Gordon, Johnson to Face F1's Schumacher

FONTANA, Calif. September 4, 2004; Mike Harris writing for the AP reported that a race fan's dream matchup: NASCAR (news - web sites)'s Jeff Gordon vs. Formula One's Michael Schumacher. It will happen Dec. 4, with four-time series champion Gordon and seven-time champion Schumacher entered in the 2004 Race of Champions Nations Cup in Paris.

Gordon and Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson, who combined to win the Nations Cup in 2002 when it was held in the Canary Islands, will take part in the all-star event along with more top drivers from F1 and the World Rally Championship.

They will race on a special figure-eight style dirt-and-paved track inside Stade de France, a 70,000-seat soccer stadium in Paris. The drivers will compete in single-seater formula cars, Ferrari sports cars and World Rally Championship cars.

The opportunity to race against Schumacher excites Gordon.

"The fact that he's going to be there is great," Gordon said. "I had a chance to meet him earlier this year in Barcelona when Jimmie and I went to the F1 race there. He asked me when I was going to come to F1 and I said as soon as he retired.

"Michael brings a lot of interest to the event. This is definitely an opportunity to go over there and have some fun in a car that's different. The fact that he's over there and I get to go head-to-head against him is going to be awesome, win or lose. I would love to beat him, obviously, but I'm just excited to get to race him."

Gordon and Johnson will attend the NASCAR awards banquet in New York on Dec. 3, then fly all night on a private plane to arrive in Paris in time to race Saturday.

"We'll have to get all the sleep we can on the plane because we're going to have to go straight to the track when we arrive," Gordon said.