NASCAR Cup Series

Jeff Gordon pursues fifth title that could leave him 'sobbing for a week'

Published Apr. 25, 2015 10:25 a.m. ET

Tom Jensen

If there's anyone who feels a sense of urgency for the 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season, it's four-time champion Jeff Gordon, who is in his final full season of driving the iconic No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet.

And in an exclusive interview with FOXSports.com, Gordon said his team is improving after a dreadful start that saw him 30th in points after three races, largely on the basis of getting caught in other drivers' wrecks.

Now, heading into Sunday's Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond International Raceway, Gordon is all the way up to ninth in points. Gordon has two victories at the 0.75-mile RIR track and last year finished second in both races here. He will start this race 11th, best of any of the four Hendrick drivers.

While Gordon is pleased with posting five consecutive top-10 finishes, including a season's best third-place result last week at Bristol Motor Speedway, he said there is work to be done if he wants to make a run at another title.

"We have to improve on the mile-and-a-half tracks," Gordon said. "That's where you win the championships, that's where we were so strong last year. And that's not where we're strong right now. Our short-track program has been pretty good. I think our team effort has been really good, and that's why we closed up so much in the points, but we've got a little work to do to be a real contender for the championship."

In eight races this season, Gordon has already run what presumably will be the final races of his career at two tracks, Atlanta Motor Speedway and Auto Club Speedway. He said his eventual departure from the cockpit — he still won't use the word "retirement" — has not been a distraction so far.

"Most of my energy is focused on the team and being competitive, which is what I was hoping to be able to do," Gordon said. "And that hasn't paid off just yet. We've struggled a little bit on track this year a little bit more than we anticipated. But the last few weeks we've been getting better, gained some momentum with a really solid finish at Bristol, so that's good."

On and off the track, Gordon's legacy is well established. His 92 race victories rank him third all-time behind only Richard Petty and David Pearson. And his four titles have been eclipsed only by Petty, the late Dale Earnhardt and Gordon's teammate, Jimmie Johnson. Off the track, Gordon's tireless philanthropic work has raised tens of millions of dollars for pediatric cancer research and other charities.

But right now, the task at hand is winning races while at the same time taking care of his numerous obligations.

The Richmond race will mark the one-quarter point in the Sprint Cup schedule and the deeper the year goes, the more Gordon's final season will be the focus of track promoters, fans and the media.

"The season started with some emotion and then just I've kind of gotten into the grind," Gordon said. "But there's been certain moments where it's hard not to recognize, 'Wow, this could be the last time this is going to happen,' or 'Boy, isn't that cool?' That would not be happening without all the years I've put into this sport. To be recognized like this feels great, so I think it's going to get more emotional towards the end of the season."

Gordon continues to hedge his bets about whether he'll ever race again after this season ends.

"I would say that things are leaning more toward not driving and doing other things, which I'm excited about as well," he said. "I have too much respect for people like Bill Elliott and Terry Labonte and Mark Martin, guys that I raced against, who basically said they were going to walk away and then came back because something pulled them back in. I didn't want to leave it cut and clean to where I couldn't ever do that, and I didn't want to disappoint fans into thinking this is it and I go run a race or two next year or the year after that. But I will say that right now, Homestead's probably going to be an emotional race for me because it will more than likely be my final one."

And if somehow Gordon is able to win a championship, it will be even more emotional at Homestead.

"I don't think I'd stop sobbing for a week," Gordon said. "That would be a heck of a way to do it. That would definitely be writing the record books and the absolute coolest experience that I could ever imagine."

VIDEO: A look back at Jeff Gordon's biggest wins