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NHRA: A Lifetime for Hendrick and Gordon

9 October 1999

Posted By Terry Callahan
Motorsports Editor, The Auto Channel

RICK HENDRICK announced Wednesday at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Charlotte NC that JEFF GORDON has signed a LIFETIME contract with Hendrick Motorsports, effective 1 January 2000 and will continue for the 'duration of Gordon's motorsports career. As far as is known, nothing of this scope has ever before been done in Winston Cup.

Gordon will continue as driver in the No.24 Dupont Chevrolet and as a business partner with the team for the future. He will become an equity partner in the Hendrick No.24 team, which will continue as part of the three-car Winston Cup operation fielded by Hendrick Motorsports. The agreement has been in the works for more than a year. Jeff Gordon, Inc., a company wholly owned by Gordon, will continue to manage the licensing activities of the No.24 team and would work in conjunction with Hendrick Motorsports in seeking out and negotiating future sponsor relations for the team.

Hendrick said he wished that (the now-departed) RAY EVERNHAM could have been there. He said they had parted friends and he's gong to help Evernham with the corporate structure of the new team. Hendrick said he wanted to help Ray. "He is a good friend. We've learned an awful lot together over the past six years. The true character of this organization is we can lose a guy like Ray and step it up and keep on going."

Among his plans, Hendrick said they plan to expand the current race shop, build a new race shop for No.24 including a R&D facility, and possibly build a wind tunnel, something which will be decided in the next month or so.

Hendrick is committed to General Motors and someday maybe run a Cadillac. "That would be sharp. I'm crazy enough to do that maybe."

Gordon has been racing NASCAR Winston Cup since 1992 and of those 217 races, Gordon has won 22%, more than any other driver in that time.

For "another of his good friends," TERRY LABONTE/No.5 Kellogg's Chevrolet, Hendrick is going to do a dealership together rather than a team. Hendrick's third driver is JERRY NADEAU who has signed on for the next four years in No.25 Chevrolet.

The 'lifetime' deals Hendrick has with Gordon and Labonte (his words) means no distractions regarding where they are going or if someone is going to try and grab them.

Hendrick said his other good news was that in 57 days he would be off the medicine he's been on for the past three years. His recent tests went well, and he's looking forward to spending more time at the track, something he acknowledged he hadn't been able to do as promised. Being at the track took its toll he said, especially the traffic in and out. He also said he would be going to his son's races. "I don't ever want to regret missing seeing him do things he likes to do," said Hendrick.

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