Why Jeff Gordon Likens the William Byron-Rudy Fugle Pairing to His Alliance With Ray Evernham

The relationship between a driver and his crew chief is a sacred one in all motorsports. There needs to be an innate level of trust in each other’s abilities to get the job done well. Jeff Gordon and Ray Evernham were masters at this. They won three championships and 47 races together. Today, there is another duo that closely simulates what they had going between them.

Hendrick Motorsports driver William Byron will be racing in the 2024 Cup Series finale in Phoenix this weekend. A key part of his effort will be his crew chief Rudy Fugle.

The duo previously worked together in the Craftsman Truck Series (2016) and have been doing so in the Cup Series since 2021. As their team’s vice chairman, Gordon couldn’t be more pleased with the rapport they have.

He has time and time again underlined that Byron is the right successor to carry the legacy of the No. 24 car, which he once drove, forward. He made that stand clear once again ahead of the final race of the season by lauding the chemistry between Byron and Fugle. The four-time champion told the team media, “You see this at certain times throughout a driver’s career.”

“I think of myself with Ray Evernham. You find a guy that trusts and believes in you and is confident that you’re the guy. You’re the guy behind the wheel that if they give you the car and get you in position, that you’re going to go get the job done and that works in both directions – William believes in Rudy and Rudy believes in William.”

Can this belief result in a championship victory?

Byron’s edge over his contenders in Phoenix

Byron was one of the Championship 4 drivers last season as well. He was accompanying teammate Kyle Larson in the finale but he’ll be going in as a lone wolf this time around. Ryan Blaney, however, comes shouldered by his teammate Joey Logano. The No. 24 driver believes that this can provide him an advantage.

He reasons, “I feel like (Logano and Blaney) have to focus on each other, and for us, it’s really all about the 24, so I do feel like it’s an advantage.”

The HMS driver also revealed that he has been working together with his three Hendrick Motorsports teammates to find the best way to conquer Phoenix. That’s a scary enough combination to rattle any driver on the field let alone the Team Penske duo.

Byron winning the title will mean a lot to Rick Hendrick and Gordon considering that this is the team’s 40th year in the sport. All their hopes will be pinned on the 26-year-old who made it to the Cup Series using his iRacing setup.