Weekend That Was: PIR

When he made the first start of his Cup racing career at the 1992 Hooters 500 in Atlanta, Jeff Gordon finished an inauspicious 31st.

Fifteen years later, it seems fitting that Gordon made that first start in one of the more memorable races in NASCAR history. In what was Richard Petty's final race -- another seemingly fitting subplot, in retrospect -- five drivers began the day with a chance to claim that season's points championship, depending on what happened.

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It eventually came down to two -- Alan Kulwicki and Bill Elliott. Kulwicki emerged as the points champion even as he finished second in the race to Elliott in what remains one of the closest battles ever for a points championship.

That day, Gordon was an afterthought. So was, to a large extent, Dale Earnhardt.

Despite the fact that he led 44 laps -- more than everyone but Kulwicki, Elliott and a relatively young Mark Martin -- Earnhardt eventually struggled to a 26th-place finish.

Of course, Earnhardt was at the time in the middle of one of the most prolonged hot streaks in NASCAR history. While he won only one race that season and finished an uncharacteristic 12th in the points standings, it was the only season in a stretch of five in a row in which he failed to win at least four races and capture the points championship, as he was the sport's top driver in 1990, 1991, 1993 and 1994, respectively.

So Earnhardt already was a star. Who knew then that Gordon was destined to become one, too?

Oh, Rick Hendrick had an idea that big things were in store for Gordon. So did fellow car owner Jack Roush, who had attempted to sign Gordon before Hendrick Motorsports did the trick.

Roush had even told Gordon's stepfather, John Bickford, that he "thought the kid could be great." But Roush wouldn't agree to let Ray Evernham come on board as Gordon's crew chief in a Bickford-proposed package deal, so Gordon ended up with Hendrick instead.

Shortly after arriving at Hendrick, Evernham posted a checklist on a sign that would remain in place on the shop's main workroom floor for the next several years. It read:

FROM NOBODY TO UPSTART
FROM UPSTART TO CONTENDER
FROM CONTENDER TO WINNER
FROM WINNER TO CHAMPION
FROM CHAMPION TO DYNASTY

There were no victories for Gordon and Evernham in 1993, their first year together at the Cup level. But they did register two second-place and 11 top-10 finishes in 30 starts, followed by two wins and 14 top-10s in 1994. That essentially covered the first three items on Evernham's checklist for Gordon's No. 24 Chevrolet.

By 1995, Gordon accomplished the fourth item on the list -- winning seven races and his first points championship at the tender age of 24. When he and Evernham followed with a second points championship in 1997, with a second-place finish in the 1996 season sandwiched in between, it could be argued that they had made a good start on the fifth and final goal.

Yet Earnhardt at first professed not to be impressed. When Gordon wept openly at the Cup awards banquet after picking up his second points championship, Earnhardt was spotted smirking in the crowd.

Asked about Gordon around that time by reporters, Earnhardt shook his head and said he had trouble relating to the driver who was 20 years and four months younger and seemed, well, a whole lot different.

"We just don't like the same things. I like to hunt and fish. He likes them video toys," Earnhardt said with a grin.

As time went by, though, it seemed maybe they were a little more alike than either was willing to admit at first -- or their fans will ever be willing to admit. They both wanted to win races, for sure, and were better at it than just about anyone then, or since.

Lap-by-Lap

Tony Stewart made a gutsy move to take the lead, but Jeff Gordon wouldn't be denied in becoming the first driver to win from the pole at Phoenix.

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Gordon and Evernham eventually won 42 races and three points championships together, before Evernham left after the 1999 season to start Evernham Motorsports, a Dodge venture that has since witnessed what could best be described as mixed success. Some predicted that Evernham's departure would mark Gordon's demise.

The driver's critics were wrong. The Evernham split may have slowed his march toward destiny a little, but Gordon has since captured 34 more races and one more points title. When he won the Subway 500 at Phoenix International Raceway on Saturday night, it was the 76th victory of Gordon's 16-year Cup career, tying him with Earnhardt for sixth place on the all-time list of winningest drivers.

In a fitting tribute, Gordon grabbed a black flag bearing the No. 3 made famous by Earnhardt and took a victory lap around the 1-mile oval at Phoenix with the flag flapping out his driver's side window (watch video). Gordon later told reporters that he "wanted to do something cool for Dale," that he wanted to pay him the honor and respect that Earnhardt deserved.

