Gordon Reigns Again

Jeff Gordon’s Winston Cup championship season became a little more significant Monday when he was named motor racing driver of the year--for a record fourth time.

Only three days earlier, the 30-year-old Gordon had accepted a record payoff of $10,879,575 at NASCAR’s awards banquet in New York for winning his fourth stock car crown. The payout included money from race purses, series sponsor R.J. Reynolds and various sponsors of the No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet he drives for Rick Hendrick Motorsports.

“It’s been an amazing year for me,” Gordon said Monday. “I owe a tremendous lot to the team Rick put together and the work that Robbie Loomis did as my crew chief.

“We heard a lot of things about how we couldn’t put it all together with a new team and new crew, but I think we proved ourselves.”

Gordon struggled to ninth place in 2000, his lowest finish since his rookie year in 1993, after losing chief mechanic Ray Evernham and most of the crew that had helped Gordon to his three championships. Few expected the team to rebound as quickly as it did. Except perhaps the team owner.

“I knew Jeff was special the first time I saw him drive in the Busch Series,” Hendrick said at the banquet. “He did things with that car that I didn’t think could be done without crashing. Since we’ve been together, though, he’s even better than I thought he was and he’s still only 30 years old.”

Gordon was selected over other champions--Gil de Ferran in CART, Sam Hornish Jr. in the Indy Racing League, Kenny Bernstein and John Force in NHRA drag racing, Danny Lasoski in World of Outlaws sprint cars and Kevin Harvick in Busch Grand National.

The only driver other than Richard Petty and the late Dale Earnhardt to have won more than three Winston Cup titles, Gordon won six races and six poles, and finished in the top five in 18 of the 36 races.

His earnings of $45.7 million make him the all-time money leader in NASCAR.

Gordon was named driver of the year in 1995, 1997 and 1998, years he also won the Winston Cup title. Besides Gordon, only Darrell Waltrip and Mario Andretti, the first recipient in 1967, have won the award three times. Selection of driver of the year is made by a 15-member panel of motor sports writers and broadcasters.

Gordon’s selection marked the fifth year in succession--14th time in 28 years--that a Winston Cup driver has been chosen.

While touring New York with his wife, Brooke last week, Gordon visited a firehouse. One of the firefighters asked if he’d like to take a ride on engine No. 24.

No more than a minute after he’d climbed aboard, No. 24 was ordered to a fire.

“I thought we were just taking a joyride,” Gordon said. “Then we pulled out in front of traffic and I saw everybody else getting into their gear. I was all smiles, and then I saw their eyes and how serious they were all of a sudden. Then I got a little scared.”

It turned out to be a small fire a few blocks from the station.