on charges relating to bank fraud and are send to prison for 6 months each. After their release, Bill Gates gives Andy Evans power of attorney over his personal investments.
1990
- Evans races a Tiga Chevy in the Camel Lights series with Carlos Bobeda Racing.
1991
- Evans races a Spice Buick in the Camel Lights series with Carlos Bobeda Racing.
- Evans races in the 3-race JaguarSport Inter-Continental Challenge (XJR-15's). The cars cost $1,000,000 each, and only 50 were ever made. Evans did not finish in the top 6 in any of the races.
1992
- Evans becomes driver/owner of a Kudzu Buick Camel Lights sportscar team, co-driving with (the now deceased) Fermin Velez. The team was called Scandia Engineering, but changed names to Scandia Motorsports later in the season.
1993
- Evans, Charles Morgan & Fermin Valez have a successful year in Camel Lights, running the Kudzu Buick again.
- An article in the Wall Street Journal reports that Bill Gates' current money manager, one Andrew Evens was a convicted felon. Pressured by his mother, Bill Gates fires Andy, however still maintains a good personal & business relationship with his former money managers (Bill Gates is godfather to Andy's 3 children).
1994
- Moving up to the faster WSC class, Evans and Fermin Valez have a very successful year running a Spice Chevrolet for Scandia Motorsports.
1995
- Andy Evans gets an itch. Gets a REALLY BIG itch. He suddenly finds an urge to want to OWN North American motorsports... or A BIG PIECE of it, at the very least.
- Scandia Racing Team enters a pair of Ferraris in the Sebring 12hrs and Evans & Velez win, the 2nd car of Baldi & Alboreto is 4th. Evans only drives in one more race, for Leigh Miller Racing.
- Andy joins up with CART owner Dick Simon, offering him $1million for a minority stake in the team. Once the deal was closed, Dick Simon realized that Andy had written terms into the contract whereby Simon relinquished control of the team's board.
1996 (A busy year for Andy):
- Evans buys out Simon's share of the CART team and it became known as Team Scandia for 1996.
Drivers included Eliseo Salazar, Carlos Guerrero, Marco Greco, Michel Jourdain Jr.
- Evans (a good friend of IMS & IRL's Tony George) also wanted to own a team in the IRL. So, teaming up with Simon, the Simon/Scandia IRL team runs a complete season, entering a whopping 7 cars at that year's Indy500. Michel Jourdain Jr. & Eliseo Salazaar raced for Team Scandia at selected races in both series that year. 8 drivers in total drove for the team.
- (September): International Motor Sports Group(IMSG) which Andy Evans & Roberto Muller (former CEO of Reebok International) own suddenly decide to buy sanctioning body IMSA.
- Jack Long, executive director of the IRL is brought on as director of IMSG's IMSA.
- Andy also decided that his new SportsCar business should own a lot of the tracks it raced at, so he purchases or announces plans to purchase Road Atlanta, Mosport & Sebring International Raceway.
1997
- (January): IMSG announces plan to take over Mosport Park near Toronto, Canada.
- (February): IMSG discovers that Mosport has debts and backs out of the merger.
- (March): At the Sebring 12hrs in 1997, there was a bit of a scandal as it would seem that Andy Evans, driving his Ferrari 333SP (engineered by Dick Simon), whilst being owner of the sanctioning body and series, and the racetrack.. somehow used his 'influence' to slow down the pace car under a full-course caution period and make up some lost time. Andy went on to win the race, resulting in an immediate fan outcry of “cheat!”. Realizing the serious conflict of interest, Andy quickly sold his Scandia Racing sportscar team.
- Andy renames the IMSA series Professional SportsCar Racing, or SportsCar for short.
This immediately draws criticism as 'Sports Car' is a registered trademark of SCCA, which produces a magazine by that name. Additionally, the words 'Sports Car' make up the first 2 letters of the SCCA acronym.
- (April): PSC and Speedvision announce sponsorship & broadcasts through 2000 of the Speedvision Cup
- Andy buys a Jim Epler's NHRA Royal Purple Motor Oil Top Fuel dragster team, featuring 17-year-old driver Cristen Powell. The new team will be called Team Scandia and will be sponsored by Reebok.
(remember that Evan's partner in IMSG is the former Reebok International CEO Roberto Muller).
- (May 1st): IMSG takes control of Mosport Park, and will operate it for the next 40years.
- (June 25th): - IMSG drops an effort to 'unite' with the SCCA. The desire had been to combine the activities of both groups (READ: Andy Evans wanted to swallow SCCA and control the entire North American road racing scene).
