Finally, Gordon Wins at Texas!
By: Drew Hierwarter
Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Image
We knew it was only a matter of time until the new, improved Jeff Gordon finally broke through and won a race. That the win came at Texas Motor Speedway just made it all the more sweet. The mile and a half oval outside of Fort Worth was one of only two tracks on the NASCAR circuit that Gordon had never won on. Homestead-Miami Speedway in Florida being the other.
The win was Gordon’s first since way back in 2007, October 13 2007 to be exact at Lowes Motor Speedway in Charlotte. He then went winless for the entire 2008 season something that had not happened since his rookie year in 1993.
The team began this year determined to shake that monkey of their back and they have been competitive in every race so far. Their worst finish to date was 13th in the Daytona 500 and since then they’ve had a sixth, two fourths, two seconds, and now the win in Texas. Gordon came into the weekend leading the NASCAR Sprint Cup points and left Texas with a 172 point lead over second place, teammate Jimmie Johnson.
Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus turned in another typical performance for the 48 team. They started in ninth place and quickly fell back as the car was not right. But this team doesn’t know the meaning of the phrase “give up” and they worked on the car during every pit stop even to the point of making three stops during one caution period to get the car right. By the closing laps of the race, Johnson’s car was not only better but he was running Gordon down. His second place finish moved him up two spots in the points.
Jeff Gordon’s average finish at Texas is a sub-par 15th and only twice in his career has he ever finished in last place, both times at Texas. The win was Gordon’s 82nd placing him sixth on the all time win list, just one behind Cale Yarborough, and two behind Darrell Waltrip. He is by far the leading winner among active drivers, the next closest being Bill Elliott in 14th all time with 44 wins. Gordon needs only four more wins to move into sole possession of third on the all time list behind David Pearson (105) and, of course, Richard Petty with 200. The way Gordon’s team is running now it’s conceivable we could see that this year. There are plenty of races still to come and the team has a renewed energy and enthusiasm that will be tough to beat.