Gordon-Earnhardt rivalry wasn't really a rivalry at all

They are the two greatest drivers of the modern era, the perfect personifications of old and new NASCAR, an irresistible clash of personalities, styles and wills. But when it comes to Dale Earnhardt and Jeff Gordon, the timing was all wrong.

Gordon earned his 76th career victory on NASCAR's premier circuit Saturday at Phoenix International Raceway, tying him with the Intimidator for sixth on the sport's all-time list. It was a night that dripped with symbolism, complete with Gordon carrying a No. 3 flag on his victory lap, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. personally congratulating the man generally considered to be his late father's greatest rival on the track.

• Send David your thoughts

Except he wasn't. The Kid and the Killer, as they were once referred to in the early 1990s, were fierce competitors who shared a mutual respect for one another. They were popular champions who occasionally found themselves on opposite ends of an accident or an issue. But rivals? Dale Earnhardt and Jeff Gordon were anything but.

It's a simple matter of the calendar. Gordon and Earnhardt competed directly against each other for only eight full seasons, from Gordon's arrival on what was then known as the Winston Cup tour in 1993 until the year before Earnhardt's untimely death in the 2001 Daytona 500. Their careers during that span stood in stark contrast -- the man with the mustache was struggling though a low point, while the kid with the mullet was becoming NASCAR's best. The 20-year gap in their ages stood out like a car with a neon paint scheme.

Head to head, from the beginning of the 1993 season to the end of the 2000 campaign, Gordon won 52 times and Earnhardt 23. When Gordon won his 10 races en route to his second championship in 1997, Earnhardt was suffering through his first winless season in nearly two decades. The next year, Gordon won 13 races as car owner Richard Childress swapped crew chiefs in an attempt to get Earnhardt and his No. 3 Chevy back to the front.

The move worked, re-energizing Earnhardt, who rallied to finish second to Bobby Labonte in the 2000 championship standings at the same time Gordon was slipping back toward the pack. As the 2001 season dawned, the playing field between the two competitors never seemed more level. Then came Feb. 18, and Daytona, and the fourth-turn accident that made the sport stand still. (Continued)