- (July 6th): IMSG announces a stock-car series called 'American StockCar Championship'. The first race will be held at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sept 20th, 1997. Current GTS-1 and Trans-Am tube-frame cars will be allowed to compete. Andy's idea is to lure SCCA Trans-Am teams & drivers over to his own series.
- Rumours are that Evans is interested in a NASCAR Winston Cup team as well. He is said to have talks with Geoff Bodine.
- (August 7th): Andy announces IMSG is investing in 50% of BDR Racing, Brett Bodine's NASCAR WC team. The new team is called Scandia/Bodine Racing.
- (September 4th): SCCA Pro announces the formation of a 'Trans-Am Council' to oversee and act as a governing board for the Trans-Am series.
- (September 7th): It is announced that the proposed American StockCar Championship is cancelled.
- (October 2nd): Acknowledging that Andy Evan’s vision for sportscar racing in North America did in fact have merit, a fresh start for sportscar racing in North America is planned. The SCCA Pro announces the formation of a new group, the United States Road Racing Championship (USRRC), in an effort to unify N. American road racing. To continue the WSC tradition, a new Can-Am Championship and a new USRRC GT series will be formed, to go along with the Trans-Am series. Those in attendance at the meetings of the new series included SCCA’s Nick Craw, IMSA founder John Bishop, Daytona track owner Bill France Jr, Rob Dyson(WSC entrant), and representatives from racing tracks including Skip Barber(Lime Rock), John Saunders(Watkins Glen), Al Greibling(Mid Ohio), Jim Haynes(Road America), Jim Kanely(Road Atlanta), Ralf Sanchez(Homestead), John Stornetta(Laguna Seca), among others.
Rob Dyson is quoted as saying:
”The United States Road Racing Championship unifies professional sports car racing and will be the cornerstone for future growth. Road racing today begins a period of stability, growth and a return to prominence thanks to the vision and vigilance of these North American promoters, future USRRC entrants and SCCA Pro Racing."
- (October): Daytona track owner Bill France Jr. announces that the 1998 Daytona 24-Hours will be awarded to the new USRRC Can-Am Championship series, and that the 24-Hours will be its inaugural event. The event is to be sanctioned by SCCA Pro Racing.
SCCA Pro president & CEO Dan Greenwood is quoted as saying:
”The 1998 Rolex 24 At Daytona will have the same outstanding competition that fans have come to expect at Daytona. We will again see a very competitive and exciting race with another robust field of cars. Competition has always been fierce at Daytona and that will continue in 1998 and beyond.”
- Strong rumours are of the coming demise of PSC now that the USRRC has been formed. In response, Andrew Evans was quoted as saying "To paraphrase Mark Twain, the rumours of our demise are premature and greatly exaggerated."
- IMSG announces it has entered into a loan and option agreement with Klein Engines and Competition Components. The terms allow for IMSG to acquire all shares of Klein Engines on a 1-for-1 basis for shares in IMSG. Andy is proud to now own a race series, tracks, teams, and parts supplier.
- IRL Team Scandia wins its first and only race at the Las Vegas 500. Eliseo Salazaar is the driver. 1997 saw 10 drivers race for Team Scandia, including the always beefed-up Indy500 entries.
Valez & Greco are let go mid-season, amid talk that the team did not have enough equipment for its drivers.
- (November 25th): Skip Barber, one of the principles responsible for the formation of the USRRC announces his displeasure about the way things are happening (and/or not happening) and announces his resignation as USRRC spokesperson. Citing conflicting messages & information being dispersed by the SCCA, the SCCA’s inability to create a rulebook or a schedule for a season that was to start just two months away, the SCCA’s procrastination at naming a Board, and the general feeling that the SCCA was trying to control the series themselves rather than just have input -- this does not bode well for the new series.
- (Dec 5, 1997): IMSG announces they are selling PSC. IMSG’s equity shares are to be sold & placed in a new holding company, owned by various executives of IMSG. Andy Evans announces his retirement as chairman of IMSG and states that he will not participate in ownership or management of the new company.
"The sale also allows IMSG to focus its attention and efforts on its primary assets: race tracks, race teams, brands -- Jimmy Kite, Cristen Powell and Brett Bodine -- and related businesses. IMSG will now have the opportunity to operate in a positive cash flow situation in 1998."
- (December 13th): USRRC finally announces their Board of Directors: John Saunders, Kevin Doran, Rob Dyson, Nick Craw, Carl Haas, Robert Snodgrass (president of Brumos Motorcars) and “a promoter to be named later”.
