Tag Archives: Jeff Gordon

Rolex 24 At Daytona ‘Business Finished’ For Konica Minolta Cadillac DPi-V.R Team

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(L-R) Filiepe Albuquerque, Christian Fittipaldi, Joao Barbosa, Jordan Taylor, Ricky Tayor, Jeff Gordon , Max Angelelli, Marc Goosens, Rene Rast and Renger van der Zande stand on the winners’ podium after the Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway.
Photo – Getty Images

Post race audio from Wayne Taylor Racing drivers is on Fan4Racing NASCAR & Race Talk, Monday, January 30, 2017 at 8:35 pm ET. Call 929-477-1790 or tweet @Fan4RacingSite or @Sal_Sigala with any questions or comments during our LIVE broadcast.

Taylor Brothers, Angelelli, Gordon Finally Score Breakthrough Win                                After Trouble-Free Performances the Previous Four Years Come Up Short

The resounding theme for this year’s 55th Rolex 24 At Daytona for the No. 10 Konica Minolta Cadillac DPi.V.R team and its drivers Ricky and Jordan Taylor, Max “The Ax” Angelelli and Jeff Gordon, and especially for team owner Wayne Taylor, was “unfinished business.”

After the team turned in a trouble-free performance for the fifth consecutive year at this weekend’s renewal of the traditional IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season opener, the Taylor brothers, the veteran Italian Angelelli and four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Gordon were able to seal the deal this time, albeit by surviving a wild sprint to the finish Sunday, in scoring an emotional Rolex 24 victory in numerous respects. Call it “business finished.” Continue reading →

Newly Married Dale Earnhardt Jr. Eager to Start 2017 Season

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Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. poses for a photo during the NASCAR 2017 Media Tour at the Charlotte Convention Center on January 25, 2017 in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Photo – Jared C Tilton/Getty Images

Dale Earnhardt Jr. is in his happy place.

On New Year’s Eve, NASCAR’s most popular driver married long-time girlfriend Amy Reimann. The couple honeymooned on Maui and Kaua’i.

But neither of those Hawaiian Islands tugs on Earnhardt’s psyche the way Daytona Beach does, and at long last, in mid-February, he’ll be back on track at the Birthplace of Speed, racing a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series car for the first time since July 9 at Kentucky Speedway. Continue reading →

Jimmie Johnson has Flourished in an Evolving Environment

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Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver Jimmie Johnson poses for a photo during the NASCAR 2017 Media Tour at the Charlotte Convention Center on January 24, 2017 in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Photo – Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images

This isn’t the first time Jimmie Johnson will face an update in the competition model, but the driver of the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet isn’t vain enough to think NASCAR would try to “Jimmie-proof” its playoff formats just because he keeps winning championship.

In the aftermath of the Monday night announcement of a stage-based race format and revamped playoff points system in all three of NASCAR’s national series, Johnson was the first driver to face reporters on Tuesday at the Charlotte Convention Center on the NASCAR Media Tour hosted by Charlotte Motor Speedway. Continue reading →

NASCAR Hall of Fame Enshrines Distinguished Class of 2017

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CHARLOTTE, NC – JANUARY 20: The living members of the NASCAR Hall of Fame gather as a group at the conclusion of the 2017 Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at NASCAR Hall of Fame on January 20, 2017 in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Photo by Mike Comer/Getty Images

The enshrinement of three car owners of paramount importance to stock car racing, a driver who proved a prolific winner in NASCAR’s top-two series and a former Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion who would become one of the most beloved storytellers in the history of the sport highlighted Friday night’s induction of the Class of 2017 into the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

Not only did the emotional proceedings usher one of NASCAR’s first car owners, Raymond Parks, into the Hall. Also recognized were the ongoing accomplishments of two owners – Richard Childress and Rick Hendrick – whose efforts have helped to produce a pair of seven-time champions.

Friday night also brought the induction of driver Mark Martin, who won 40 races in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, another 49 in the NASCAR XFINITY Series and who finished second in the championship standings at NASCAR’s highest level no less than five times. Continue reading →

From Small Beginnings, Rick Hendrick Reached Pinnacle of Success in Business and NASCAR

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HOMESTEAD, FL – NOVEMBER 17: Jimmie Johnson (C), driver of the #48 Lowe’s/Kobalt Tools Chevrolet, poses with team owner Rick Hendrick (L) and crew chief Chad Knaus (R) in Champions Victory Lane with their six trophies after the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on November 17, 2013 in Homestead, Florida. Photo – Robert Laberge/Getty Images

It’s said reaching the top is the easy part; staying there is more difficult.

For Rick Hendrick, the climb up the mountain required a decade of hard work culminating in Hendrick Motorsports capturing its first NASCAR premier series championship in 1995.

Two decades later, Hendrick’s Chevrolet team remains stock car racing’s platinum standard: a record 12 NASCAR premier series titles – including Jimmie Johnson’s record-matching seventh crown in 2016 – and 245 victories with 16 different drivers.

“It just seems like yesterday we didn’t think we’d even make it through our first year (1984) and now we’ve won 12 of these things, and it’s hard to do,” said Hendrick following Johnson’s title-winning victory last November at Homestead-Miami Speedway in south Florida.

The 67-year-old Hendrick will reach yet another career milestone on Friday when he’s inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame (8 p.m. ET on NBCSN). The Class of 2017 includes fellow team owner Richard Childress, former Hendrick Motorsports drivers Mark Martin and Benny Parsons and pioneer car owner Raymond Parks. Continue reading →