CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Jeff Gordon wouldn’t have it any other way.
Still alive in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup in his final full-time season, he’s heading to a track where he has amassed a historic amount of success.
“It's not going to be an easy task, but I also know that it is the one track, if I can put any track on the schedule to give ourselves opportunity to win at right now, I would pick Martinsville,” he said at the NASCAR Hall of Fame. “On one hand I'm excited and confident, and on the other hand I know we've got to work our butts off to make it happen.”
At Martinsville Speedway, Gordon leads all active drivers in pole positions, top-five finishes, top-10s, laps led, average start and average finish. He is also tied for the most Martinsville wins among active drivers with Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson at eight victories apiece.
As successful as Gordon has been at the Virginia track, he won’t hesitate to lean on his teammates as the Eliminator Round of the Chase kicks off.
“I feel confident about Martinsville, but we'll always take all the information we can. All three of our teammates have run really good at times at Martinsville either this year or last year. We've got tremendous resources to fall back on,” he explained. “I know that, just like if it were us, we would want to see a Hendrick car win this championship. I think there's probably even a little added motivation because these are my final four races. So I think everybody wants to see us advance to that next round, to Homestead, and have a shot at it. We're all going to be working hard together.”
And it’s not just Martinsville where Gordon feels confident – he is also happy to see Texas and Phoenix on the schedule to cap off the round.
“I look at this round, I feel like not only are we capable of being very consistent, but we're capable of winning at each of these tracks,” he said. “Of course, Martinsville I'm more confident in. But that doesn't mean that I feel like we've got this thing. We don't. We've got to go out and we've got to earn that.”
And with the determination that the No. 24 team has displayed to get to the Chase – and continue in it through the Challenger and Contender Rounds – has the driver believing that he has as much of a chance as anyone in the field.
“One thing that we've done so well that I think will continue no matter what, because it's just this team, is we never stop fighting and grinding,” he said. “That's what we've had to do. Now we're just in that mode. That's just what we do. We seem to really do a great job being consistent and getting the best finish. That's what we've been certainly doing in the Chase.
“If we do that for three more weeks, I think we make it to Homestead.”