JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DUPONT IMPALA SS met with media and discussed the
strengths of Rick Hendrick, Jimmie Johnson's success, the Chase format,
and more.
Q. What is your outlook for the weekend?
JEFF GORDON: Outlook is good. We're excited about trying to finish the
season out on a positive note, try to get us a win, try to get up as high
in the points as we possibly can. Hopefully that means a win and second
in the points. That's what our goal is. Till we get out there on the
track, we didn't qualify great here the last time we were here, but we
still finished well. It's been a pretty good track for us recently.
Q. Talk about some of the positive traits, the strengths that Rick
Hendrick has.
JEFF GORDON: He's got a personality that works very well with myself,
with the team. He's a smart guy. You got to have that. But then the
most important thing is knowing how to work with people, getting the most
out of everybody, having confidence in yourself, building confidence in
the people around you. He does a very good job of that.
Q. Do you remember the actual moment when Jimmie came on your
radar screen?
JEFF GORDON: Actually, I had heard about him. I went to a test at
Darlington for Ricky Hendrick to test the Nationwide car. Ricky had
never been there. He had never been there before. It was all kind of
new to him. I was kind of standing on top of the truck, just watching.
And I saw a car out there that was, you know, running the right line,
quick, you know, looked good, but I didn't recognize anything, just the
red and white 92 car.
I went over to Ricky and I was talking to him about the line, saying,
Hey, if you get a chance to watch that guy, he's running pretty quick,
and he's running the line you want to run. I said, Who is in that car?
He said, That's Jimmie Johnson. I thought, Wow.
I saw Jimmie that day and asked him, How many times you been here? No,
no, it's the first time. I mean, right there, that's pretty impressive,
a guy that has never been there before that picked it up that quick.
Then after that, it was, you know, hearing his name from time to time,
watching the Nationwide races. Then the race that I ran at Michigan was
when that moment happened where, you know, he had actually come to me
after the drivers meeting and asked me some questions about some
opportunities that were coming his way. Then we had the race, and we had
like a three-lap shootout at the end and he got by me at the end. It
stood out.
Q. That's when you went to Rick and thought you had to bring him
in?
JEFF GORDON: You know, I was impressed with him a couple of times prior
to that, and then I thought, you know, what he did there, seeing what he
was doing with a car that I didn't think was one of the best teams out
there, one of the best cars out there, he was making a lot out of what he
had for equipment. It just so happened at that time we were building our
new shop. We were wanting to build two cars in that shop. We were just
having to make some decisions. Just the fact that Jimmie came to me and
said there were some teams that were interested in putting him in Cup
cars made me think that, Hey, maybe he's a guy we could bring along and
build this thing around.
I pitched that idea to Rick. Rick had some interest.
Q. How does it feel to be the man ultimately responsible?
JEFF GORDON: I don't know. I definitely don't take that much
responsibility. You know, I'm very proud of what that team's
accomplished. I'm proud to have been a part of it from the beginning.
You know, it's a bittersweet thing because as a driver, you know, we won
the championship in '01 when they ran their first race. They watched us
win that championship in '01. I think maybe '02 I finished ahead of him
in points. I don't think I've finished ahead of him in points since then
(laughter).
It just reminds me of when the 24 team came together, the people that
made that happen, you know, how it came together, how it clicked, all the
right things happening, it reminds me a lot about that.
You know, I'm happy for those guys, being able to be a part of something
like that.
Q. You said many times you don't expect will ever beat Earnhardt
and Petty's record. Do you think the 48 is going to have a chance to do
that?
JEFF GORDON: Well, I've always said, first you got to get to four before
you talk about five, first you got to get to five before you talk about
six. Obviously, the roll they're on, they're clicking them off here very
quickly. So anything's possible.
You know, but this sport, nobody is obsolete {sic} to being able to be
humbled by this sport. So I think anything is possible. But those guys
are on a roll right now, and I don't really see it slowing down. I think
they're very capable of doing it again next year.
