THE MODERATOR: Thank you, and good afternoon, everyone. Welcome to this week’s NASCAR teleconference. It’s in advance of Sunday’s USG Sheetrock 400 at Chicagoland Speedway.
Quick note for the media that will be at Chicagoland, David Stremme will be the guest for Friday’s Nextel wake-up call media opportunity. That will be in the infield media center. 10:30 a. m. on Friday.
Have a great guest today, Jeff Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Dupont Chevrolet, our four-time Series Champion and the current points leader. He’s led the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series standings for the past 14 weeks. He’s the defending race champion at Chicagoland. Jeff’s been in the Top 10 for 37 weeks in a row, And that streak started at Chicagoland last season.
Before we get started today, maybe just want to say a couple of quick words for the media. NASCAR’s received a lot of words of condolences and support regarding the passing of Dr. Bruce Kennedy yesterday, husband of NASCAR Vice President Lesa France Kennedy. And those words of support and condolences from the media have been greatly appreciated.
And, Jeff, I think you want to mention a few words before we got started.
JEFF GORDON: Yeah, I certainly would. It is certainly hard to think about this weekend’s race without, you know, Bruce Kennedy. And it’s just a tragic, tragic loss. And I’m still in shock as, I’m sure, many are. And I just want to send, you know, from everyone at our race team and Hendrick Motorsports, certainly myself, send our thoughts and prayers out to the whole Kennedy family.
You know, Lesa and Ben, the whole France family, as well as the other families that were tragically affected by this accident, as well. And, you know, Bruce is just an amazing guy. I was fortunate to spend some time away from the track with him on several occasions, and just a quality person who is really going to be missed.
THE MODERATOR: Thanks, Jeff. And once again, thanks to the media for the support we’ve received.
Jeff, on to the Chicagoland event. Kind of jump started things last year, what are you anticipating as you guys go back there this year?
JEFF GORDON: I’m looking forward to it. You know, we’ve got basically, you know, without it being a C. O.T. race, we should have pretty solid notes and a set-up baseline that we can go from last year. And, you know, just try to move forward with things that we’ve learned this year to make the car even better. And I feel that we’ve made our car, and our whole team just better. So that’s got me really encouraged about this weekend.
Obviously, without having Crew Chief Steve LeTarte there, we’ll have our challenges. But our goals are to qualify better there than we did last time, and try to have a car that’s as good as that one was last year and have the same results on Sunday.
THE MODERATOR: All right, thanks, Jeff. We’re ready to go to questions for Jeff Gordon.
Q. Just want to say congratulations on your fatherhood.
JEFF GORDON: Thank you.
Q. One thing I wanted to ask you about, living in New York: Several weeks ago, kind of a paparazzi picture of Alex Rodriguez, sports figures as kind of the victim of paparazzi. What is your take on that? And do you think that some folks are crossing the line there?
JEFF GORDON: Yeah, I mean, I don’t live in New York, but I have an apartment here and spend, probably, a little less than half my time here and half in Charlotte. Obviously, I get to experience two totally different worlds from Charlotte to New York. And that’s kind of why I like spending some time here, because it is a nice escape in many ways where you can walk down the street and not get recognized. But, at the same time, you know, there’s, you know, more celebrities and entertainment industry people here as well as athletes.
You know, I think that when you are in the public eye, then you’re going to be, you know, wide open for criticism, for being under a microscope. And, you know, it’s very easy to get yourself in a situation where you feel like your privacy maybe has been lost.
But, you know, that’s what you give up when you have any kind of celebrity status. There are so many pros that come along with it and great opportunities, but at the same time, there are negative things that come along with it. And obviously, you have to be responsible and be responsible for your actions, and nobody’s perfect. And, you know, all we can all do is go out there and live the best that we possibly can, try to set good examples through our actions.
Q. How’s your relationship with the media changed or has it, over the years?
JEFF GORDON: You know, I have a great relationship with the media. I think, you know, like most young people that come into a sport, you know, they feel like they’re under a microscope, and, you know, you don’t always understand the relationship between the media and yourself. And as years go by, you understand that the media, they have a job to do, and their job is to tell a story. And also it’s a business, and they have to treat it as a business.
And it’s the same for us, you know, as race car drivers. We’re doing the best that we can to represent our sponsors, our fans, and go out there and win races and represent our team. And there is a balance there that works very well with the media to help those things.
But at the same time, sometimes we butt heads. And I try not to take those things personal. And hopefully, you know, if things aren’t always going smooth back the other way, hopefully, the media doesn’t take it personally either. We’re just out there trying to do our jobs.
Q. I wanted to get your reaction to Kyle Busch’s comment that you didn’t help him on the track and blew him off after the race at Daytona? Do you think it might be best if Kyle finds a new ride this year?
JEFF GORDON: No, not at all. I mean, I think he’s a great talent. I think that was a little bit of frustration from, you know, I think he had such a great car and a shot at winning that race. You know, I think that, you know, if he was driving my car he’d understand that I didn’t really have the opportunity to get down there and help him as easily as it may have looked.
My car just didn’t work good all night on the bottom groove. I had to stay up top. So there wasn’t really much I could do for him. And I will admit there were some times throughout the race where I felt like he could have helped me, I could have helped him, and that did not workout.
But I’m moving forward from that, and that happens all the time. Every time you’re at a restrictor plate race, whether it’s your teammates or other guys out there. And after the race I was doing an interview, he came by and kind of grabbed me on the shoulder and said, Good race, or something, and I gave him a thumb’s up. So I’m not exactly sure where that came from on the blowing him off.
But I’m obviously, a huge supporter of that 5 Team and what they’re doing. And you know, we’ve got a lot of things that are going to happen this year also moving forward. It’s only in our best interest to work together and make the best of the situation.
You know, I’ve just got to guess that the heat of the moment, that maybe Kyle said some things that maybe he wished he hadn’t. But yeah, I love racing with him, and I look forward to working with him the rest of the year as best I can.
Q. Are you getting any sleep with the new baby?
JEFF GORDON: Less, definitely, less. Actually, last night was the first night - we’ve had a baby nurse that’s kind of been helping us, teaching us some things. Which has been very nice to have an introduction into it all. But she wasn’t with us last night, so it was fun and exciting and also a huge learning curve to go through, you know, and having to do everything on our own.
So it was a great night. We were giving her a bath, and you know, changing diapers and burping and feeding and all of the normal things that we do. But we just didn’t have that, I guess, security blanket that’s been there for the last several days that we could bounce off of. But it went well, and definitely less sleep. I’m getting sleep when I go to the racetrack these days, not at home.
| 
|