Rea White
Special to FOXSports.com
Rick Hendrick knows Jeff Gordon well.
The owner watched his driver win four NASCAR Nextel Cup championships and he's watched him struggle to make the championship segment of the season. He says that when Gordon is competing for the title, that is his talent shining through; when he is not, that's the team's weak spots showing.
He simply believes in his 36-year-old driver that much.
But the Gordon he's watching go for the title this time is a different version of the man than he's seen in the past. This is a man more settled in his life, one who Hendrick looks at and sees enjoying himself. Underneath it all, though, he's still the fiery competitor intent on winning what has proven to be a somewhat elusive fifth title.
Gordon won three championships close together in 1995, '97 and '98, then earned his fourth in 2001. Since then, though, he's been competitive but not celebrating titles. He was third in the standings in 2004, then missed the Chase for the Nextel Cup entirely the following season. He was sixth in the points standings a year ago. Impressively, that's his worst back-to-back finishes since his first two years of full-time competition, when he was 14th and eighth in the series standings.
Now he's back in top form, leading some to hand him the championship despite five races remaining and a pair of drivers within 78 points of him in the standings. Of course, his closest competition comes from teammate Jimmie Johnson, who is 68 points back. At that range, he needs a little bit of a stumble on Gordon's part.
Now, the men who see him in action every day also see a driver who is in top form — one who could take the true chase out of this championship over the ensuing races.
"I see Jeff at the peak of his game right now and a serious threat," Johnson says. "It doesn't matter which track we're at, he's up there and it's tough to outscore him."
That's pretty much how things have gone all season. Gordon surrendered the lead he'd held for 21 weeks prior to the season when the Chase field was set and he had one less win that Johnson. He's been no worse than second since the championship segment began and has grown his lead over the past two races.
His team is gaining strength and overcoming bizarre circumstances. At Talladega on Oct. 7, Gordon disciplined himself to race at the back of the pack and then make his move late, avoiding the multi-car crash that is common at the superspeedway and swooping past Johnson on the final lap for the win.
At Lowe's Motor Speedway on Saturday night, Gordon had a fuel pickup problem and thought he was running out of gas, forcing him to ride on the apron before a late restart. He spun his tires on that restart, only to be bumped by the Clint Bowyer car that should have been passing him, boosting Gordon's speed. Ryan Newman stormed past him, into the lead — then into the wall to push Gordon back to the front.
"We pretty much scripted that one three or four days ago," he said with a laugh after the win.
He continues to dismiss talk of destiny, refuses to claim the title or even frontrunner status at this moment. He speaks of Tony Stewart as a dangerous threat, carefully watches Johnson and deems Bowyer impressive. When asked how many of the top 12 contenders are no longer that, he starts speaking of mathematical elimination and pointing out that no one is technically out of contention yet.
Still, he knows that what he and Steve Letarte have crafted to this point is special. He recognizes that 25 top-10 finishes in 31 races is quite a feat, that 19 top-five runs in that span is something one doesn't see every day.
"There's no doubt that this team has an amazing chemistry about it," Gordon says.
But he even somewhat cautiously couches that statement.
"There's some great things happening, but there's still five races to go and all that has to continue in order for us to get this championship," he says.
Still, the man heading to the track for those five races is a different version of the Gordon than the one who has been champion four times.
Perhaps that will change the meaning of this title, should he win it.
Or perhaps it just makes it more satisfying to be chasing it with so much aggression and so much success.
"I see a real happy Jeff Gordon," Hendrick says. "I think that his life outside of racing is probably the best it's ever been, especially with his little girl. But he's always been competitive."
Now, he just has all the tools to boost his talent and the relationship with Letarte that helps craft this magical sequence of performances.
"When you get him right, he can get it done, and he and Steve are a good combination," Hendrick said.
Rea White is a writer for NASCAR Scene, which is published weekly, 50 weeks per year. Visit
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This Gordon not same as four-title Gordon
this one's for you Curves!
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