Jeff Gordon

Jeffery Michael Gordon
Born	(1971-08-04) August 4, 1971 Vallejo, California, U.S.
Height	5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)
Weight	150 lb (68 kg)
Achievements	USAC Triple Crown champion (1990 Midget, 1991 Silver Crown) 1991 NASCAR Busch Series Rookie of The Year 1995 / 1997 / 1998 / 2001 / Winston Cup Series Champion 1997 / 1999 / 2005 Daytona 500 Winner 1994 / 1998 / 2001 / 2004 Brickyard 400 Winner Sprint All-Star Race XI, XIII, and XVII Winner
Awards	1993 NASCAR Sprint Cup Rookie of the Year Listed as one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers 2009 inductee in the National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame
NASCAR Cup Series career
Car no., team	24 – Hendrick Motorsports
2010 position	9th
Best finish	1st – 1995, 1997, 1998, 2001
First race	1992 Hooters 500 (Atlanta)
First win	1994 Coca-Cola 600 (Charlotte)
Last win	2011 AdvoCare 500 (Atlanta)
Wins Top tens Poles 85 391 70
NASCAR Xfinity Series career
73 races run over 5 years
Best finish	4th – 1992
First race	1990 AC-Delco 200 (Rockingham)
Last race	2000 Miami 300 (Homestead)
First win	1992 Atlanta 300 (Atlanta)
Last win	2000 Miami 300 (Homestead)
Wins Top tens Poles 5 32 12
Statistics current as of July 31, 2011.

Jeffery Michael "Jeff" Gordon (born August 4, 1971) is a professional NASCAR driver. He is the driver of the #24 Drive to End Hunger/DuPont/Pepsi Chevrolet Impala. He is a four-time Sprint Cup Series champion and a three-time Daytona 500 winner. He is third on the all-time wins list, and has the most wins in NASCAR's modern era (1972–present). He has won a total of 85 career races and was the fastest to reach 50 wins. In 2009, Gordon became the first driver to reach $100 million in career winnings in the Cup series.

Gordon, along with Rick Hendrick, are the co-owners of the #48 Lowe's Chevrolet, driven by Jimmie Johnson, who won the 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010 Cup series championships. Gordon also has an equity stake in his own #24 team. He was born in Vallejo, California, raised in Pittsboro, Indiana, and currently lives in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Early career

A signature of Jeff Gordon

Gordon began racing at the age of five, racing quarter midgets. The Roy Hayer Memorial Race Track (Previously the Cracker Jack Track) in Rio Linda, California is noted as the first track Gordon ever competed on. By the age of 6 Gordon had won 35 main events and set 5 track records. By the age of 13 Gordon took an interest in the 650 horsepower (480 kW) sprint cars. Gordon and his family had to overcome an insurance hurdle. The minimum age for driving the sprint cars was 16. His persistence paid off with an all Florida speed weeks. Supporting his career choice, Gordon's family moved from Vallejo, California to Pittsboro, Indiana, where there were more opportunities for younger racers. Before the age of 18, Gordon had already won three short-track races and was awarded USAC Midget Car Racing Rookie of the Year in 1989. That season was highlighted by winning Night Before the 500 midget car race on the day before the Indianapolis 500. In 1990, Gordon won his second consecutive Night Before the 500, the Hut Hundred, and the Belleville Midget Nationals on his way to winning the USAC national Midget title. In 1991, Gordon into the USAC Silver Crown, and at the age of 20 became the youngest driver to win the season championship. He also won the 4 Crown Nationals midget car race that season. In his midget car career between 1989 and 1992, he finished in the Top 3 in 22 of 40 USAC midget car events. And he remembered, "the car is heavy".

Busch Series career

In 1990 Gordon met Hugh Connerty, who owned some Hooters restaurants and was also a partner in Outback Steakhouse. Connerty secured some sponsorship for a car through Outback, and they tested for the last few Busch Grand National races left in 1990. Ray Evernham was called in to work with Jeff in his stock car debut. His first Busch race came on October 20, 1990 at Rockingham in the AC-Delco 200. Gordon drove the #67 Outback Steakhouse Pontiac for Connerty. Gordon ran the second fastest lap during qualifying and started on the outside of the front row of the field. Gordon would however, get involved in a wreck on lap 33. He ended up with a 39th place finish.

In 1991 and 1992, Gordon went on to the Busch Series driving Ford Thunderbirds for Bill Davis Racing. In his first year as a Busch driver he won rookie of the year. In 1992, Gordon set a NASCAR record by capturing 11 poles in one season. His time with Bill Davis Racing introduced Gordon to Ray Evernham as his crew chief. He was sponsored by Carolina Ford Dealers in 1991 and Baby Ruth in 1992.

Cup Series career

Gordon made his Winston Cup debut in the history-making 1992 Hooters 500 at Atlanta in the last race of that season; in addition to the race being Richard Petty's final race in NASCAR and the championship battle among six drivers (eventually won by Alan Kulwicki by virtue of his second place finish in the race), this was Gordon's first start in the #24 DuPont Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports that he has driven for his entire Cup Series career.

Gordon began driving the #24 full-time in the 1993 Winston Cup season, in which he won a Daytona 500 qualifying race, the Rookie of the Year award, and finished 14th in points. Ray Evernham was placed as Jeff Gordon's first crew chief. Gordon's success in the sport reshaped the paradigm and eventually gave younger drivers an opportunity to compete in NASCAR. However, during the 1993 season, many doubted Gordon's ability to compete at such a level at such a young age because of his tendency to push the cars too hard and crash. His last-place finish at the 1993 First Union 400 was a firm example of this theory.

1994

In 1994, Gordon collected his first career victory at the Charlotte Motor Speedway in the Coca-Cola 600, NASCAR's longest and most demanding race. Additionally, Gordon scored a popular hometown victory at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the inaugural Brickyard 400, passing Ernie Irvan for the lead late in the race when Irvan cut down a tire. Gordon finished eighth in the Winston Cup point standings for the '94 season, as Dale Earnhardt grabbed the driving championship for his 7th and final time.

1995–2001

Gordon with his 1995 trophy

1995 saw Gordon win his first NASCAR Winston Cup Championship. He won it by battling 7-time and defending champ, Dale Earnhardt into the final race of the season. Many see this as a symbolic passing of the torch, as Gordon collected his first championship the year after Earnhardt won his final championship. (A similar situation befell Earnhardt early in his career, as he won his first championship after Richard Petty, whose record seven titles he would eventually tie, won his last). Gordon finished the season with eight poles, and seven victories, winning at Rockingham in the second race of the season, Atlanta, Bristol (starting a streak of four consecutive wins in the spring event), Daytona (in the Pepsi 400), New Hampshire, Darlington (Starting a streak of four consecutive wins in the Southern 500 event), and Dover. The team's consistency was much better as well, having 3 DNF's in 1995, compared to 21 in his previous two seasons combined.

Gordon got off to a rocky start in 1996, but rebounded to win ten races, the series high. The 24 team collected wins at Richmond, Darlington (winning both the spring event and the Southern 500), Bristol, Dover (winning both events of the season), Pocono, Talladega, Martinsville, and North Wilkesboro (winning the final event ever at the track). This would start a three year streak of winning double digit races. He finished 2nd to teammate Terry Labonte for the championship, losing by 37 points.

