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Jeff Gordon through the years
By Pat DeCola | Thursday, August 4, 2022
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Jeff Gordon, four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and now vice chairman of Hendrick Motorsports, turns 51 years old today.
Scroll through to see the 2019 Hall of Fame inductee's career through the years.
Scroll through to see the 2019 Hall of Fame inductee's career through the years.
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The 1992 season also marked another milestone for Gordon: his first NASCAR Cup Series start. It also came at Atlanta Motor Speedway, in what would be the legend Richard Petty's last race.
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It didn't take long for Gordon to break into Victory Lane in the national series ranks, picking up his first NASCAR Xfinity Series (then Busch Grand National Series) win in the fourth race of his sophomore 1992 season at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
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Gordon's first full-time NASCAR Cup Series season came a year later in 1993, finishing 14th in the standings after 11 top 10s, seven top fives and a respectable 230 laps led.
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Want to make a grand entrance? Try picking up your first win in one of NASCAR's crown jewels: the sport's longest race, the Coca-Cola 600. Which Gordon did, in 1994.
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When NASCAR first raced at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1994, technically speaking any driver could have won that race ... but of course, it went to the Indiana native and future dominator of the historic "Brickyard."
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It didn't take long for Gordon to establish himself as a superstar, and his first All-Star Race win came in 1995. The No. 24 driver led 49 of 70 laps on the day in what was then called the "Winston Select."
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In the mid 1990s, Gordon made Darlington Raceway his personal playground, starting with a victory in the 1995 Southern 500.
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After seven wins, the 1995 season resulted in Gordon's first NASCAR Cup Series title for the then-23-year-old. At the end-of-season banquet, Gordon notoriously toasted his friendly rival, Dale Earnhardt, with a glass of milk.
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Start of a dynasty: Gordon's 1995 NASCAR Cup Series championship marked the first of four titles overall.
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If you're ever wondering what time it is, feel free to ask Gordon -- he picked up a whopping nine Martinsville Speedway grandfather clocks throughout his career, the first of which came in 1996.
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Gordon had a history of hunting crown-jewel races early in his career and continued that trend in 1996 with his second Southern 500 win.
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After coming close the previous few years, Gordon won the last-ever race at North Wilkesboro Speedway in 1996.
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Gordon broke double digits (10 victories in a season) for the first time in his career in 1996, culminating in a second-place finish in the standings.
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In 1997, Gordon got another leg up on his rival Dale Earnhardt, picking up his first Daytona 500 crown. It came just a few short years after his search began -- and a year before Earnhardt got his.
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Gordon put together his most dominant Martinsville Speedway performance in 1997, walloping the field to a tune of 431 laps led.
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Gordon, a southern man? Might as well be, as the Indiana native scored his third straight Southern 500 in 1997.
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Gordon once again piled together double-digit wins in 1997, this time culminating in his second NASCAR Cup Series championship.
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Gordon averaged a pristine 10.0 finish at the "Brickyard" over 23 races in his career and notched his second of five victories there in 1998.
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Four in a row? Why not. Something about Darlington Raceway seemed to really click for Gordon, obviously, as he picked up a quartet of Southern 500 wins by 1998.
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Arguably the greatest single season by a driver in NASCAR history, Gordon's 1998 campaign -- a 13-win jaunt -- resulted in his third title and cemented himself as a legend ... but he was still just getting started.
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Gordon liked winning the Daytona 500 so much, he did it again two years after his first -- this time, from the pole.
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Gordon won his third and final All-Star Race in 2001, starting from 10th and leading 10 laps to hold off Dale Jarrett and Tony Stewart for the exhibition victory.
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Later that year, he collected his third "Brickyard" victory, leading 29 laps and carving his way through the field from 27th for the win.
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Gordon remains the only NASCAR driver to win a title in two different millenniums. He completed the feat in 2001 for his fourth and final title.
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It took him 10 years, but Gordon finally broke through for his first and only Bristol Night Race victory in 2002. It was his fifth and final victory at the legendary Tennessee track.
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For good measure, Gordon claimed his fifth and final Southern 500 crown in 2002. He finished his career with an impressive seven victories at the track "Too Tough to Tame."
