Mature Gordon bringing poise, authority to the table

Sporting News, The, May 21, 2001 by Lee Spencer

Jeff Gordon has come of age. While most drivers and crew chiefs have ducked reporters in the wake of NASCAR's ongoing Dale Earnhardt seat-belt controversy, Gordon has occupied center stage. He's firing off concise and complete answers to whatever questions have been posed, and no subject is off-limits.

Gordon describes the seat-belt situation as "confusing and conflicting."

While he is confident that emergency medical technician Tommy Propst believes he is telling the truth (that the seat belt was intact when he arrived at the accident scene), Gordon also feels that NASCAR and Richard Childress Racing are divulging accurate information as well. And he still supports Bill Simpson, the seat belt's manufacturer.

"Knowing everything I know, I still have Bill's seat belts in my car because I'm comfortable in them," says Gordon, a three-time Winston Cup champion. "We all need to make sure that everything is properly installed, and when we are tightening the belts, we need to tighten them up straight. Unfortunately, Bill has had some negative things come out because of this, and it's none of his doing."

Gordon has done his homework as both a driver and team owner, and he admits he knows more about seat belts than he ever did in the past.

He feels comfortable going to NASCAR and voicing his opinion. He knows that an open line of communication is best for everyone, and it's what is necessary if the sport is going to move on.

"We all have our own opinions, but what's going to be interesting is having a dedicated group of people that are testing everything and can either confirm what we know or teach us what we don't know," Gordon says. "Bringing the competitors together and having discussions gives us the ability to move forward."

At 29, Gordon is his own man. Even with NASCAR lurking in the red trailer across the garage, he is standing and delivering. Although no one can replace Earnhardt, Gordon has a natural talent with sponsors and journalists that goes beyond his skills on the track.

"Jeff has always been mature far beyond his years," team owner Rick Hendrick says. "But since Ray (Evernham, former crew chief) left and we formed our partnership, he's taken a much more active role in running the team from both a business and competitive standpoint....

"Something many people don't realize about Jeff and (wife) Brooke is that they are extremely intelligent people with great business sense.

"Last year was a year of rebuilding for the DuPont team, and Jeff carried that team on his shoulders with no complaints and under a lot of criticism that all the success was due to working with Ray.... I think Jeff is the kind of person who would have been enormously successful no matter what profession he chose."

On the competitive side of racing, no other current driver has three Winston Cup trophies. He is 14 points behind leader Dale Jarrett in the standings this season and is neck and neck with Rusty Wallace for total career wins, with Wallace leading by one with 54.

But the rivalry between Gordon and Wallace runs deeper than the quest for career milestones. Their confrontation during the final laps at Richmond merely rekindled the acrimony that had smoldered since 1997, when Gordon shoved Wallace's Ford aside and claimed victory at Bristol. Wallace returned the favor at Richmond.

Gordon admits that a lot has changed since he won his last title in 1998--new car, new crew and a new crew chief. But he says his team is "tight-knit" and that its members support one another. That makes him more determined to win that next championship.

"When you have flames on your race car, you can't let anybody mess with you," Gordon says. "I've always been aggressive, and I want everyone to know that I'm going to fight all the way to the end. I'm not going to take anything off of anybody. I'm going to race as hard as I can."

DOWN THE ROAD

Race: The Winston (non-points race).

When: 9 p.m. (Eastern) Saturday, FX.

Where: Lowe's Motor Speedway, 1.5-mile trioval, Concord, N.C.

Format: 70 green-flag laps broken down into 30-30-10 increments.

Last year's winner: Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Three to watch: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Rusty Wallace, Steve Park.

Key to winning: "All the drivers know that in order to win the race, you've got to be in one piece in the last 10 laps.... That last 10 laps is basically getting thrown to the wolves and seeing if you can get out in one piece. It's as cutthroat as any race I've ever been in." --Dale Earnhardt Jr.

See a different gain: NASCAR's all-star race is won by the best car at the end and the most ruthless driver. The first two 30-lap segments are for dialing in the cars and keeping them together for the final sprint.

Hitchin' a ride with Junior

Want to ride with Dale Earnhardt Jr.? Well, we can't put you in his Chevrolet Monte Carlo--for one thing, there's only one seat--but we can put you inside his head. OK, his helmet.

Go to sportingnews.com/nascar Monday after The Winston and throughout the rest of the Winston Cup season to see what Junior and his crew talk about on the radio. Every week we'll have text from Junior's best conversations during the races. You can't get any more inside the game than this.