Gordon, the four-time series champ and only five-time victor of the Brickyard 400, will make his season debut just a short drive away from his boyhood home in Pittsboro, Indiana.
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Vehicle owner Rick HENDRICK said that “Gordon is a team Player” as he addressed reporters on Wednesday. So Gordon in the 88 vehicle for the next 2 races could get interesting because he will be racing against the man that took over the 24 this season, Chase Elliot and we will see how that plays out over the next 2 races.
Now, the difference between NASCAR and the Spurs in the above analogy is that Hendrick enters the vehicle in the races, and they can pretty much pick whatever drivers they want.
NASCAR weekend at IMS will begin on Friday morning, July 22, with the annual fan appreciation activity, Chevy Day at the Brickyard, leading into practice for the Sprint Cup Series and XFINITY Series cars.
The right team – most certainly Hendrick Motorsports, the organization Gordon was aligned with for the duration of his 23-year career – would be in need of a driver, and the ideal setting.
Hendrick said on Tuesday that Dale trusts Gordon to take his place in the upcoming races.
NASCAR fans in Indianapolis will see Jeff Gordon back behind the wheel Sunday for the “Crown Royal presents the Combat Wounded Coalition 400 at the Brickyard”. The driver said this week on his “The Dale Jr”.
“I miss everybody. I really appreciate all the support that I’ve gotten”, Earnhardt said on the podcast. He missed two races during the 2012 Chase because of a pair of concussions suffered in a six-race stretch, and sitting out those events immediately ended any title shot. The following week at Kentucky, Dale finished 13th, but not without suspecting he had a sinus infection or possibly the flu.
Three days before the New Hampshire race, Hendrick Motorsports announced he would sit out the race after experiencing concussion-like symptoms.
Last week, Alex Bowman was the replacement as Gordon was in France with his family.
Earnhardt, sidelineddue to concussion-like symptoms, saidhe’s suffering nausea and balance issues. I put my health and quality of life as a top priority, and I’ll always do that. “I hope we can get back at the track soon”.
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Gordon will be making his 798th and 799th NASCAR starts, and the first in cars not numbered 24. He has not competed since retiring after last year’s season finale and has spent this season primarily as a commentator on Fox Sports’ NASCAR coverage. This kind of thing can beat you down and get you sad, but I’ve got a lot of good people around me, a lot of people supporting me.