When he got to Victory Lane, Dale Earnhardt Jr. was among the first to greet Gordon and congratulate him. That was cool, too.

In fact, the whole deal was cool. You've got to believe that Dale Sr. was looking down from somewhere up above and nodding his approval, too. Who would have thought any of this possible on that day back in 1992?

By the numbers

In his post-race comments, Gordon also said that he was afraid some fans might think he was now considers himself as good a driver as Earnhardt was "and that wasn't the case." Well, Earnhardt fans might not like to hear this: but a case could be made that Gordon is as good or better than the late Earnhardt, who passed away in a tragic wreck in the 2001 Daytona 500.

Earnhardt's seven points championship certainly trump Gordon's four, but it could be argued that it has become more difficult to win multiple championships in recent years as the playing field in the sport appears to have become a little more level. In fact, much of Gordon's stiffest competition comes from his own Hendrick Motorsports shop -- where many days he can be at his best, and one of his Hendrick teammates might be just a fraction better.

Gordon supporters have these numbers on their side: it took Earnhardt 671 races over nearly 26 seasons to earn his 76 race victories; Gordon now has his 76 in 481 starts and he is in the early stages of just his 16th Cup season. Plus he continues to lead in the points standings and looks like he'll be a strong contender for a fifth championship, with plenty of racing ahead of him unless he runs into some unexpected calamity -- which, of course, is always a possibility in stock-car racing.

More on Scott

Greatness in a driver or in a man isn't always measured merely in race victories, of course. Wendell Scott, the only African-American to win a race at NASCAR's highest level, is proof of that. He won only once, which seems to be why some folks want to lump him in the average- to below-average category as a driver and slight his accomplishments.

Are you kidding me? Doesn't anyone realize what it took for Scott to merely get to the tracks and compete during a 12-year career stunted by lack of sponsorship money and blatant racism? It should be noted that not all of his fellow competitors wallowed in ignorance; but it also should be noted that most of them drove in far superior equipment with factory-backed support.

Wendell Scott Jr. said that when the NASCAR Hall of Fame opens in Charlotte in 2010, he would like to see his father among those inducted in the first class.

"If he doesn't go in on the first ballot, then I don't think it's right. No, he doesn't have the wins that those factory-backed drivers had," Scott said. "But the equivalence of what he accomplished should not be looked down on. He wouldn't be in the International Sports Hall of Fame if he wasn't a phenom."

Chris Bristol

Bristol update

Remember when Chris Bristol was considered one of the hottest up-and-coming minority drivers participating in NASCAR's Drive for Diversity program? Well, right now Bristol is looking for something to drive.

"I've been running Late Models the last couple of years and have some wins at Hickory Motor Speedway and Caraway [Speedway in North Carolina]. Last year I ran the Grand National West race at Fontana; I had a one-race deal with Sony, and my first time on a 2-mile track we went out there and ran 11th," Bristol said. "And I was supposed to have a deal running in Busch East this year. I was pretty excited about it, but due to circumstances beyond my control that deal fell apart. So right now I'm rideless. It's the middle of April and I'm desperately hunting a sponsor.

"It's a tough business. Sometimes stuff happens and you just don't have any control over it, whether it's funding or sponsors or whatever the case may be. ... You've just got to pick yourself up and keep going, because I'm confident I can compete at that level. It's just a matter of getting in the right equipment with the right team."

A friend of the Scott family, Bristol said thinking about what Wendell Scott went through so many years ago is an inspiration for him during these difficult times.

"Sometimes as frustrating as this sport can be, you think, 'Man, if I'm sitting here moping and complaining about not having a scenario or a sponsor that I want right now, just imagine what Wendell and Wendell Jr. and their whole family went through just to get to the racetrack back in the day," Bristol said.

Pit Stops

• Gordon broke a 25-race winless streak by taking the checkered flag at Phoenix. Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s winless streak now is at 34 races and counting.

• No driver can possibly be more frustrated than Denny Hamlin after he finished oh-so-close again in yet another Car of Tomorrow race at Phoenix, fighting back to place third after a pit-road speeding penalty on Lap 100 sent him to the rear of the field. He has led significant portions of each of the three COT races thus far, but has yet to see Victory Lane.

• No weekend seems complete anymore without Kyle Busch getting peeved at someone or something. Last weekend was no exception when Busch took exception to Ryan Newman ruining what had been a great run for Busch in the Busch (no relation) Series race in Phoenix.

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer.