Sport's media star shines in media capital of world

NEW YORK -- Even from the back seat of a black Lincoln Navigator, it's clear that Jeff Gordon is in control. He guides his driver through the streets of Manhattan with the skill of a spotter at a Nextel Cup road course, steering him around Columbus Circle, two blocks up Broadway, and then left on 57th Street. The four-time NASCAR champion has an hour to kill in between television appearances, and he's looking for his favorite diner for breakfast.

It's the kind of place where small brass nameplates above every table identify celebrities who have dined there. On this Thursday morning, Gordon is the most recognizable person in the joint, but no one bats an eye. He's a regular. "Hey, what did you do with the salmon?" he playfully chides the maitre d, over a lunchtime favorite that's no longer on the menu. Somehow famous and anonymous all at once, he seems perfectly within his element, right down to the charcoal gray Armani suit that blends so well with all that concrete and steel.

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It's a perfect match, really, the king of NASCAR media in this media capital, a place where the streets are awash in more corporate logos than any Nextel Cup car. Gordon somehow belongs here, crunching on his Raisin Bran with skim milk only a few blocks from the Midtown condominium he shares with his wife Ingrid and daughter Ella, pushing a stroller through Central Park, slapping on a baseball cap and wandering through the streets unrecognized. There are plans for a new house outside Charlotte, a nice spread with a backyard and a pool and plenty of space for a new family to grow. But right now, New York is home. Gordon has become NASCAR's emissary to the most important city in the world.

On this day, he has help. NASCAR has brought all 12 of its Chase participants to New York for a media blitz, one that begins with wake-up calls in the pre-dawn hours for network morning shows, and ends with an afternoon free-for-all at the ESPN Zone in Times Square. Most of the other drivers are staying at a plush hotel where rooms go for $500 a night and a bedside panel controls everything from the lights to the television to the "do not disturb" sign. Gordon enjoyed a greater luxury -- spending the night at home, where the black SUV, complete with a No. 24 flag sticking up from the driver's side window, meets him at 7:30 a.m. He piles in, and a long day of appearances begins.

He's used to it. Gordon has been doing interviews since his earliest days as a sprint-car driver, when he stood out not only because of his talent but also his youth. He was a regular on the old Thursday Night Thunder broadcasts on ESPN. When he broke into NASCAR's top level as a 21-year-old back in 1993, he didn't challenge for race wins or the championship immediately, providing him with an adjustment period many of today's top rookies don't have. The result is the most media-friendly superstar sports figure on the planet, a man whose ease and professionalism in front of the camera have led to guest-host gigs on talk shows, and will almost certainly provide him with a multitude of opportunities once his driving days are complete. (Continued)