Gordon, Jeff

Jeff Gordon (Jeffery Michael Gordon). 1971–, American auto racer, b. Vallejo, Calif. The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing's (NASCAR) Rookie of the Year in 1993, "The Kid" became the youngest winner of NASCAR's Winston Cup in 1995. He repeated his Winston Cup success in 1997, 1998, and 2001, and in 1998 also won 13 races, tying the record held by Richard Petty. He has more than 80 career Cup victories. Although his telegenic looks and easy embrace of the national media led many to tout him as representing a new era in what had been a traditionally regional sport, many long-time NASCAR fans found his seeming lack of grit unappealing.

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Publication information: Article title: Gordon, Jeff. Encyclopedia title: The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. © 2012 The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia © 2012, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. Used with the permission of Columbia University Press. All Rights Reserved. Publisher: The Columbia University Press. Place of publication: Not available. Publication year: 2013.

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