Jeff Gordon won his first Daytona 500 in 1997, becoming the youngest driver in history to win the race, a record that would stand until Trevor Bayne's Daytona win in 2011. He won the second race of the season at Rockingham the following week. Later in the season he also won the Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte and had a chance to become the first man since Bill Elliott in 1985 to win the "Winston Million." Gordon completed the feat by holding off a determined Jeff Burton in the final laps of the Southern 500 at Darlington. While Elliott failed to win the Winston Cup in 1985, Jeff Gordon claimed his second Winston Cup championship in 1997, completing one of the most impressive single-season performances in NASCAR history. He finished the season with 10 victories (Daytona, Rockingham, Bristol, Martinsville, Charlotte, Pocono, California, Watkins Glen, Darlington, and New Hampshire) for the second straight season. His victory at California was in the track's inaugural race, and his victory at Watkins Glen began a streak of seven consecutive road course victories. In 1998 Gordon set a modern era record with 13 victories, easily winning the Winston Cup for the third time.

In 1999, Gordon along with crew chief Evernham formed Gordon/Evernham Motorsports. Though short lived, the race team enjoyed success. The co-owned team received a full sponsorship from Pepsi and ran six races with Gordon as driver and Ray Evernham as crew chief in the NASCAR Busch Series. GEM only survived one year as Evernham was pulled away by Dodge, ending one of the most dominant driver/crew-chief combinations in NASCAR history. Jeff Gordon extended his Busch experiment one more year, through 2000 as co-owner, with Rick Hendrick buying Evernham's half. After the departure of Evernham (who left Hendrick Motorsports to begin his own team, Evernham Motorsports, reintroducing Dodge into the series), the race team was renamed JG Motorsports. While winning six times in 1999, Gordon's season was a major disappointment, finishing 6th in the series standings. Brian Whitesell was named the interim crew-chief for remainder of the season after Evernham's departure in September. Whitesell scored back to back victories in his first two races.

2000 saw Gordon enter his first campaign with Robbie Loomis as crew-chief. Loomis had been with Petty Enterprises for years prior. The team struggled as the rebuilding process went on. Gordon scored his first victory of 2000 at Talladega in the spring event, winning his 50th career victory in the series. He went on to win at Sears Point Raceway (now Infineon Raceway) and Richmond. Gordon finished the season 9th in points.

Many people questioned Gordon's ability to win championships without longtime crew chief, Ray Evernham, especially after Gordon struggled to a 9th place points finish in 2000, winning only three races. Gordon answered those challenges in 2001 by winning 6 races (including a third Brickyard 400 win, and the inaugural event at Kansas Speedway) en route to his 4th Winston Cup championship. Jeff Gordon became the third driver to win four Cup championships in NASCAR history only second to Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt (7 times). The 24 car's paint scheme was changed for the first time this season, abandoning the 'Rainbow Warrior' scheme in favor of a flames-themed car. Both paint schemes were designed by Sam Bass.

2002–03

Gordon entered the 2002 season as defending champion, but the year was far from perfect. In addition (or perhaps because of), Gordon's divorce proceedings with wife Brooke affecting his performance on the track. A strong showing in the Daytona 500 was ruined when Sterling Marlin sent Gordon spinning in the infield grass with a handful of laps remaining, while leading the race. Gordon had won his 125 qualifier, but finished ninth in the Daytona 500 after the contact with Marlin. It was announced to the media during the spring event at Darlington that Gordon's then-wife, Brooke, was filing for divorce. Many think that the addition of the 48 team with Jimmie Johnson as driver in 2002, also took away from Gordon's season as the 24 team helped to build the 48 team. Gordon did not win until the Sharpie 500 night race at Bristol in August, his first victory in the night race at Bristol. He followed that up with a fifth victory in the Southern 500 at Darlington a week later. Gordon won for the third and final time in 2002 at Kansas Speedway, his second consecutive at the track. The 24 team finished the season 5th in points.

In 2003, Jeff Gordon returned with Robbie Loomis for a third season together. Gordon won early in April, winning Martinsville, and winning Atlanta and Martinsville again in the fall. He finished the year 4th in the NASCAR standings, with 3 wins, 15 Top-5 finishes, and 20 Top-10 finishes. Gordon also was in second in rank to Matt Kenseth for the championship early in the season. In June, Gordon went to Indianapolis Motor Speedway to take part in a test with then-F1 driver Juan Pablo Montoya. The two switched rides, with Gordon driving an F1 car for the first time. Montoya would eventually join the NASCAR Cup series in 2007.

2004

2004 was a huge rebound for the team. Gordon won the Brickyard 400 in August 2004, obtaining his 4th Indy win (1994, 1998, 2001, 2004). He is the only NASCAR driver with four Brickyard 400 victories at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and one of only five drivers to have four victories at the historic track. Prior to this victory, Gordon won at Talladega (ending the DEI dominance on restrictor plate tracks), and followed that up with a victory the following weekend at California. He also won at Infineon Raceway, and followed that up with a victory the following weekend in the Pepsi 400 at Daytona, his second consecutive restrictor plate win. He finished 3rd in the 2004 NEXTEL Cup points standing behind Kurt Busch and teammate Jimmie Johnson even though he scored the most total points throughout the whole season, a consequence of the new Chase system implemented in 2004. While the Hendrick Motorsports team enjoyed success with Johnson and Gordon finished 2nd and 3rd in the points, the team suffered a major off-track tragedy. On October 24, during the race weekend at Martinsville, a Hendrick Motorsports plane carrying engine builder Randy Dorton, team President John Hendrick (Rick Hendrick's brother), Vice President Jeff Turner, Ricky Hendrick (Rick Hendrick's 24 year old son) and more crashed on its way to the track. Everyone on board were killed. The team was clearly affected by this, but continued with impressive performances.

2005

Jeff Gordon during the 2005 Dickies 500

Gordon started the 2005 season with a win in the Daytona 500, his third win in the event. Inconsistency would plague him throughout the year, however. A late season (notably top 10s at Indy and Bristol) run put him in position to qualify for the Chase, but in the last race before the Chase at Richmond, Gordon made contact with the wall and failed to start for the chase. Despite this disappointment, on October 23 Gordon won the Subway 500 at Martinsville Speedway, his first win in 22 points races, and his 7th career victory at the 0.526-mile (0.847 km) track, which leads all active drivers at the facility. He went on to finish 11th in the Championship and received a $1,000,000 bonus as the top driver finishing outside the Chase. It was Gordon's first time outside the top 10 in the point standings since 1993.

On September 14, 2005 Crew Chief Robbie Loomis resigned from the #24 team. Loomis stayed on with Hendrick Motorsports as a consultant for Jimmie Johnson's #48 team through the Chase for The NEXTEL Cup in 2005. Steve Letarte, Gordon's car chief for most of the '05 season and long time member of the 24 crew, replaced Loomis as crew chief effective at New Hampshire International Speedway on September 18, 2005.

2006

Gordon won his ninth road race, the 2006 Dodge/Save Mart 350, at the Infineon Raceway – his first win of the season and fifth at Infineon. The day before the race, he announced his engagement to Belgian model Ingrid Vandebosch.

On June 29, 2006, Gordon announced that he would participate in the Rolex 24 endurance sports car event at Daytona International Speedway, teaming up with SunTrust Racing drivers Max Angelelli and Wayne Taylor, who won the 2005 Rolex 24 race. His team went on to finish third, despite problems, two laps behind the winning team of Juan Pablo Montoya, Scott Pruett, and Salvador Durán. On July 9, 2006, Gordon won his first race at the Chicagoland Speedway at the running of the USG Sheetrock 400(this was also the first win for Hendrick Motorsports at this track).

Gordon made the "Chase for the NEXTEL Cup" with his improvements on the intermediate 1.5/2-mile downforce racetracks from 2005. His consistency in the latter portions of 2006 made him competitive week-in and week-out, eventually finishing 6th in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Standings.

Jeff Gordon attended the awards ceremony at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City for his top-10 finish in the NEXTEL Cup Standings. While there he collected a check for his 2006 winnings of $7,471,447 which brings his career winnings total to $82,838,526.

