Even the best athletes can become complacent and open the door for a new superstar. Something similar happened with Jeff Gordon, who dominated the late 90s, bagging multiple titles, but his magic started to fade after the championship in 2001. Although it was almost impossible for anyone to challenge Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus’ era, Gordon felt his decline wasn’t directly linked to the success of his teammate.
Watch What’s Trending Now!
“I was living a very privileged lifestyle because of the success. I’ve got my own plane, I’ve got big PSA deals, and I’m getting invited to red carpets, and I’m enjoying life and success. And I think my focus on the track with the team suffered. I don’t think I was as committed,” Gordon revealed on Bussin’ With the Boys.
While Gordon fronted DuPont and Pepsi, he balanced sponsorships with selective Hollywood cameos—Looney Tunes and CARS. Gordon even turned down a role to be featured in Talladega Nights due to his sponsorship obligations. Not to forget, he even served as the host for Saturday Night Live.
Now, these activities and appearances weren’t out of bounds for a NASCAR driver. However, for Gordon, who had reached this pinnacle of success through his grit on the racetrack, this life of glamour somewhat blurred his focus while competing on the track. Gordon was still winning races, but on the flip side, Johnson was racking up championships.
From 2006 to 2010, Jimmie Johnson clinched five Cup Series titles in a row. He adapted to new trends and always focused on his role as a race car driver. For him, racing was his only priority. And witnessing Johnson’s rise as the most successful driver in his era, Gordon felt jealous, but it also reminded him why he started his racing career.
“We want the 48 team to be the fourth team at Hendrick, and then it started to turn to dominance, and I’m sitting there, ‘ Wait a minute, I don’t like this. I don’t like what it feels like to be getting beat on a regular basis and not be the top team at Hendrick Motorsports. So yeah, if I could’ve done it over, I would’ve kept that intensity level like the mid to late 90s,” Gordon explained.
Jeff Gordon could indeed’ve won more championships had Ray Evernham stuck around at HMS. And the ‘Milk and Cookie’ meeting also could’ve gone sideways. But as fate would have it, Johnson became the face of Hendrick Motorsports, while Gordon took more of a leadership role after a stellar NASCAR career.