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In 2003, Gordon was the face of NASCAR at the height of the sport hitting mainstream America, as evidenced by the Hall of Famer's appearance hosting on "Saturday Night Live."
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Gordon won back-to-back races at Daytona International Speedway -- the first coming in July 2004 from the pole.
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A fourth Brickyard 400 win came in 2004, stomping the field with 124 laps led over runner-up Dale Jarrett.
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The second of those Daytona International Speedway wins of course came in the Daytona 500, with the 2005 running marking Gordon's third and final victory in "The Great American Race."
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Gordon married wife Ingrid Vandebosch in 2006.
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Gordon tied his longtime rival Dale Earnhardt in wins in 2007, picking up victory 76 at Phoenix Raceway.
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Gordon topped the "Intimidator" a week later, fittingly, at Talladega Superspeedway.
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Gordon's first child, Ella Sophia, was born in 2007.
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Gordon and wife Ingrid followed that milestone up three years later, with son Leo being born in 2010.
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It's extremely hard to fathom if you weren't around for it, but in 2010, Gordon had a feud with Jimmie Johnson -- yes, his teammate. The pair obviously ironed things out and remain friends to this day.
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Gordon's 2010 was a heck of a year, seeing the frustration of a winless season boil over -- including another feud with a well-respected competitor in Jeff Burton.
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Did Gordon take a heel turn for his final decade? Perhaps -- stemming from an incident earlier in the 2012 season, Gordon wrecked Clint Bowyer, in championship contention at the time, at Phoenix Raceway. Bowyer notoriously sprinted through the garage area, unsuccessfully looking for Gordon, before ceding the title to eventual winner Brad Keselowski.
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Speaking of Brad Keselowski, Gordon's biggest dustup came in 2014 at Texas Motor Speedway when he "left a hole" the Team Penske driver tried to take advantage of. A post-race chat on pit road turned ugly after a shove from bystander Kevin Harvick, leading to perhaps the biggest NASCAR fight of the decade.
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In a four-win campaign in 2014, though, Gordon ticked off his final win at the "Brickyard" in raucous fashion.
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In his final season, Gordon fittingly earned the pole for his last Daytona 500 in 2015.
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In a nod to his Indiana roots, Gordon was tapped as pace car driver for the 2015 Indy 500.
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Gordon officially became NASCAR's "Iron Man" in 2015 as well, breaking Ricky Rudd's consecutive starts streak of 788 races. Gordon finished with 797 straight.
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Somehow, Gordon's most famous quote didn't come until one of his final races -- and in his final win at Martinsville Speedway. "We're going to Homestead," he yelled, referencing the former championship track of Homestead-Miami Speedway.
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To commemorate the retiring driver, Phoenix Raceway renamed itself for its 2015 fall race to "Jeff Gordon Raceway."
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Gordon did, indeed, go to Homestead-Miami Speedway, where he finished third in the Championship 4 after a sixth-place finish.
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Gordon transitioned to the booth the next season, joining NASCAR on FOX full time for the 2016 Daytona 500.
Not only was he excellent behind the wheel, Gordon was also bold and insightful behind the microphone, spending six seasons (2016-2021) with FOX Sports’ television broadcast crew.
Not only was he excellent behind the wheel, Gordon was also bold and insightful behind the microphone, spending six seasons (2016-2021) with FOX Sports’ television broadcast crew.
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But wait, there's more! Gordon helped out good friend Dale Earnhardt Jr. for a handful of races in 2016 after concussion-like symptoms forced the driver from the car for the second half of the season.
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In what is currently his most recent competitive driving bout, Gordon won the 2017 Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway.
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A few weeks later, the "Rainbow Warrior" returned to Daytona International Speedway, driving the pace car for "The Great American Race."
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Racking up plenty of experience behind the wheel of pace cars, Gordon added another accolade to his resume by pacing the field to green at the 2017 Brickyard 400.
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To cap off a no-doubt Hall of Fame-worthy career, Gordon landed in the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2019.
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Making a major jump in his executive career for the 2022 season, Gordon was named vice chairman of Hendrick Motorsports on June 23, 2021. This makes him the second-ranking team official to owner Rick Hendrick.
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