NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon, Vice Chairman of Hendrick Motorsports (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
Jeff Gordon was arguably the face of NASCAR during his 23-year full-time racing career.
The 53-year-old established himself as one of the greatest drivers in NASCAR history, with his No. 24 Chevrolet “fire and flames” DuPont car becoming a symbolic image of the sport during the 1990s and 2000s.
However, a lot has changed in NASCAR since Gordon’s heyday. The cars are different, and the playoff system has changed multiple times since it was first introduced in 2004.
Gordon stopped racing full time after the 2015 season and retired after 2016. But he remains closely connected to the sport as the vice chairman of Hendrick Motorsports, the team he raced for during his career and one that is widely considered the most powerful in NASCAR.
When asked what has changed most since his racing days, Gordon pointed to the evolution of the cars.
“It’s still just as exciting,” Gordon says of present-day NASCAR in an interview with RG. “The product on the track is amazing, a lot of eyeballs on it. I would say the cars (are the biggest difference). Safety surveying has come a long way, but the cars themselves are fully independent."
Hendrick’s Modern Edge
Hendrick Motorsports continues to dominate the NASCAR landscape, featuring 2020 Cup Series champion Chase Elliott, 2021 champion Kyle Larson, two-time Daytona 500 winner William Byron, and veteran Alex Bowman.
Entering their race in Mexico City this past weekend, Larson led the Cup standings, Byron ranked fourth, Elliott 11th, and Bowman 15th.
While Hendrick Motorsports has successfully adapted over the years, Gordon emphasizes how much the sport has evolved behind the scenes—particularly in its use of technology.
“The biggest thing I think behind the scenes is the technology that we use,” says Gordon.
“All of our tools are computer simulation and driving simulators, and how we’re building these cars to tolerances within thousandths of an inch, trying to maximize that in 100 different areas around the car. When I drove, especially early in my career, the tolerances were just a lot more loose.”
According to Gordon, teams once had more room to find major advantages over competitors. Now, gains are minimal and margins razor-thin. In today’s NASCAR, a fast, well-trained pit crew can make the biggest difference.
“You could get a much bigger advantage on your competitors if you found something, whereas today it’s just tiny little things that you’re searching for,” he says. “That’s why I go back to the pit crew. What those guys are doing is a critical part of it, because if you have a half-second faster pit stop, that could be three, four, five positions on pit road. If you’re half a second faster on the racetrack, that doesn’t necessarily mean you’re going to be five positions ahead of your competitors because of the way aerodynamics and track position work.”
The Overlooked Heroes
A NASCAR Hall of Famer with 93 career wins—the third most in history and the most in the modern era (since 1972)—Gordon understands the value of teamwork. He believes pit crews are the most overlooked contributors to a team’s success.
“On the track, you’re trying to do everything you can to make speed and make passes and get yourself in position to win the race, but it’s a team effort,” says Gordon. “The people that build the cars and then the strategy that you play. When you come down pit road, you’re doing this pit stop—four tires, 18 gallons of fuel—and you have to do it in nine seconds or less.
“Everything has to be synchronized and just work seamlessly,” Gordon continues. “The amount of training that goes into that to make that happen and do it on a consistent basis—to me—is the difference between winning and losing. These guys are a very important part of the success on the track.”
DJ Siddiqi