2007

Pulling into the pits at Texas in 2007

August 2007 at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Gordon started the 2007 Cup season off by winning his Gatorade Duel qualifying race. Due to a rear shock bolt breaking during the race on his car, he failed the post-race inspection which found that the rear of his car was too low and, as a result, had to start 42nd in the 2007 Daytona 500. He went on to finish 10th in the race despite being involved in a crash during a spectacular last-lap finish.

On March 23, 2007, Gordon won his 58th career pole for the 2007 Food City 500 at Bristol, the first race for the Car of Tomorrow. He went on to a 3rd place in the race, which gave him the points lead for the first time since the 2005 Daytona 500. At Texas Motor Speedway, Gordon started on the pole because qualifying was rained out. He led the most laps before brushing the wall coming out of turn 4 and finishing 4th. On April 19, 2007 at Phoenix International Raceway, Gordon won the pole, and tied Darrell Waltrip's modern day record of 59 career poles. Two days later, at the Subway Fresh Fit 500, he won for the first time at PIR, ending also a streak of 21 races of non-pole winners at the track. With the win, he also tied Dale Earnhardt for 6th all time in overall number of NASCAR NEXTEL Cup series wins (second in the modern era). After winning the race, he held a black flag with the number 3 to honor the late Dale Earnhardt.

On April 28, 2007, Gordon earned the pole at Talladega Superspeedway, his 60th career pole (and third consecutive in 2007), passing Darrell Waltrip's record of 59 to become the modern era pole leader. One day later, he passed Earnhardt for sole position of sixth on the all time wins list with 77 by winning the Aaron's 499.

On May 13, 2007, Gordon held on despite an overheating car and a late charge by Denny Hamlin to win the Dodge Avenger 500, the 78th win of his career, and his 7th at Darlington Raceway.

In the 2007 Coca-Cola 600, Gordon crashed after contact with Tony Raines and AJ Allmendinger on lap 61 at Lowe's Motor Speedway, only 91.5 miles (147.3 km) into the race, ending his streak of completing every lap during the season. Gordon finished 41st.

On June 11, 2007, Gordon earned his 4th win of the year and 79th of his career in a rain shortened race at Pocono Raceway. Six days later, he scored a ninth place finish at the Citizens Bank 400 at Michigan International Speedway, the 300th top-ten finish of his career. On September 8, 2007, Gordon earned a place in the Chase for the NEXTEL Cup. With his four wins in the first 26 races, he earned the second seed (teammate Jimmie Johnson earned the top seed with six wins) in the chase.

On October 7, 2007, Gordon led only the final lap in winning the UAW-Ford 500 at Talladega Superspeedway for his 80th career victory, using a strategy of staying near the end of the field until nearly the end of the race to avoid the inevitable "big one", especially with the unknowns involved in racing the Car of Tomorrow. With the win, he swept the 2007 season races at Talladega, and won his 12th race at a restrictor plate track (Daytona and Talladega), making him the all-time leader for restrictor plate wins.

On October 13, 2007, Gordon led 71 laps and, although fuel was a question near the end of the race, he was able to finish the race and earned his 81st career victory in the Bank of America 500 at Lowe's Motor Speedway.

Finishing fourth in the 2007 Ford 400, Gordon finished the 2007 Chase for the Nextel Cup 2nd in the standings to Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson, trailing by 77. However, Gordon's top-ten finish at Homestead left him with a total of 30 top-ten finishes for the season, setting a new modern era Cup Series record. This was the second time that Gordon lost a championship because of the Chase points system. As with 2004, he recorded the most points over the entire season, but lost the title because of the ten race championship system. Gordon has been the only driver to lose the title because of the Chase more than once.

2008

2008 "Dupont" Cup car

File:Gordon Richmond.JPG

2008 "Nicorette" Cup car

Gordon finished fourth in the Budweiser Shootout and finished third in the Gatorade Duel qualifying race. He started the 50th annual Daytona 500 from the eighth position and led eight laps, some under caution, but on lap 159 suffered suspension failure and finished in 39th position.

Jeff Gordon wrecked with 5 laps to go at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (LVMS), claiming that it was one of the hardest wrecks he's ever had, and leading him to call for safety improvements on the inside walls of LVMS and other similar tracks. The wreck has had drivers and owners from all around NASCAR now concerned with the lack of a SAFER barrier on the inside walls at tracks and the design of the wall where it allows access for emergency vehicles. Greg Biffle went as far to say that the wreck should be taken as seriously as the one that took Dale Earnhardt's life in 2001. Other drivers who have publicly supported Gordon's call for safety improvements include Jeff Burton, Tony Stewart, Robby Gordon, and Kurt Busch.

Gordon collected his 64th career pole for the Kobalt Tools 500 on March 7, 2008, then went on to finish 5th in the race leading 3 laps.

Gordon collected his 65th career pole for the Goody's Cool Orange 500 on March 28, 2008 at Martinsville Speedway. Gordon went on to finish second in the race after being caught up in a crash caused by Aric Almirola and coming back from the tail end of the field. Gordon led 90 laps in the race.

Gordon finished 3rd in the Dodge Challenger 500 making that his 4th straight top 3 finish in that particular event.

Gordon scored a 3rd at the Toyota/Save Mart 350 making this finish his 4th top 3 finish in the last 8 events at Sonoma.

On September 7, 2008, with his 8th place finish at Richmond, Gordon will make his 4th appearance in the Chase for the Sprint Cup earning the 10th seed out of 12 drivers.

Gordon collected his 66th career pole at the Dover International Speedway for the Camping World RV 400. Gordon led 30 laps in the race and scored a top 5, while Greg Biffle won.

Gordon was caught up in an accident with David Reutimann in the Amp Energy 500 after Reutimann's rear tire exploded and he spun out into Gordon. Gordon criticized Goodyear for tire quality during his interview. He finished 35th, while Reutimann continued to race, until his engine expired.

On October 31, 2008, Gordon earned his 67th career pole, his fourth of the 2008 season, and first ever at Texas Motor Speedway. Gordon finished 2nd to Carl Edwards.

Gordon finished 7th in the 2008 Chase for the Sprint Cup, 368 points out of first place. He finished winless for the first time since 1993. This was also the final season the team ran the flames paint scheme that was introduced in 2001. In 2009, the 24 car would unveil its third 'regular' paint scheme. The new scheme was not much different than the previous flames design, but the color blue was replaced with black. This was the first time in Gordon's career that his primary paint scheme did not feature the color blue.

2009

Jeff Gordon at Texas Motor Speedway.

Gordon started off the 2009 season by drawing the 28th and final position of the Budweiser Shootout. Gordon finished 4th at the Shootout, the same finish he had in 2008 after getting through three wrecks, including a last lap crash. He held off Tony Stewart to win his 5th Gatorade Duel. It was his first win in forty-one races. As a result of the win Gordon started 3rd in the Daytona 500 and, after overcoming a tire issue late in the race, finished 13th.

Despite leading 64 laps, Gordon finished runner-up to Matt Kenseth in the Auto Club 500. It was Gordon's 9th top-5 finish at California.

Gordon led 17 laps in the Shelby 427 but cut a tire coming into the pits and as a result he finished 6th, despite having a shredded fender. Gordon took his first points lead since 2007.

Gordon led 35 laps in the Kobalt Tools 500 and finished second to Kurt Busch for his second top five finish of the season.

Gordon finished 4th in the Food City 500 to collect his third top five of the season and extended his point lead to 77 points.

Gordon led 147 laps in the Goody's Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville, but finished fourth. His teammate Jimmie Johnson won the event. Gordon extended his point lead to 90 points over Clint Bowyer.

