“Unbelievable”: Jeff Gordon’s ex-crew chief mourns the loss of Mecum Auctions’ John Kraman

Jeff Gordon's former crew chief Ray Evernham mourned the loss of John Kraman after the latter passed away at the age of 68. He was famously known for his role as the analyst of the Mecum Auctions.

Kraman was Mecum's (a brand specializing in the collection and auctioning of cars and motorcycles) lead announcer for television broadcasts since 2008. He was quite popular amongst automobile enthusiasts all over the world. His career began in the sales sector for Anderson Nissan Mazda, moving to airplane sales for Courtesy Aircraft. He transitioned into Mecum where he gained most popularity as a TV personality specializing in automobiles.

Upon his passing, Ray Evernham, known for his work in NASCAR with Jeff Gordon and Hendrick Motorsports, shared a post as a tribute to Kraman's.

"Unbelievable, did not know," he wrote on X. "What a fantastic person, unbelievable knowledge of cars, but such a great guy Prayers to his family and friends."

Evernham initially entered the world of motorsports as a driver; however, after suffering a major crash at the age of 34 at Flemington Speedway that impaired his depth perception, he bid farewell to racing.

He then moved to the other side of NASCAR. He worked as a crew chief for Jeff Gordon between 1992 and 1999. They were a very strong duo, winning 47 races and three Cup Series championships together in 1995, '97, and '98.

Evernham left Hendrick mid-season in 1999 to lay the foundation for his own team, Evernham Motorsports. He is regarded as one of the best crew chiefs in the history of the sport.

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Jeff Gordon once discussed a "frustrating" moment while battling with Dale Earnhardt with Ray Evernham backing him

Dale Earnhardt and Jeff Gordon were at the top of the sport during the 90s as they battled each other out during the races. They remained dominant and shared a tough rivalry through the years. Their on-track battles were hard to miss as they didn't keep anything subtle. It was out in the open and they would challenge each other.

In Picture: Jeff Gordon with Ray Evernham (Source: Imagn)

Ray Evernham once revealed that he asked Gordon to take it easy and not tangle with Earnhardt because it could have dangerous consequences.

"Jeff would get out there and mix it up with Earnhardt in practice," Evernham said. "I used to tell him, 'Don't mess with him.' That's like poking a stick at a rattlesnake. You're going to get bit."

This one particular weekend at Michigan International Speedway, Jeff Gordon reminisced that they had a very competitive car and it would have been a strong race for them. As he followed Evernham's advice, he did not wish to make any contact with Earnhardt during the session.

However, as Gordon went out on the track, Earnhardt (who left the pit road earlier) seemed to slow down and the moment the two were together, he started drag racing.

"I'm like, 'I'm catching him so fast that I'm not going to have any problem passing him,'" Gordon said. "So, I get underneath him going down the backstraightaway, now he's drag racing me. I'm like, 'Great. No problem, my car is so good, I'm just going to dive into this corner and clear.' (0:37 onwards).

Gordon decided to dive down the inside and get ahead as he claimed having a fantastic car that weekend, however, that did not turn out how he imagined.

"I drove down in there, so did he. He drove in there as hard as he possibly could on my door and sucked me around and blew my back into the wall. Hard hit, too. It was a really hard hit because we were hauling a**."

He mentioned that it was one of the most frustrating moments of the racing career he shared with Earnhardt.

"Those were the most frustrating times that I had with Dale. Moments like that at the track were ones that just pissed me off, and Dale was probably grinning ear to ear." (1:08 onwards)

Despite the rivalry these drivers shared, Jeff Gordon once revealed the respect he had for Dale Earnhardt. The latter passed away after crashing at the season-opening Daytona 500 in the final moments of the race.