You know, that's still just five. Seven's a big number. That's tough to
get to. But, you know, I remember a lot of people telling me or asking
me, Oh, man, you know, seven's in reach, seven's in reach. A lot
changed, you know.
To me the only difference is I don't compare the championships those guys
won or the ones I won to the new championship. It's totally different.
You know, if they continue to keep the 10 races in the Chase that are in
there now, I don't know if there's anybody better than the 48 team at
those 10 races, those 10 tracks.
Q. How would you define your year?
JEFF GORDON: We've had a good year. Definitely had a good year. Huge
improvement from last year. So I'm very happy about that.
But, you know, we want to win the championship. You know, we feel like
we still have a little bit of work to do to make those gains to get us
where we need to be.
Q. Jimmie said yesterday he wished he won a championship with the
old points system, that that would prove something.
JEFF GORDON: It's important for me to win a championship under the new
system, I was going to say. I think it's different for everybody, you
know. There's certain systems that are going to work better for some
than others. You know, I feel like the 10 tracks in the Chase are not my
best 10. So when it comes down to 10 specific racetracks, it's sort of
our Achilles heel. But we're so strong throughout the whole season,
being consistent over 38, 36 races, that I think the old points system
favors us.
But I'm more inspired than ever with the new system to win it under the
new format. So I'm sure for Jimmie, you know, it's going to be compared
to the history of our sport, you know, he would like to probably go out
and do it under the old system.
But I think the new system is very tough and challenging. He doesn't
have to do it under the old to prove anything in my opinion. I think
what he's done has been extraordinary.
Q. (Question regarding the tracks in the Chase.)
JEFF GORDON: Which ones would I like there to be in the Chase?
Q. Yes.
JEFF GORDON: I would look at it a couple different ways. I would look
at it tracks that I run good at, tracks that I like. I think Bristol
should be in the Chase personally. Especially right now with the economy
the way it is and trying to build excitement and keep everything really
moving forward in the sport, Bristol I think is one of our premiere
tracks, and I would like to see it in there. Plus it would be another
short track, which would be good.
I mean, Michigan's always been one of my favorites. I think Indy, as
well. It would be cool if Indy was in there. It's not so much picking
other tracks as it is my worst three tracks are in the Chase. That's the
downside for me. But, you know, that's also a goal of ours. That's what
made winning in Texas earlier this year so special. Unfortunately we
didn't back that up with a good performance the second time.
Q. What do you feel the turning point of your 2009 season was?
JEFF GORDON: You mean in a bad way?
Q. In a good way.
JEFF GORDON: In a good way?
Q. The defining moment of your season.
JEFF GORDON: Well, we started the season off right. I mean, we were
strong in California. We were strong in Vegas. Oh, I'd like Vegas to be
in there (laughter).
We were kind of opposite of a lot of guys. Our strength came in the
first 10 races. We were really consistent. Then some other teams came
on and we lost a little bit. I feel like we got it back right before the
Chase and we've been solid in the Chase. New Hampshire kind of bit us.
The first race of the Chase, we didn't have a good performance, that got
us behind right from the beginning.
Q. (Question regarding Denny Hamlin.)
JEFF GORDON: I thought he would have been this year. You never know. I
mean, it's a long season, a lot can happen. A lot happens over the
off-season. I always think of Gibbs as being one of the strongest
organizations out there. You know, and I think Denny is a really solid
driver. I hope he's not putting too much pressure on himself by saying
that. I'm always big on actions speak louder than words, so I certainly
wouldn't go about saying that. But good for him.
Q. Rick just talked about Jimmie's contract. He thinks you have
at least three or four more years left. Have you talked to him about how
much longer you want to keep going?
JEFF GORDON: My conversations with him are pretty much the same as
anybody else. As long as I'm healthy and competitive and we have
sponsorship, you know, we're out there enjoying ourselves, I'm going to
keep doing it.
I don't like to put a number on that. You know, things can happen in a
hurry. Right now things are going well. My back is better. And, you
know, we're having a good year. Things are going well. So to me seasons
like this add years to my career. Seasons like last year, you know, take
away from them.