Gordon ended his 47 race winless streak, winning the Samsung 500 for his 82nd career victory and his first at Texas Motor Speedway. With the win, Gordon has won at every track that currently hosts a Cup race except Homestead-Miami Speedway and Kentucky Speedway. He held off teammate Jimmie Johnson for the win and extended his points lead to 162 points. Gordon also led 105 of the 334 laps, earning him 10 bonus points.

Gordon scored a 5th place in the Southern 500; despite a loose wheel in the beginning of the race. It was Gordon's 5th straight top 5 finish at the track. He extended his point lead to 31 points over Tony Stewart. Gordon scored second place finishes behind teammate Mark Martin, in both the June LifeLock 400 at Michigan and the July LifeLock.com 400 at Chicagoland Speedway. Because Martin and Gordon finished 1–2 in both races, LifeLock will pay a $1 million bonus to a Colorado family.

Gordon qualified for the 2009 Chase by virtue of his second place standing in the points following the Chevy Rock & Roll 400. Reseeding dropped him to sixth in the points.

Gordon scored two consecutive second place finishes at the Kansas Speedway and the Auto Club Speedway. He finished second to Tony Stewart and teammate Jimmie Johnson in those races and sits 3rd in points behind by 112 points. (After Texas) He was behind 169 points after Phoenix. He finished 3rd in points giving Hendrick Motorsports the first team ever to finish 1–2–3 in the points. He finished behind teammate Mark Martin and Jimmie Johnson. Johnson became the first driver to win four straight titles, but under the new Chase points system. Gordon's four came under the season long points standings. Had this system still been in place, instead of the Chase, Gordon's Cup total would be at six championships, as he scored the most season long points in both 2004 and 2007.

2010

Gordon started off the season slow, starting with a 26th place finish at Daytona and a 19th place finish at Auto Club Speedway. However, at Las Vegas, Gordon dominated, leading 219 of the race's 267 laps. Unfortunately for Gordon, crew chief Steve Letarte opted to take two tires instead of four, arguably costing Gordon the win, as his teammate Jimmie Johnson in the 48 car passed him on four fresh tires. Gordon finished 18th at the Kobalt Tools 500 at Atlanta. Gordon was leading with 2 laps to go at Martinsville in the spring, but a bump from Matt Kenseth and a charge from Denny Hamlin relegated the #24 DuPont team to a 3rd place finish. Gordon scored a runner-up finish in the Subway Fresh Fit 600 to eventual winner Ryan Newman. Gordon led 124 laps at Texas, but was involved in a multi-car wreck late in the race. Gordon went on to lead 4 laps at Talladega but was caught up in a wreck with Jeff Burton near the end of the race and dropped him down to a 22nd place finish. Gordon was leading on the final restart of the Crown Royal Presents the Heath Calhoun 400, but was passed by the winner of the race, Kyle Busch. This was Gordon's eighth second place finish since his last win came at Texas a year ago. At the Southern 500 at Darlington, Gordon led a race-high 110 laps, but was shuffled back to the end of the lead lap as a result of being on pit road when a caution came out. He eventually worked his way up in the last 20 laps to finish fourth. In Dover, Gordon finished 11th after he was a top 15 car all day in a 400 lap event. Gordon recorded a 6th place finish at Charlotte, after opting for track position over pitting with 20 laps to go. Gordon did not have a very fast car, but managed to hold on to a top-10 finish. Gordon made his 600th career NASCAR Sprint Cup start in the 2010 Lifelock.com 400 on July 10, 2010 at the Chicagoland Speedway and finished 3rd. Gordon cut a right front tire late at the Carfax 400 at Michigan, resulting in a 27th place finish, but remained 2nd in the points standings. Gordon finished 13th at the Emory Healthcare 500 in Atlanta, and remained 2nd in the points standings. The Chase started well for Gordon. He finished 6th at Loudon. after struggling at Dover, he finished 5th at Kansas, and 9th at Fontana. He earned his first pole of the season at Charlotte and he was the pick to win the race, but unfortunately, he had battery issues and he was caught speeding on pit road finished a disappointing 23rd place finish. At Martinsville, he got wrecked by rival Kurt Busch, ending his championship hopes. At Texas, he was running well, until an incident occurred between him and Jeff Burton. Gordon wrecked under caution and he was very upset with Burton, causing them to have a shove and a physical fight. He would finish 37th. In the Ford 400, he started 11th and finished 37th due to an engine failure. He went winless again and it would be the third time in his career he went winless (he went winless in 1993 and 2008).

2011

Gordon started the 2011 season in Daytona driving the #24 "Drive to End Hunger" Chevrolet Impala and new crew chief Alan Gustafson. He started the race in the 2nd position but after an unfortunate multi-car accident, finished the race in 28th, right behind teammate Jimmie Johnson. The following week at Phoenix, Jeff started 17th, but as soon as the green flag dropped, he knew he had the car to beat. In the early going, Carl Edwards had the car to beat. But on lap 59, Kyle Busch bounced off the wall in turn 2, throwing Edwards across the backstretch rumble strips. Jeff shot around the outside of Edwards, but entering turn 3, Carl's car didn't turn, sending him and Gordon into the wall. Gordon received minimal damage, saying he "hit the wall square" (meaning it didn't mess up the steering). He dominated the race, leading 138 of the 312 laps. On a restart with 22 laps to go, Jeff restarted behind Tony Stewart and Kyle Busch. He almost immediately got around Stewart, who took 2 tires. With 8 to go, Jeff came up beside Kyle, then entering turn 1, he got loose and slid up and into Kyle. The contact hurt Busch more than Gordon as Gordon drove away to a half-second lead. He held off Kyle in the remaining 7 laps to win. It was Jeff's first win since Texas in April 2009, and 2nd win in the previous 3 seasons. But the momentum wouldn't last long. He ran inside the top 5 at Las Vegas, but blew a tire and hit the wall and finished 36th with his first DNF of 2011. He struggled at Bristol and Fontana, finishing outside the top 10 in both. At Martinsville, he led a few laps and finished 5th, his first top 10 since his Phoenix win. He ran out of fuel with a lap to go at Texas while running inside the top 10, finishing 23rd. Gordon won his 70th pole at Talladega breaking a 3rd place tie with Cale Yarborough for most poles. At Talladega the 2-car drafted with Mark Martin the entire race. He led a few laps at the beginning of the race, but then purposely fell outside the top 30 to avoid any trouble. With about 10 to go, Gordon and Martin started their charge to the front, taking the lead at the white flag. Then, while side-by-side with Clint Bowyer and Kevin Harvick, coming through the tri-oval, Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. squeezed to their inside. Jr. rubbed fenders with Martin, killing his and Gordon's momentum. Gordon finished third in a 3-wide photo-finish won by Johnson over Bowyer by 0.002 seconds. The following week at Richmond, Gordon stayed in the top 3 all night long, and looked to be a serious contender for the win. But battling back in the pack from a 4 tire call, Matt Kenseth squeezed up on Clint Bowyer and turned Jeff into an inside wall opening. He finished 39th and had his second DNF of the season. The following week at Darlington, Gordon was consistently running in the top 5, but not being good on restarts hurt him, as a green-white-checkered moved him from 6th to a 12th place finish. After Darlington, Gordon was 17th points, but due to the new Wild-Card in the Chase, he would be in the Chase due to his Phoenix win. Jeff finished outside the top 10 at Dover and Charlotte. He had a top 5 run going at Charlotte, but being caught a lap down late relegated him to a 20th place finish. Kansas, the following week, was a huge leap forward for the 24 team, as Gordon finished 4th behind some fuel-strategy winners. He ran 2nd all day. His fourth place finished was his first top 10 since Talladega, bringing the total for the season to a disappointing 4 (Phoenix, Martinsville). Coming off a great run at Kansas, Gordon and the 24 team looked to continue the success at Pocono. After starting third, Gordon never lost sight of the leaders, staying in the top 3 all day. With 41 to go, Gordon beat Kurt Busch off pit road, but restarted second to Juan Pablo Montoya who took 2 tires. Jeff quickly assumed the lead on the restart. After a round of green flag pit stops, Jeff passed Landon Cassill, who did not pit but eventually did, for the lead and never looked back. He had his 2nd win of the year, 84th career win, tying him 3rd all-time with Darrell Waltrip and Bobby Allison, and his fifth win at Pocono, tying him with Bill Elliott for all-time wins at the racetrack. This was also the first time Jeff Gordon's daughter Ella was in victory lane since Talladega in October 2007 (when she was 2 months old). Following his Pocono win, Jeff again struggled with his 1.5-2 mile tracks, finishing 17th at Michigan. Everyone had high expectations for Gordon at Infineon. But the entire race showed Gordon mired back in the 22nd position. But a great call from Gustafson put Jeff 7th with about 20 to go. Gordon muscled his way through the field, avoiding and staying ahead of wrecks. He grabbed second coming to the white flag, and ran out of time to catch leader Kurt Busch. The second place finish put Gordon in 9th place in the standings. The Coke Zero 400 at Daytona weekend started out well for Gordon, starting 4th. His drafting buddy Mark Martin started on pole, and chose the outside line at the start, and that quickly put he and Gordon out front. Earnhardt Jr. and Johnson followed as the four Hendrick cars dominated the first 10 or so laps. Gordon had a scare early as Carl Edwards spun off of turn 4 and came very close to Jeff's front end. Jeff and Mark approached this race the same as Talladega, as they hung out at the back for the entire race. A green flag run of about 100 laps caused the Hendrick duos to be many seconds behind the leader. Gordon and Martin charged to the front and caught the leaders with 3 to go. But a bunched up field in turn 3 caused Gordon to slide up and into Kyle Busch and spin. An incredible save by Gordon minimized his damage. Busch got into the wall, so he followed Gordon coming to pit road. They restarted back in 30th place. Gordon's restart was terrible, but managed to avoid a huge 12 car pileup, started by drafting partner Mark Martin. After, Gordon restarted 18th behind Kyle Busch. With Gordon pushing, Kyle made great moves. They got by most of the field before a final last-turn last-lap wreck took out top contenders. Gordon finished 6th and complimented Kyle on his ability to make moves through the pack. The 6th place finish put Gordon in 8th place in points, and he had his fourth top 10 in the past 5 races after having only 3 top 10s before Kansas, proving that Gordon was running with consistency. The next week marked the first ever Sprint Cup Series race held at the Kentucky Speedway. Gordon was fast in the practice sessions, and when qualifying was rained out, would start 14th. However, the handling of the 24 DuPont Chevrolet was not to Gordon's liking. At one point, he said that Kentucky was "one of the most frustrating places I've ever driven." For much of the race, Gordon ran in the mid 20s, even falling one lap down to then race leader, and eventual winner, Kyle Busch. After a caution for debris came out, Crew Chief Alan Gustafson opted to not pit and take the wave around to make up the lost lap. It turned out to be a good call, since a caution for oil on track came out about 15 laps later. A late caution, pit strategy, and a bit of luck enabled Gordon to pit and run inside the top 10 for the final 50 laps. He would salvage a tenth place finish, moving him up to 7th place in the points.

