Longtime rivals had plenty of mutual respect
Last week at the Subway Fresh 500 in Phoenix, Jeff Gordon earned his 76th NASCAR win, tying Dale Earnhardt for sixth all time in wins. Gordon then paid tribute to Earnhardt by carrying the No. 3 flag on a victory lap.
This once again stirred up debate among racing fans as to the meaning of the salute. Some thought it was Gordon rubbing it in Earnhardt?s face while others attributed it to a well-deserved salute to a great racer. Many racing fans believe there was a bitter rivalry between the two drivers and would like to see it continue between Gordon and Earnhardt Jr.
In 1993 at Daytona, I was a spectator when Gordon won a twin 125 qualifying race for the Daytona 500. This was Gordon?s first full season of NASCAR Cup racing, finishing 14th in points and earning the Rookie of the Year Award. Earnhardt was not too happy about Gordon starting in Cup racing at the age of 22, commenting that he was too young and had not paid his dues, referring to him as ?The Kid.?
In 1994, Gordon won his first Cup race, the Coca Cola 600, and also won the inaugural Brickyard 400, a popular hometown victory. The following year, Earnhardt won the Brickyard 400, claiming to be the first man to win the 400.
?Wonder Boy won the first one,? Earnhardt said.
Finally, at the age of 25, Gordon won the first of his four NASCAR Winston Cup Championships.
At the awards banquet, Eanhardt said they would probably serve milk instead of the traditional champagne. During his acceptance speech, a teary-eyed Gordon once again caught a lot of grief from Earnhardt and others.
In 1997, while walking through the NASCAR garage area at Lowe?s Motor Speedway, Earnhardt walked by me while going to his hauler. I called out to him for a picture, and as he turned to me, he saw I was wearing a Gordon cap. He covered his eyes with his forearm and told me to get Gordon?s picture.
Was this just Earnhardt being mean and spiteful? I think not. According to Dale Earnhardt Jr., his dad always spoke highly of Gordon and suggested that Jr. seek out Gordon for advice on how to be successful in NASCAR.
While Earnhardt?s fan base was primarily from the south, Gordon?s fans were mostly from the west and north. With two very popular drivers having different fan bases, the fans created the rivalry. Earnhardt?s fans hated Gordon and Gordon?s fans hated Earnhardt. There was never a happy medium.
In reality, Earnhardt and Gordon were great friends, both on and off the track. They were successful business partners and had a great deal of respect for each other while racing on the track. Gordon gives Earnhardt most of the credit of learning restrictor plate racing.
Although having respect for each other, neither would give an inch when it came to racing. Earnhardt Jr., said ?they hated to lose to each other. They hated that really bad. Daddy didn?t like losing to Jeff at all, because he always felt he was the better driver of the two.?
Knowing that, Junior was the first to greet Gordon in Victory Lane at Phoenix last weekend, to thank him for displaying the flag of his father as a token of respect.
Today?s race is at Talladega. All you Tide fans should keep an eye out for James Clark. He indicated he just might go to the race to rub elbows with all his fans.
Art Larson Sr., has been following racing for over 40 years and can be reached at buddyl@charter.net.