You know, last year I was frustrated, not feeling good. I was like, Give
me a couple more years. Now I'm like, Oh, four, five, who knows.
Q. When you went into the Lowe's boardroom to make the pitch for
Jimmie way back when, did you have any hesitation at that point in
putting your reputation on the line for a guy who hadn't set the world on
fire in the Busch Series?
JEFF GORDON: When you're sitting in that room, you're pitching to them,
you're needing the funding, you're feeling pretty confident in everything
at that moment (laughter).
I'll never forget it. I'll never forget sitting there and having the
CEO, Bob Tillman, flat out look at me straight in the face and said, Do
you really believe that Jimmie can win races and win championships? And,
you know, when a guy like that puts the pressure on you like that, you
don't want to just lie to him, you know, you want to be honest.
And I feel like I was honest. I told him that, you know, I believed with
Hendrick equipment and the right people around him that, yes, he was
capable of it. Now, how much of that did I believe was going to come
true? I mean, I wasn't sure. I wasn't sure. I mean, I knew that Jimmie
had a great talent, but I had no idea. You don't know how much they have
until you put them in your equipment. You don't know what kind of crew
chief Chad Knaus was going to be. I don't even know if we had a crew
chief at that time. Just a lot of factors in there.
But, you know what, I was confident in Hendrick Motorsports and I did see
something in Jimmie that I thought could be special. I had no idea it
was going to take off and do what it's done. But I sure am happy now
because I look pretty good saying, Oh, yeah, absolutely, he's going to do
all that (laughter).
Q. What caused you to look at him to begin with, to notice him?
JEFF GORDON: Yeah, I like a guy that makes more out of his equipment
than I think it's capable of. You know, I feel like he took a mediocre
team, and this is what I feel like we're really missing right now in the
Nationwide Series, if you're not on the Childress team, Roush team or
Hendrick team, nobody's even looking at you. I guess I look at David
Gilliland as the last guy that really did something in a
not-so-well-known team. Look what people did, people flocked to him,
picked him up. Man, this guy has beat them all with a team that's not
known.
That's kind of what it was like in a different sense. The big teams
weren't dominating the sport like that at that time. So he stood out.
You know, he stood out. He wasn't in the best equipment. He was in the
top 10 in points.
Q. Herzog team?
JEFF GORDON: Herzog. He hadn't won yet when we looked at him, but he
was solid. And then, you know, I raced with him. You know, he drove the
wheels off the thing. You know, he was hanging it out there. He was
doing what he needed to do.
You know, you can sense a guy - or a girl - what they're capable of when
you're out there with them. You can tell when the car's like doing the
work and when the driver's doing the work. He's doing a lot of the work.
Q. You know what it's like to be in championship mode, but how do
you keep it up as long as you do? Yesterday Rick said he's never seen
two drivers, Mark and Jimmie, work as hard as they do just concentrating
on being the guy that gets behind the wheel? How long can you maintain
that kind of intensity with this kind of pressure?
JEFF GORDON: It just depends on what you build with those opportunities.
You know, the downside is the more championships you win, the more you
want to capitalize on opportunities that come your way, you know, from a
marketing standpoint, from a business standpoint. Whether or not you get
bored with it, you know.
Jimmie's a very focused and driven, you know, person. He works really
hard at it. If he continues that, then I think he can continue on with
the success, as well as the team.
Chad is as driven as Jimmie or anybody else out there. So it takes a
whole combination, and they've got it. It just really comes down to
them, how long they want to continue working at it as hard as they do.
Q. Is there anybody you would rather beat on Sunday than Jimmie
Johnson?
JEFF GORDON: Yeah, a Roush car. Because this weekend I think the Roush
teams seem to be the cars to beat at Homestead.
Are you talking about any Sunday?
Q. Any given Sunday.
JEFF GORDON: If you beat those guys, you're doing something special.
They're very, very strong. Look what they did last week. They got down
at Texas, came right back and just dominated. They're definitely the
team to beat. But not necessarily at Homestead.
Q. Have things changed out on the track over the last two years in
any way, incidents being down?