At Loudon, he led 19 laps but had electric issues. He worked his way up to fourth, but cut a tire on the last lap and was forced to settle for eleventh. Two weeks later at Indianapolis, Gordon led 36 laps but lost to Paul Menard's fuel strategy. He finished a very close second. The next race at Pocono, Gordon would finish 6th. He placed 13th at Watkins Glen International a week later. At Michigan, he led 50 laps, but finished sixth after simply losing the car late. He led a race-high 206 laps at Bristol the next week, and finished third to Martin Truex, Jr. and Brad Keselowski

List of Jeff Gordon's wins

Win No.	Date	Race Name	Track
–	February 11, 1993	Gatorade Twin 125 Qualifiers #1†	Daytona International Speedway at Daytona Beach, FL
–	February 13, 1994	Busch Clash†	Daytona International Speedway at Daytona Beach, FL
–	May 21, 1994	Winston Select Open†	Charlotte Motor Speedway at Concord, NC
1	May 29, 1994	Coca-Cola 600	Charlotte Motor Speedway at Concord, NC
2	August 6, 1994	Brickyard 400	Indianapolis Motor Speedway at Speedway, IN
3	February 26, 1995	Goodwrench 500	North Carolina Speedway at Rockingham, NC
4	March 12, 1995	Purolator 500	Atlanta Motor Speedway at Hampton, GA
5	April 2, 1995	Food City 500	Bristol Motor Speedway at Bristol, TN
–	May 22, 1995	The Winston Select†	Charlotte Motor Speedway at Concord, NC
6	July 1, 1995	Pepsi 400	Daytona International Speedway at Daytona Beach, FL
7	July 9, 1995	Slick 50 300	New Hampshire Motor Speedway at Loudon, NH
8	September 3, 1995	Mountain Dew Southern 500	Darlington Raceway at Darlington, SC
9	September 17, 1995	MBNA 500	Dover International Speedway at Dover, DE
10	March 3, 1996	Pontiac Excitement 400	Richmond International Raceway at Richmond, VA
11	March 24, 1996	TranSouth Financial 400	Darlington Raceway at Darlington, SC
12	March 31, 1996	Food City 500	Bristol Motor Speedway at Bristol, TN
13	June 2, 1996	Miller 500	Dover International Speedway at Dover, DE
14	June 16, 1996	UAW-GM Teamwork 500	Pocono Raceway at Long Pond, PA
15	July 28, 1996	DieHard 500	Talladega Superspeedway at Talladega, AL
16	September 1, 1996	Mountain Dew Southern 500	Darlington Raceway at Darlington, SC
17	September 15, 1996	MBNA 500	Dover International Speedway at Dover, DE
18	September 22, 1996	Hanes 500	Martinsville Speedway at Martinsville, VA
19	September 29, 1996	Tyson Holly Farms 400	North Wilkesboro Speedway at North Wilkesboro, NC
–	February 9, 1997	Busch Clash†	Daytona International Speedway at Daytona Beach, FL
20	February 16, 1997	Daytona 500	Daytona International Speedway at Daytona Beach, FL
21	February 23, 1997	Goodwrench Service 400	North Carolina Speedway at Rockingham, NC
22	April 13, 1997	Food City 500	Bristol Motor Speedway at Bristol, TN
23	April 20, 1997	Goody's Headache Powder 500	Martinsville Speedway at Martinsville, VA
–	May 17, 1997	The Winston†	Charlotte Motor Speedway at Concord, NC
24	May 25, 1997	Coca-Cola 600	Charlotte Motor Speedway at Concord, NC
25	June 8, 1997	Pocono 500	Pocono Raceway at Long Pond, PA
26	June 22, 1997	California 500 Presented by NAPA	Auto Club Speedway at Fontana, CA
27	August 10, 1997	The Bud At The Glen	Watkins Glen International at Watkins Glen, NY
28	August 31, 1997	Mountain Dew Southern 500	Darlington Raceway at Darlington, SC
29	September 14, 1997	CMT 300	New Hampshire Motor Speedway at Loudon, NH
30	February 22, 1998	GM Goodwrench Service Plus 400	North Carolina Speedway at Rockingham, NC
31	March 29, 1998	Food City 500	Bristol Motor Speedway at Bristol, TN
32	May 24, 1998	Coca-Cola 600	Charlotte Motor Speedway at Concord, NC
33	June 28, 1998	Save Mart / Kragen 350	Infineon Raceway at Sonoma, CA
34	July 26, 1998	Pennsylvania 500	Pocono Raceway at Long Pond, PA
35	August 1, 1998	Brickyard 400	Indianapolis Motor Speedway at Speedway, IN
36	August 9, 1998	The Bud At The Glen	Watkins Glen International at Watkins Glen, NY
37	August 16, 1998	Pepsi 400 Presented by DeVilbiss	Michigan International Speedway at Brooklyn, MI
38	August 30, 1998	Farm Aid on CMT 300	New Hampshire Motor Speedway at Loudon, NH
39	September 6, 1998	Pepsi Southern 500	Darlington Raceway at Darlington, SC
40	October 17, 1998	Pepsi 400	Daytona International Speedway at Daytona Beach, FL
41	November 1, 1998	AC Delco 400	North Carolina Speedway at Rockingham, NC
42	November 8, 1998	NAPA 500	Atlanta Motor Speedway at Hampton, GA
43	February 14, 1999	Daytona 500	Daytona International Speedway at Daytona Beach, FL
44	March 14, 1999	Cracker Barrel 500	Atlanta Motor Speedway at Hampton, GA
45	May 2, 1999	California 500 Presented by NAPA	Auto Club Speedway at Fontana, CA
46	June 27, 1999	Save Mart / Kragen 350	Infineon Raceway at Sonoma, CA
47	August 15, 1999	Frontier @ the Glen	Watkins Glen International at Watkins Glen, NY
48	October 3, 1999	NAPA AutoCare 500	Martinsville Speedway at Martinsville, VA
49	October 11, 1999	UAW-GM Quality 500	Charlotte Motor Speedway at Concord, NC
50	April 16, 2000	DieHard 500	Talladega Superspeedway at Talladega, AL
