NASCAR.COM - The one man responsible for creating the monster

FOLLOW ON:

AUCTIONS

Bid Now

Learn More | Sign Up

Auto Service

type size: + -

The one man responsible for creating the monster (cont'd)

Hard to believe it all started at a place like Darlington, at an event like a Busch Series test that Gordon attended to lend advice to Ricky Hendrick, who had never before raced at the old egg-shaped track. Standing on top of the transporter, Gordon noticed a red and white No. 92 car that was running the right line, snug up against the outside wall, and getting around the place fast. Gordon told Hendrick -- that guy is running the line you want to run. And by the way, who is he?

Jimmie Johnson, Hendrick told him. Later that day, Gordon went over to introduce himself. How many times have you been here before, the four-time NASCAR champion asked the unknown. Never, Johnson told him.

"I mean, right there, that's pretty impressive," Gordon remembered. "A guy that has never been there before that picked it up that quick."

Gordon kept his eye on the kid, who turned out to be a former off-road racer from El Cajon, Calif. He liked how Johnson handled himself on the race track, clearly getting the most out of a Herzog Motorsports car that was competitive, but far from dominant. After a drivers' meeting at Michigan, Johnson approached Gordon to discuss some career options. Then Johnson drove his way past Gordon in the race.

At the same time, Hendrick Motorsports was finalizing plans for a new 85,000-square-foot shop for the No. 24 team, a facility big enough to house another car. Gordon put all the pieces together, went to team owner Rick Hendrick, and pitched the idea of a new team with Johnson behind the wheel.

"Rick had some interest," he said, the understatement heavier than the South Florida humidity. Yet there were no guarantees. As much promise as Gordon had seen in Johnson's ability, this still was a driver without much of a track record. Johnson's average finish on the Busch tour in 2000 had been an underwhelming 19.5. By 2001, the year he made his Cup debut with Hendrick, that number had improved -- but only slightly, to 16.2. He had one career victory in the series, but was probably better known for standing on the roof of his car with his arms up in the air after a wicked crash at Watkins Glen.

So understandably, the CEO of Lowe's at the time had some doubts when Gordon and Hendrick arrived to ask the company to spend millions to back a driver no one had ever heard of. Chief executive Bob Tillman looked at Gordon and asked -- can this kid really win?

"When a guy like that puts the pressure on you like that, you don't want to just lie to him. You want to be honest. And I feel like I was honest. I told him that I believed with Hendrick equipment and the right people around him that, yes, he was capable of it," Gordon remembered.

"Now, how much of that did I believe was going to come true? I mean, I wasn't sure. I wasn't sure. I mean, I knew that Jimmie had a great talent, but I had no idea. You don't know how much they have until you put them in your equipment. You don't know what kind of crew chief Chad Knaus was going to be. I don't even know if we had a crew chief at that time. Just a lot of factors in there.

"But, you know what, I was confident in Hendrick Motorsports, and I did see something in Jimmie that I thought could be special. I had no idea it was going to take off and do what it's done. But I sure am happy now, because I look pretty good saying, oh, yeah, absolutely, he's going to do all that."

Even Johnson still seems amazed at how it all unfolded. "I don't know what [Hendrick] and Jeff both saw in me back in 2000, as I was a mid-pack Busch driver," he said. "They saw it, offered me a job. Nobody else was calling offering me a job. I don't think I'd be where I am today without Jeff and Rick, what they've put on the line for me."

Gordon, as it turns out, put much more on the line than just his nascent reputation as a talent scout. His decision to pursue Johnson has quite clearly cost him championships, and a place in the NASCAR pantheon even more elevated than the one he currently enjoys. So go ahead, blame the guy. Jeff Gordon could have so easily kept quiet, could have ignored that red and white car running the perfect line around Darlington, and in the process further enhanced his own career.

But he didn't. And ultimately, Gordon's discovery of Jimmie Johnson may go down as his greatest contribution to his sport and his organization, regardless of how many titles he may -- or may not -- have won.

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer.