Insider's View: Jeff Gordon

There's been a lot of talk lately about next year's Nextel Cup schedule and the possibility of adding races, going to the West Coast more and even building new tracks, like the one we keep hearing about in Seattle.

Some people are even saying we'll run 40 races next year. There's no way, it's too much. We're already stretched so thin.

I think we need all Saturday night races, two-day events -- get in on Friday, leave Saturday night and have Sundays off. That'd be awesome, wouldn't it?

In all seriousness, I wish we had 30 tracks and went to every one of them once. It'd be great if they were spread out all over the country, in all the major cities and markets, where people can fly in, have plenty of hotel rooms and places to stay and awesome facilities that put on a heck of a show.

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The biggest thing, though, is it has to work for the teams. More than anything else, the schedule has to be convenient for the teams. And weather is huge. Weather is a big deal, obviously, so racing at tracks that have great weather, where it's enjoyable to be outside, is key.

One part of that equation is that markets have to host at the right times of year. Think about the Brickyard. I love the Brickyard, but in August, buddy, that place is ungodly hot. Would it be better suited at a different time?

I'm not a track owner, so I can't sit here and say that you can have one race per track. It may not be doable. Some tracks say, "Hey, we've got to have two Nextel Cup events to stay afloat."

I just wish we could go to each place once, put on a great show and "We'll see you next year." That keeps people coming back. That makes people want to see us race.

I was asked the other day if I thought the westward expansion would force owners to open shops on the West Coast. I don't think so. I think we'll have to hire more team members, buy more trucks, but I think our facilities will have to stay in one location.

But at the same time, I see us preparing cars for one event while we're at another event, then that truck leaves for the next event with a different truck driver, different set of team members and tools, everything.

It's just going to cost more money for us to operate. A lot more money. If we have more races, we'd better make sure the purses are good enough and the income is steady enough where we're going to be able to keep up with the growing cost.

Otherwise we'll see a big problem that could possibly have a negative effect on the sport.