51	June 25, 2000	Save Mart / Kragen 350	Infineon Raceway at Sonoma, CA
52	September 9, 2000	Chevrolet Monte Carlo 400	Richmond International Raceway at Richmond, VA
53	March 4, 2001	UAW-Daimler Chrysler 400	Las Vegas Motor Speedway at Las Vegas, NV
–	May 19, 2001	The Winston†	Charlotte Motor Speedway at Concord, NC
54	June 3, 2001	MBNA Platinum 400	Dover International Speedway at Dover, DE
55	June 10, 2001	Kmart 400	Michigan International Speedway at Brooklyn, MI
56	August 5, 2001	Brickyard 400	Indianapolis Motor Speedway at Speedway, IN
57	August 12, 2001	Global Crossing at the Glen	Watkins Glen International at Watkins Glen, NY
58	September 30, 2001	Protection One 400	Kansas Speedway at Kansas City, KS
–	February 14, 2002	Gatorade Twin 125 Qualifiers #1†	Daytona International Speedway at Daytona Beach, FL
59	August 24, 2002	Sharpie 500	Bristol Motor Speedway at Bristol, TN
60	September 1, 2002	Mountain Dew Southern 500	Darlington Raceway at Darlington, SC
61	September 29, 2002	Protection One 400	Kansas Speedway at Kansas City, KS
62	April 13, 2003	Virginia 500	Martinsville Speedway at Martinsville, VA
63	October 19, 2003	Subway 500	Martinsville Speedway at Martinsville, VA
64	October 26/27, 2003	Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500	Atlanta Motor Speedway at Hampton, GA
65	April 25, 2004	Aaron's 499	Talladega Superspeedway at Talladega, AL
66	May 2, 2004	Auto Club 500	Auto Club Speedway at Fontana, CA
67	June 27, 2004	Dodge / Save Mart 350	Infineon Raceway at Sonoma, CA
68	July 3, 2004	Pepsi 400	Daytona International Speedway at Daytona Beach, FL
69	August 8, 2004	Brickyard 400	Indianapolis Motor Speedway at Speedway, IN
70	February 20, 2005	Daytona 500	Daytona International Speedway at Daytona Beach, FL
71	April 10, 2005	Advance Auto Parts 500	Martinsville Speedway at Martinsville, VA
72	May 1, 2005	Aaron's 499	Talladega Superspeedway at Talladega, AL
73	October 23, 2005	Subway 500	Martinsville Speedway at Martinsville, VA
–	February 16, 2006	Gatorade Duel #2†	Daytona International Speedway at Daytona Beach, FL
74	June 25, 2006	Dodge / Save Mart 350	Infineon Raceway at Sonoma, CA
75	July 9, 2006	USG Sheetrock 400	Chicagoland Speedway at Joliet, IL
–	February 15, 2007	Gatorade Duel #2†	Daytona International Speedway at Daytona Beach, FL
76	April 21, 2007	Subway Fresh Fit 500	Phoenix International Raceway at Avondale, AZ
77	April 29, 2007	Aaron's 499	Talladega Superspeedway at Talladega, AL
78	May 13, 2007	Dodge Avenger 500	Darlington Raceway at Darlington, SC
79	June 10, 2007	Pocono 500	Pocono Raceway at Long Pond, PA
80	October 7, 2007	UAW-Ford 500	Talladega Superspeedway at Talladega, AL
81	October 13, 2007	Bank Of America 500	Charlotte Motor Speedway at Concord, NC
–	February 12, 2009	Gatorade Duel #1†	Daytona International Speedway at Daytona Beach, FL
82	April 5, 2009	Samsung 500	Texas Motor Speedway at Fort Worth, TX
83	February 27, 2011	Subway Fresh Fit 500	Phoenix International Raceway at Avondale, AZ
84	June 12, 2011	5-hour Energy 500	Pocono Raceway at Long Pond, PA
85	September 06, 2011	AdvoCare 500	Atlanta Motor Speedway at Hampton, GA

^†Non-points race

Other racing

Gordon has also participated in some off-road events, including a winning drive with Team USA at the 2002 Race of Champions. He was slated to run it again in 2004 against Formula One Champion Michael Schumacher but was sidelined by the flu, and Casey Mears took his place. In 2005, Gordon competed in the Race of Champions event again, this time held in Paris, France, where he was partnered with famed motocross racer/X Games winner Travis Pastrana. In 2007, Gordon competed in the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona for the first time. He raced the #10 Pontiac for Wayne Taylor racing. His teammates consisted of: Max Angelelli, Jan Magnussen, and Wayne Taylor. The team placed third in Gordon's first ever Rolex 24.

Career NASCAR statistics

Season	Races	Wins	Poles	Top 5	Top 10	DNF	Position	Team(s)
1992	1	0	0	0	0	1	79th	Hendrick Motorsports
1993	30	0	1	7	11	11	14th	Hendrick Motorsports
1994	31	2	1	7	14	10	8th	Hendrick Motorsports
1995	31	7	8	17	23	3	1st	Hendrick Motorsports
1996	31	10	5	21	24	5	2nd	Hendrick Motorsports
1997	32	10	1	22	23	2	1st	Hendrick Motorsports
1998	33	13	7	26	28	2	1st	Hendrick Motorsports
1999	34	7	7	18	21	7	6th	Hendrick Motorsports
2000	34	3	3	11	22	2	9th	Hendrick Motorsports
2001	36	6	6	18	24	2	1st	Hendrick Motorsports
2002	36	3	3	13	20	3	4th	Hendrick Motorsports
2003	36	3	4	15	20	5	4th	Hendrick Motorsports
2004	36	5	6	16	25	4	3rd	Hendrick Motorsports
2005	36	4	2	8	14	9	11th	Hendrick Motorsports
2006	36	2	2	14	18	7	6th	Hendrick Motorsports
2007	36	6	7	21	30	1	2nd	Hendrick Motorsports
2008	36	0	4	13	19	6	7th	Hendrick Motorsports
2009	36	1	1	16	25	1	3rd	Hendrick Motorsports
2010	36	0	1	11	17	4	9th	Hendrick Motorsports
2011	23	2	1	8	12	2	5th*	Hendrick Motorsports
Totals	640	84	70	282	390	87

^* Season in progress.