- (December): USRRC releases a Rulebook for the USRRC Can-Am Championship. FIA-homologated turbo engines are not allowed -- the SCCA questioning the viability & safety of powerful turbo-engined GT cars racing with the non-aspirated prototypes, rather than being lowly back-markers who could be passed by quickly. At Le Mans in Europe, the ACO had produced an ‘equivilency formula’ to ensure fair competition between the GT & prototype classes, and it had worked well. But as the SCCA refused to do the same for the USRRC series, and as a large portion of the potential GT entries (especially at Daytona) were European teams that ran turboed Porsches -- they were essentially shut out. This was something that Andy Evans had previously warned not to do, even mentioning specifically in his October ‘Mark Twain’ speech just how important European interest was to the North American sport. As news spreads about the rules, there is immediate backlash and the motorsports classified are suddenly filled with “For Sale” ads of Porsche 911 GT1, GT2’s, and even an 911GT1-EVO. Seeing what was happening, the SCCA flip-flopped and announced that turboed GT cars could run with the prototypes at Daytona - but there would be a weight-penalty imposed on them. 380lbs of ballast would be added to the Panoz GTs and slightly less for the Porsches. Most teams were still not happy - not only was that a huge amount of ballast to be carrying but at such a late date (~month to go), there was little or no time to fit & test new stronger components that might need to be fitted due to the heavier overall weight of the car. And some cars had already been approved for racing in Europe and making changes for Daytona only would compromise their homologation or require a lot of work for change-over of parts. Letters were sent to the SCCA in protest, but ignored.
- IMSG sells Sebring to Don Panoz.
1998
- (January): Don Panoz is named to the USRRC Board of Directors.
- Daytona -- testing for the USRRC Daytona 24-Hour race commences and the ballast-laden GT cars have problems with tire wear on the banking. The extra weight may be a serious safety issue - GT competitors are frustrated that the SCCA has put them in this situation.
- (January 26th): Don Panoz reaches an agreement with the Automobile Club De L’Ouest (ACO) to hold a 1000km sportscar event at Road Atlanta in October called the ‘Petit Le Mans’. The race will be open to both European and North American cars and the top finishers will be awarded entry to the Le Mans 24hr race in France the following June. The agreement is for 5 years.
- the USRRC’s inaugural event - the Daytona 24Hr Race - Andy Evans finishes 20th, 101 laps down from his teammates in the sister Ferrari 333SP. Although the race was won by a prototype, and at a huge 8 laps margin over 2nd place - there was only 1 other prototype in the top-10 - prototype reliability seemed to be an issue. If it hadn’t been for the weight-penalties, a GT could have easily won (the fastest GT1’s were running 5-6 seconds a lap slower than the prototypes). Don Panoz, who’s Panoz GT cars had been severely handicapped by the SCCA’s rulebook was quoted as saying:
“What spectator wants to come to a fixed fight?”
- (February 9th): Don Panoz resigns from the USRRC Board of Directors.
- The Scandia IRL team decides to only enter 1 driver (Jimmy Kite) this season, though added a 2nd car for Billy Roe at the Indy500 in May.
- (May): Andy Evans merges IMSG which owns his NASCAR, IRL and NHRA teams, with Klein Engines, a publicly traded company. The new Automotive Performance Group (traded as RACG) is valued at $8.5 million, with an estimated six million outstanding shares.
- Just hours after the 1998 running of the IRL Indy500, team owner Andy Evans informed his driver Jimmy Kite that he'd decided to switch his full concentration from the IRL open wheel cars to NASCAR stock cars & his Scandia/Bodine team. Their debut will be at the NASCAR Winston Cup Brickyard 400 on August 1st at Indy.
- (June): Not content to stop with only 1 NASCAR team, midway through the 1998 season Andy tried to also buy out Brett's brother Geoff's NASCAR team. Talks broke off..
- (June 5th): Don Panoz and the ACO announce the formation of a new North American sportscar series to start next year and to be called the ‘American Le Mans Series’, based on ACO rules. The press release clearly states how that all classes are anticipated to have an opportunity for the overall win:
“In this series, WSC, Can-Am, and LMP cars (open) and GT1 cars will run together and GT2 and GT3 cars will run together. This format will provide the opportunity for different classes to take overall wins.”
Ferrari 333SP driver Wayne Taylor says “"I'd like to thank Don Panoz and the ACO for giving the competitors a chance to bring professional sports car racing back to the U.S.."
