DOVER, Del. -- It's a continent away from the California city he was born in, far removed from the Indiana town where he first became a racing star. But Dover International Speedway is very much a home track to Jeff Gordon, and with good reason given his 18-year connection to a company that has come to define the First State.

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Being involved with DuPont for all these years, I can't imagine working with anybody else from a primary sponsor standpoint.

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-- JEFF GORDON

This week's trip to Delaware began as so many others have for Gordon, who on Thursday was in Wilmington visiting with employees and customers of DuPont, the chemical company that's served as primary sponsor on his No. 24 car since his first Cup race at Atlanta in November 1992. Car owner Rick Hendrick sealed the deal by agreeing to use DuPont's automotive finishing products at his dealerships, and the result has blossomed into the longest-running active relationship between a driver, a team, and a sponsor in NASCAR.

It's reached the point where Gordon and DuPont have become somewhat synonymous, and nowhere is that more evident than in Delaware -- where DuPont's name is on the highway that runs in front of the Dover speedway, and roughly 8,000 residents work for the entity that locals once referred to simply as "the company." To many Gordon has become the public face of DuPont, and it's difficult to imagine him driving a race car with anything other than the company's familiar oval logo on the hood.

And yet, that very thing could be on the brink of occurring. The two-year extension that DuPont signed with Hendrick in 2008 -- and was announced at the Dover track -- runs out after this season, and the company's sponsorship plans for next year and beyond are uncertain. It's not exactly shocking, given that DuPont slashed thousands of jobs during the recession, and has scaled back some of its involvement on the No. 24 car to the point where the National Guard appeared as the vehicle's primary sponsor eight times last year. Gordon mentioned a few weeks ago that his team was in the mix to land Shell/Pennzoil, which wound up with Roger Penske. That had to be a wake-up call to anyone hoping to see the four-time champion in blue and red forever. (Continued)