Data as of September 2, 2011.

Sponsorship and paint

The Rainbow Warriors doing a pit stop in 1997

Jeff Gordon and his team have carried the nickname "The Rainbow Warriors" throughout the years. Jeff has always carried DuPont as a sponsor. From 1993 to 2000, Gordon carried a rainbow scheme that got the team their nickname. Throughout the years, Gordon has sometimes carried different paint, such as Jurassic Park the ride in 1997, Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace in 1999, and Snoopy in the 2000 Brickyard 400. In 1997, Gordon signed a long-term contract with Pepsi that is still in place today. Every year Gordon has driven a car with the Pepsi scheme (he almost always has car with a Pepsi paint scheme at a night race, particularly Daytona International Speedway in July). In 2001, Gordon debuted a new scheme designed by NASCAR artist Sam Bass, which kept a blue base but changed the rainbow pattern to flames. In 2006, Gordon acquired a new sponsor, Nicorette. In 2007, Gordon increased his partnership with Nicorette, and ran the paint scheme in 4 races. At Talladega in 2007, Gordon had a fan design contest. The design got a real treat, as Gordon won the race. Since 2007, Gordon has had the same design with different colors. (e.g. Nicorette scheme, green and yellow flames). Gordon will occasionally run a scheme that will support a different type of DuPont paint such as Cromax Pro.

Gordon announced that the primary scheme of the DuPont #24 Chevrolet was to change for 2009 & beyond on the QVC show For Race Fans Only. The 2009 scheme kept the flames format but the colors were radically changed to red and orange flames on a black base color. The new 2009 DuPont paint scheme was unveiled on NBC's Today show. In 2009, National Guard signed a contract with Gordon, replacing Nicorette. National Guard was the primary sponsor on Gordon's car for 6–8 races per season through 2010. Occasionally, a one-race sponsor steps in to sponsor Gordon's car for one race. For example, Gordon ran a Megatron scheme at Charlotte in the Fall of 2009 to promote the movie Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen that was soon to come out on DVD.

Hendrick Motorsports owner, Rick Hendrick, said in November 2009 that he is working on signing a contract extension with DuPont, Gordon's primary sponsor since the beginning of his career. DuPont's current contract with Jeff Gordon expires at the end of 2010, and Hendrick said he wants it to be Gordon's primary sponsor for the rest of his career. In 2010 reports surfaced that Hendrick Motorsports was in talks with Walmart to be a sponsor for the #24 car, the deal never materialized. In October 2010, Hendrick Motorsports announced a scaled-down three-year extension of its sponsorship agreement with DuPont: DuPont will be Gordon's primary sponsor for 14 races, with AARP picking up 22 of the remaining races and long-term sponsor Pepsi continuing as primary sponsor for 2 races.

NASCAR drug testing

Gordon has announced that he supports the new drug policy implemented by NASCAR on September 20, 2008. Other drivers who support the annual drug test policy include, Kevin Harvick, Tony Stewart, Denny Hamlin, Greg Biffle, Jimmie Johnson, and Kasey Kahne.

Personal life

Gordon with first wife Brooke

Gordon's parents are Carol Ann Bickford (née Houston) and William Grinnell Gordon of Vacaville, California. He has an older sister named Kim. He is not, however, related to NASCAR driver Robby Gordon.

Gordon met first wife Brooke Sealey after he won a Busch race. Sealey was then a college student and had been present as Ms. Winston in the victory lane in 1992. The pair began dating in secret, due to a rule that did not allow drivers to date Ms. Winston, and they were married in 1994. In 2003, Gordon's divorce from Sealey became tabloid fodder. In court papers, she asked for "exclusive use of the couple's oceanfront home, valued at $9 million, as well as alimony, two cars and periodic use of their boats and an airplane."

Gordon was introduced to Ingrid Vandebosch by a mutual friend in 2002, but they did not begin dating until 2004. Jeff announced their engagement on June 24, 2006, at a croquet event at Meadowood Resort in St. Helena, California. According to Gordon, they had kept the engagement secret for the following 30 days. Gordon and Vandebosch were married in a small, private ceremony in Mexico on Nov. 7, 2006. On June 20, 2007, Vandebosch gave birth to their first child, Ella Sofia Gordon in New York City. On February 4, 2010, Gordon revealed that he and his wife are expecting their second child in August, and on March 16, 2010, he revealed that the baby is a boy. Gordon had a backup driver, Scott Pruett, at Watkins Glen because his wife was due to give birth the weekend of August 8, 2010. On August 9, 2010, Vandebosch delivered their son, Leo Benjamin Gordon, at 8:53 am. He weighed 7 lbs., 2 oz., and was 19 inches long.

Gordon owns a private jet, a British Aerospace BAE-125-800, also known as a Hawker 800, with a tail number on this jet matching his car number, N24JG and also owns a Lazzara 106 yacht called the 24 Karat.

In 1999, Jeff Gordon established The Jeff Gordon Foundation to help support children facing life-threatening and chronic illnesses. In 2007, Jeff Gordon along with Andre Agassi, Muhammad Ali, Lance Armstrong, Warrick Dunn, Mia Hamm, Tony Hawk, Andrea Jaeger, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Mario Lemieux, Alonzo Mourning, and Cal Ripken, Jr. founded Athletes for Hope, a charitable organization which helps professional athletes get involved in charitable causes and inspires millions of non-athletes to volunteer and support the community.

It was announced in 2009 that Gordon would receive the Silver Buffalo Award, the Boy Scouts of America's highest award for his work as a Scout Recruiter and humanitarian work.

Gordon is a Christian. He has talked about how in the early nineties he got curious and followed some drivers to the weekly chapel one week, which is how he first started to learn more about God.

Career awards

He was inducted in the National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame at the January 10, 2009, Chili Bowl Nationals race at Tulsa.Most recently jeff was inducted into the Watkins Glen International Hall of Fame becuse of his outstanding success on the track.

In popular media

Gordon occasionally appears on television shows. He has co-hosted Live with Regis and Kelly ten times on days when Regis Philbin was unavailable. In January 2003, Gordon became the first NASCAR driver to host NBC's Saturday Night Live. In 2005, he played himself in Herbie Fully Loaded. In 2009 he voiced a character on the animated series Speed Racer/Next Generation. On April 11, 2010, Jeff was the guest celebrity on an episode of ABC's Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.

He provides his voice as Jeff Gorvette, a Chevrolet Corvette C6.R no. #24, in Pixar's 2011 animated movie, Cars 2.

Jeff appears in PlayStation 3 videogame Gran Turismo 5 as himself, providing tutorials on racing in NASCAR.

He also appears on the cover of NASCAR Thunder 2002 and NASCAR 09. He is also on the cover of NASCAR 06: Total Team Control with Jimmie Johnson.

In the movie "Couple's Retreat", Jeff was mentioned when Jason Bateman said: "If Jeff Gordon told you the oil was low, you'd want to change it."

