Evernham: Elliott still figuring out future plans

HAMPTON, Ga. -- Ray Evernham says he doesn't know anymore about Bill Elliott's future plans than anybody else.

"He's still contemplating what he wants to do," said Evernham, the owner of Elliott's No.9 Dodge. "We've decided that we're going to take it one race at a time and hopefully by the end of the season, we'll have some kind of idea what he wants to do."

Elliott, the 1988 Winston Cup champion and the winner of 43 Winston Cup races, will be honored Sunday in this weekend's Winston Cup Victory Lap ceremony at Atlanta Motor Speedway. All along, Elliott has said his future was up in the air.

"Right now, I really don't know," Elliott said. "I've got the rest of this year with Ray, and then a two-year option after that. We've not really talked about it.

"Right now, I just want to continue to see how I feel year in and year out and if I can continue to contribute to this race team. If I can't, I need to go find something else to do."

	Bill Elliott

Evernham said he doesn't need a definitive answer until next season's Daytona 500. Still, he said he expects one a lot sooner.

"We don't have any timetable, but I'm sure we'll have an answer soon," he said.

The car owner said that he is making contingency plans that will cover his team no matter what Elliott's decision is.

"We're talking to several drivers in case Bill decides he doesn't want to drive or he wants to drive part-time," he said. "We'll just have to wait and see."

Evernham didn't rule out the possiblity that two drivers could share the car, similar to Kevin Harvick and Johnny Sauter's arrangement with the No. 21 Busch Series car.

"I think it could work if everything is worked out with the sponsors," Evernham said. "It is a scenario that could work."