Victories outweigh every other statistic in NASCAR

In the end it all comes down to two simple numbers -- 76 and 77. Simple, stark, and yet inarguable. But what these two numbers represent becomes a little tougher to tackle.

Here is what is indisputable: forevermore Jeff Gordon will be ahead of Dale Earnhardt in the record books. It's a tough pill to swallow for fans of the 3 but Earnhardt will always be looking up at Gordon on that list.

Beau Estes co-hosts the Jack Daniel's Post-Race Show with Nikki Alexander. It can be seen following every Nextel Cup race live on NASCAR.COM.

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But what does it really mean? Does it mean that Jeff Gordon is certainly, without a doubt a better, more talented driver than Dale and Earnhardt's fans should just suck it up and accept it? Tread very carefully there my friends because if you just look at the numbers then we must deduce that Richard Petty is three (there's that number again) times better than both Dale and Jeff? Do any of us really believe that?

Still, I'm told that the numbers don't lie so I'm going to put some questions to the fans. Hopefully, that is what this space can be all about. I don't claim to know all the answers, so much like our Jack Daniel's Post-Race Show I want this to be a place for NASCAR fans to be able to express themselves to a wider audience. Remember, only the best questions/answers get published. Send your thoughts directly to me at Beau.Estes@turner.com.

With that in mind here are this week's questions followed by my thoughts on the subject.

What is Jeff Gordon's place in history and is it now ahead of Dale Earnhardt and why? Also, why do so many people seem to hate Jeff Gordon?

That should be fertile ground for a nice range of answers and here is mine.

On the first topic, I think that if we detach our emotions, in 20 years we will look back and view Gordon as a greater driver than Earnhardt, but as it stands right now there is plenty of room for debate. It took Earnhardt roughly 25 years to get 76 wins -- or approximately three (that number again) wins per year.

In about 14 seasons on the Cup circuit, Jeff Gordon has those 77 wins, about five-and-a-half per year. Honestly, the 24 team is winning at nearly twice the pace of the 3 team.

Now here is the part that is debatable. Earnhardt has seven championships in 25 seasons or one every three (make it stop!) and a half years. Gordon has four championships in his 14 years -- basically the exact same pace (and remember our sponsor, Jack Daniel's, says to "Pace Yourself.") Still, grabbing three more will be nearly impossible. My guess is that the 48 team, among others, will be too tough to allow Gordon to catch Earnhardt on this list.

Here's the thing, though. Personally, I think winning races is so much more important than championships and that Cup titles are a marketer's invention to sustain interest in racing throughout the year. Yes, I'm saying it -- I think these championships are a device used to manipulate the fans and you know what?, they work. Why else would golf be copying the NASCAR model? Nobody has ever cared about the end of the golf season so the Tour has taken NASCAR-ish steps to fix that.

In my mind, the system rewards boring driving and I prefer a driver who will do whatever it takes to win the race. Let's take it all the way back to the very root of the sport. What are we doing here, people? We are running a race. Dictionary.com defines a race as simply "a contest of speed." That is what we are doing here, folks. We show up at the track, set a mileage and see who can get there first. Were you happy as a kid when you came in second racing in recess? Yet a guy who finishes second every week would do great winning championships. Always remember "second place is just the first loser." Thanks, Mr. Bobby. (Continued)