Fact or fiction: Did Jeff Gordon miss his first race at Daytona?
As Jeff Gordon prepares to make his final Daytona 500 start in Sunday's 57th edition of The Great American Race, the four-time Sprint Cup champion can fondly reflect on a Daytona career highlighted by six points wins -- including three Daytona 500 victories -- at the fabled superspeedway.
Over 44 starts at DIS in NASCAR's top series, Gordon has amassed 20 top 10s, including 13 top fives, along with four poles.
Needless to say, there is seemingly nothing for the Hendrick Motorsports driver not to love about The World Center of Racing.
Well, almost nothing.
While even some of the most studious NASCAR aficionados probably don't remember it, Gordon vividly recalls a trip to Daytona in 1991 that didn't go so well.
Driving a Ford for team owner Bill Davis in what was then known as the NASCAR Busch Series, Gordon was one of 15 drivers who failed to qualify for the '91 season opener. Others on the DNQ list included future Sprint Cup champion Bobby Labonte, future Daytona 500 champion Ward Burton and future Busch Series champion Jeff Green.
"I remember we were slow and we didn't make it because we were slow," he said with a laugh. "Back then I was with Bill Davis with Ford and we were just lacking power and resources at the time. Did everything we could to have enough speed to make that race, but weren't able to pull it off. Ford made some big gains for the next year and we were pretty competitive the next year. Everywhere we went we were competitive, but, in particular, the restrictor-plate tracks ... back then they just weren't known for being good on those restrictor-plate tracks, and we struggled. We did very well at all the other tracks.
"I mean, it was frustrating to come here and not make the race. But at the same time, we were pretty realistic about it. We knew what was going on during testing. We weren't very fast."
It turns out, though, that Gordon holds an even earlier memory of driving at Daytona -- and a much fonder one, at that.
"The thing that stands out the most to me was the very first time I ever came here I drove a Cup car," he said. "When we tested here, I was driving the Nationwide (Busch Series) car, but I got to get into Mark Martin's Cup car and go test it the very first time I was ever here. I was pretty blown away by that."
After missing the 1991 Busch Series opener, Gordon went on to qualify for all 30 of the remaining races he entered that year, and even picked up 10 top 10 finishes and a pole along the way. At the end of the following year -- 1992 -- Gordon made his Sprint Cup debut for Hendrick Motorsports at Atlanta Motor Speedway, which led to a full-time ride in the now-famous No. 24 Chevrolet for the 1993 season.
And the rest, as they say, is history.
Now with 92 career Sprint Cup wins and four championships to his credit, Gordon is set to embark on his last full season -- and perhaps his last season, period.
But he hasn't forgotten that day at Daytona in February 1991 when he had to go home early.
At least he was in good company.