JEFF GORDON: You know, the double-file restarts I would have thought
would have increased that. And they might still. You have a whole
season with it next year. We'll see.
But, no. I mean, we're all out there racing hard, doing the same things
we always do.
Q. Car of Tomorrow make any difference over the last two years in
terms of fewer incidents?
JEFF GORDON: You know, maybe. I don't know. It's hard to say. I mean,
it's still a racecar. It still has fenders on it.
Q. People haven't changed their style in any way in the last
couple years?
JEFF GORDON: I think the aerodynamic package you have right now is
affecting a little bit of that. We're not able to really get
side-by-side as much as maybe in the past. That could have something to
do with it. But that's just racing in general it's happening with that.
That's hard to say if it's the Car of Tomorrow.
Q. (Question regarding celebrating the championship.)
JEFF GORDON: I don't want to say that it's wrapped up with Jimmie. But
Mark is not known for going out and having a big party after a win. If
he wins the championship, I would be absolutely thrilled, you know, would
love to spend some time with him enjoying that win.
If Jimmie wins it, you know, he's gotten it down, you know, on how to
enjoy the evening. So we'll certainly be involved with those
festivities, yes.
Q. You were at Montoya's event last night. What kind of
difference do you see in terms of Hispanic recognition in this sport?
JEFF GORDON: I see media that's here almost every weekend. I see
increasing fan base. Plus, you know, just seeing people like this week,
for instance, I'm staying with a friend, and there's a woman that works
for him that's from Colombia. The only driver she knows is Juan Pablo
Montoya. She wouldn't have ever known anything about NASCAR racing if it
weren't for him.
So I'm sure that happens a lot. The flipside is they wouldn't know Jeff
Gordon or a bunch of other drivers here in NASCAR if it weren't for Juan
coming in.
I think there's a lot of race fans in South America. I don't know how
much they've been following NASCAR.
They've been following Formula One. Now I think you get a little bit
more South American influence with Nelson and Juan. I don't know,
there's a few more. That will only increase the awareness in the
Hispanic market.
Q. What do you like best about doing TV interviews and TV shows?
JEFF GORDON: What do I like the best? I don't know. I mean, I love
doing live, just the interaction with the fans, having something unique
to talk about than the same old springs and shocks and that type of
thing. I mean, I'm comfortable in front of the camera. I've been in
front of them for a long time. I guess that's just my personality. I
like that interaction.
Q. Did you ever have to work at it?
JEFF GORDON: Yes, definitely. I mean, I still see flaws every time I do
an interview, things that I say, you know, just little habits that I
have. But, yeah, absolutely I had to work at it. None of that comes
natural.
Q. Rick said yesterday when Ray left in '99 that was when he drew
the line in the sand and said, You guys are all going to share
everything, be equal, we're not going to have one front-running car and
everybody chasing after him, having secrets. Did that take away some of
the advantage the 24 had over the rest of the team or did it work out to
everybody's advantage?
JEFF GORDON: It may have. I mean, we were still under the same
guidelines as sharing information. But the whole organization was not
put together the way it is now. We didn't have a network, we didn't have
the shops the way they are now. And also I think that one of the big
influences was when the 48 came on and the 24 shared everything with them
seamlessly in that way, that's what really changed things.
You know, we won the championship in '01 with Robby. That was two years
later, a season later anyway from when Ray left. You know, to me it was
just the direction that the organization was heading in.
Yeah, it may have taken a little bit of an advantage away. But I think
it gave a bigger advantage to Hendrick Motorsports as a whole.
Q. Is it hard to share at all?
JEFF GORDON: I don't think it is. I think if you're confident in what
you do and you put the right people in place, your team is still going to
prevail. And the information you can get from your teammates can be very
valuable to you.
The key is, in order to be successful, like the 48 has been, is that,
one, you've got to bring your own to the table. You've got to be strong
enough where you can stand on your own. But then there's those weekends
where you miss, you're off a little bit, and your teammates have what it
takes. You know how to pull from them and make your car a winning car.
That's where they're so strong and where we can get better.
-credit: gm racing
