THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, September 22, 1995 TAG: 9509220620
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C7 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BOB ZELLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: WINSTON-SALEM LENGTH: Medium: 69 lines
These are THE weeks of his young life thus far, and if Jeff Gordon isn't uttering the `C' word yet, he's at least thinking about the Winston Cup championship.
Five races to go. A 309-point lead. He could even gag a race or two. Every previous driver with this big a lead has gone on to win the title. And there's no sign of letting up, no sign of weakness yet, no sign the pressure is getting to him.
``We haven't been talking about it all year, and we're still not talking about,'' Gordon said Thursday during a Goody's 500 luncheon here. ``But I've been reading the papers sometimes. And I read where nobody has blown a lead like this.''
Headed into Martinsville Speedway for Sunday's Winston Cup race, Gordon is fresh off his seventh victory of the year, which came at Dover last weekend.
``I think Dover was just another notch in the belt. It certainly doesn't put it to sleep. But Martinsville - this is a tough weekend. I'd like to get through Martinsville and North Wilkesboro right now. Honestly, I guess I've got a good lead, but those numbers don't mean anything to me right now.
``We've had some real good luck here in the last 10 or 12 races, but you never know when that stuff is going to turn around.''
It probably won't, judging from the depth and confidence that his team has developed this year.
When he was asked to name his best and worst efforts this year, his answer showed a glimpse of how this team has gained strength over the summer and into the final stretch.
The worst, Gordon said, was Indy, where he was defending champion. Although he finished sixth, ``we probably even had a better car than where we finished.
``I don't know if there was a lack of communication between (crew chief) Ray (Evernham) and I, but there was so much going on there, we kind of got separated, and it was really tough to just sit there and talk about what the car was doing.''
Gordon and Evernham recognized what had happened, and vowed not to let it happen anymore.
``I think Darlington (the Southern 500) was probably our best effort all year,'' he said. ``We started that race off with a very, very loose race car, and we had to constantly work on it all day. And then, to overcome that spin and a flat tire, I think that was probably our best effort all year.
``In the past, we'd get down a little bit when we got behind. We found out when we do put in that extra effort, you can still come back. That's something Earnhardt does a lot. That's what makes you championship caliber. . . .''
Before lunch, Gordon's commitments for Goody's included a visit to sick children at Brenner Children's Hospital here.
``I guess I relate better with kids because they're closer to my age,'' said Gordon, who is 24. ``But it's a big reality check when you go to a place like that. Here, your life is on an uphill climb and going great, and these kids, they don't know how they're going to live life or if they're even going to live. It was a special visit for me.''
The Goody's 500, which has 43 entries, starts at 12:40 p.m. Sunday. Pole qualifying is today (3 p.m., ESPN2). Reserved seats are still available for Sunday's race at $35 each, and 8,000 unreserved seats on the backstretch go on sale for $30 each ($5 for children 6-12) at 7:30 a.m. on race day.
Forty-seven drivers will battle for 36 starting positions for Saturday's Goody's 150 Supertruck race during pole qualifying at 4:30 p.m. today. The truck race starts at 2 p.m. Saturday. General admission tickets are $20, with children under 12 free with a paying adult.
For ticket information, call (540) 956-3151. by CNB