NASCAR Sprint Cup stats

NASCAR Sprint Cup results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position)

Year	Team	No.	Sponsor	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	NSCC	Points
1992	Hendrick Motorsports	24	DuPont	Chevrolet	DAY	CAR	RIC	ATL	DAR	BRI	NWS	MAR	TAL	LOW	DOV	INF	POC	MIC	DAY2	POC2	TAL2	GLN	MIC2	BRI2	DAR2	RIC2	DOV2	MAR2	NWS2	LOW2	CAR2	PHO	ATL2 31								79th	70
1993	Hendrick Motorsports	24	DuPont	Chevrolet	DAY 5	CAR 34	RIC 6	ATL 4	DAR 24	BRI 17	NWS 34	MAR 8	TAL 11	INF 11	LOW 2	DOV 18	POC 28	MIC 2	DAY2 5	NHA 7	POC2 37	TAL2 31	GLN 31	MIC2 3	BRI2 20	DAR2 22	RIC2 10	DOV2 24	MAR2 11	NWS2 34	LOW2 5	CAR2 21	PHO 35	ATL2 31							14th	3447
1994	Hendrick Motorsports	24	DuPont	Chevrolet	DAY 4	CAR 32	RIC 3	ATL 8	DAR 31	TAL 24	BRI22	NWS 15	MAR 33	INF 37	LOW 1	DOV 5	POC 6	MIC 12	DAY2 8	NHA 39	POC2 8	TAL2 31	IND 1	GLN 9	MIC2 15	BRI2 32	DAR2 6	RIC2 2	DOV2 11	MAR2 11	NWS2 8	LOW2 28	CAR2 29	PHO 4	ATL2 15						8th	3776
1995	Hendrick Motorsports	24	DuPont	Chevrolet	DAY 22	CAR 1	RIC 36	ATL 1	DAR 32	BRI 1	NWS 2	MAR 3	TAL 2	INF 3	LOW 33	DOV 6	POC 16	MIC 2	DAY2 1	NHA 1	POC2 2	TAL2 8	IND 6	GLN 3	MIC2 3	BRI2 6	DAR2 1	RIC2 6	DOV2 1	MAR2 7	NWS2 3	LOW2 30	CAR2 20	PHO 5	ATL2 32						1st	4614
1996	Hendrick Motorsports	24	DuPont	Chevrolet	DAY 42	CAR 40	RIC 1	ATL 3	DAR 1	BRI 1	NWS 2	MAR 3	TAL 33	INF 6	LOW 4	DOV 1	POC 1	MIC 6	DAY2 3	NHA 34	POC2 7	TAL2 1	IND 37	GLN 4	MIC2 5	BRI2 2	DAR2 1	RIC2 2	DOV2 1	MAR2 1	NWS2 1	LOW2 31	CAR2 12	PHO 5	ATL2 3						2nd	4620
1997	Hendrick Motorsports	24	DuPont	Chevrolet	DAY 1	CAR 1	RIC 4	ATL 42	DAR 3	TEX 30	BRI 1	MAR 1	INF 2	TAL 5	LOW 1	DOV 26	POC 1	MIC 5	CAL 1	DAY2 21	NHA 23	POC2 2	IND 4	GLN 1	MIC2 2	BRI2 35	DAR2 1	RIC2 3	NHA2 1	DOV2 7	MAR2 4	LOW2 5	TAL2 35	CAR2 4	PHO 17	ATL2 17					1st	4710
1998	Hendrick Motorsports	24	DuPont	Chevrolet	DAY 16	CAR 1	VEG 17	ATL 19	DAR 2	BRI 1	TEX 31	MAR 8	TAL 5	CAL 4	LOW 1	DOV 3	RIC 37	MIC 3	POC 2	INF 1	NHA 3	POC2 1	IND 1	GLN 1	MIC2 1	BRI2 5	NHA2 1	DAR2 1	RIC2 2	DOV2 2	MAR2 2	LOW2 5	TAL2 2	DAY2 1	PHO 7	CAR2 1	ATL2 1				1st	5328
1999	Hendrick Motorsports	24	DuPont	Chevrolet	DAY 1	CAR 39	VEG 3	ATL 1	DAR 3	TEX 43	BRI 6	MAR 3	TAL 38	CAL 1	RIC 31	LOW 39	DOV 2	MIC 2	POC 2	INF 1	DAY2 21	NHA 3	POC2 32	IND 3	GLN 1	MIC2 4	BRI2 4	DAR2 13	RIC2 40	NHA2 5	DOV2 17	MAR2 1	LOW2 1	TAL2 12	CAR2 11	PHO 10	HOM 10	ATL2 38			6th	4620
2000	Hendrick Motorsports	24	DuPont	Chevrolet	DAY 34	CAR 10	VEG 28	ATL 9	DAR 8	BRI 8	TEX 25	MAR 4	TAL 1	CAL 11	RIC 14	LOW 10	DOV 32	MIC 14	POC 8	INF 1	DAY2 10	NHA 5	POC2 3	IND 33	GLN 23	MIC2 36	BRI2 23	DAR2 4	RIC2 1	NHA2 6	DOV2 9	MAR2 5	LOW2 39	TAL2 4	CAR2 2	PHO 7	HOM 7	ATL2 4			9th	4361
2001	Hendrick Motorsports	24	DuPont	Chevrolet	DAY 30	CAR 3	VEG 1	ATL 2	DAR 40	BRI 4	TEX 5	MAR 12	TAL 27	CAL 2	RIC 2	LOW 29	DOV 1	MIC 1	POC 2	INF 3	DAY2 37	CHI 17	NHA 2	POC2 8	IND 1	GLN 1	MIC2 7	BRI2 3	DAR2 2	RIC2 36	DOV2 4	KAN 1	LOW2 16	MAR2 9	TAL2 7	PHO 6	CAR2 25	HOM 28	ATL2 6	NHA2 15	1st	5112
2002	Hendrick Motorsports	24	DuPont	Chevrolet	DAY 9	CAR 7	VEG 17	ATL 16	DAR 9	BRI 31	TEX 2	MAR 23	TAL 4	CAL 16	RIC 7	LOW 5	DOV 6	POC 5	MIC 5	INF 37	DAY2 22	CHI 2	NHA 29	POC2 12	IND 6	GLN 22	MIC2 19	BRI2 1	DAR2 1	RIC2 40	NHA2 14	DOV2 37	KAN 1	TAL2 42	LOW2 4	MAR2 36	ATL2 6	CAR2 5	PHO 3	HOM 5	5th	4607
2003	Hendrick Motorsports	24	DuPont	Chevrolet	DAY 12	CAR 15	VEG 37	ATL 2	DAR 33	BRI 9	TEX 3	TAL 8	MAR 1	CAL 11	RIC 16	LOW 8	DOV 2	POC 13	MIC 3	INF 2	DAY2 14	CHI 4	NHA 24	POC2 36	IND 4	GLN 33	MIC2 30	BRI2 28	DAR2 32	RIC2 10	NHA2 19	DOV2 5	TAL2 5	KAN 5	LOW2 5	MAR2 36	ATL2 1	PHO 7	CAR2 22	HOM 5	4th	4785
2004	Hendrick Motorsports	24	DuPont	Chevrolet	DAY	CAR	VEG	ATL	DAR	BRI	TEX	MAR	TAL	CAL	RIC	LOW	DOV	POC	MIC	INF	DAY2	CHI	NHA	POC2	IND	GLN	MIC2	BRI2	CAL2	RIC2	NHA2	DOV2	TAL2	KAN	LOW2	MAR2	ATL2	PHO	DAR2	HOM	'	'

See also

• List of celebrities who own wineries and vineyards

Further reading

• Gordon, Jeff (2005). Jeff Gordon: Racing Back to the Front—My Memoir. Atria. ISBN 0-743-49977-8. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
• Cothren, Larry (2005). Jeff Gordon: The NASCAR Superstar's Story. Motorbooks. ISBN 0-760-32178-7. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)

References

External links

• Official website
• Official team website
• Jeff Gordon at IMDb
• Driver's statistics at racing-reference.info
• NASCAR.com driver page
• Jayski team/driver page
• Jeff Gordon Racing School
• The Jeff Gordon Foundation
• Athletes for Hope
• NPR story about Gordon
• Men's Vogue article on Gordon from April 2008 issue