- (June): IRL Team Scandia closes up shop in Indianapolis. Word is that Andy is trying to get out of his NASCAR deal with Brett Bodine.
- (August): NASCAR Brickyard 400 comes and goes. Jimmy Kite never does make a NASCAR start, though does compete in a couple of ARCA events.
- Marco Greco, former IRL Scandia driver, successfully sues Scandia for $330,615.00 in damages plus costs and attorney's fees for failing to supply engines to meet contract obligations with Greco (a pay-for-ride driver).
- Andy is sued by formed NASCAR partner, Brett Bodine. Bodine claims that Andy has a track-record of investing in companies, then getting them to overspend their cash resources in order for them to seek
further funding, in exchange for control of their business.
- (October): Andy announces he is selling his Team Scandia NHRA Top Fuel team to Roy Hill.
- The inaugural Petit Le Mans race takes place at Road Atlanta as a PSC event. The event is hugely successful.
- (November 3rd): Don Panoz buys Mosport Park.
- (December): Reebok announces they won't be continuing their sponsorship of the NHRA team that Andy is in the midst of selling. (most people could see that one coming)
1999
- (January) Brett Bodine & his wife were able to secure financing enabling them to buy out Andy Evans from their partnership and regain full control of their team. At the time, Brett was quoted as saying:
”During the time of our partnership, Andy and I were in disagreement of how the team should be managed. He was constantly trying to take control of the team and direct the team in a way that I thought would be detrimental. This was a huge distraction during the 1998 season that certainly hurt the team's on-track performance. With that behind us, we can now concentrate on doing the things within the team to make us more competitive."
- The Daytona 24-Hrs is held again as a USRRC event. Prototypes take the first 5 places, and there are 15-full course cautions during the 24hrs.
- (February): Andy’s attempt to sell the NHRA team to Roy Hill fails, possibly due to the fact that one of the team’s main sponsors (Reebok) won’t be around to pay the bills.
- (March): The inaugural American Le Mans Series race takes place as the 12hrs of Sebring.
- (May) IRL Team Scandia comes together again to make an effort for Indy. Jim Guthrie is entered in the Indy500, but fails to qualify. IRL Team Scandia folds.
- That's the last we heard of Team Scandia, in any form.
- (June 6th): the USRRC holds its last Can-Am race at Mid-Ohio, just 3 races into their 2nd season. The series died a quick and painless death, running out of money due to lack of sponsor & fan interest.
- Bill & Jim France announce plans for formation of a new sanctioning body for sportscar endurance racing, for a series to start the following year (it is later named ‘Grand-American Road Racing Association’(GARRA)). The series will fill the void left by the USRRC which had never really caught on. As owners of the Daytona 24hr race, the Frances wanted to ensure the continued success of their race - by controlling a series, now they can make the rules on who gets to race there.
- (September): GARRA is officially announced. The class rules are stated in the press release and it is made clear that the rules favour privateer entries and discourage expensive factory efforts:
“[SportsRacer]The rules will include the requirement that all cars and major components be available for purchase within a price cap. While both classes of SportsRacer automobiles share most of their specifications, the SportsRacer II (SR11) machines have a lower price cap, utilize less exotic materials in their construction, and are restricted to six cylinder normally aspirated engines.”
2000
- (February): The inaugural Grand-Am series race takes place as the 2000 Daytona 24-Hrs. GTS & GT cars dominate - the 4th place Dyson car was the only prototype to finish in the top-12.
- (February 25th): Grand-Am announces list of founding members/investors. NASCAR president Bill France Jr., NASCAR VP Brian France, NASCAR CEO Mike Helton, ISC President & CEO Jim France, ISC VP Lesa Kennedy, Roger Edmondson(president, Grand-AM), Roger Penske, Rob Dyson, Skip Barber, John Saunders, Bill Snodgrass, among others. Note that many of these people were involved in the founding of the defunct USRRC.
2002-2002:
- Andy Evans is involved in highly suspect & intricate securities trading, amassing stakes in various Internet startups and spinoffs, artificially inflating the stock prices, and taking control of the companies when they are forced into receivership due to staggering losses (ex: $151million losses on revenue of $493,000 in the case of Envision). In the span of 2 years, Evans had amassed at least 22 separate complaints filed with the SEC. And remember, he was already in trouble with them back in 1986.
2002-> Andy Evans has quietly disappeared! Gone, but not forgotten!
WHERE IN THE WORLD IS ANDY EVANS TODAY :?: (My money is on the Cayman Islands)  |
