On Saturday morning, next to the NASCAR transporter in the Sprint Cup Series garage, reporters gathered to honor #24-Jeff Gordon for his benevolence and accessibility to the media over his 24-year career. Organized by veteran writers Mike Hembree and Kenny Bruce, the informal ceremony included the presentation of a gift the reporters knew Gordon didn’t already have – a trophy from Kentucky Speedway, the only active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series track where Gordon has never won. Instead of “Winner” or “Champion,” the trophy was inscribed “Participant,” and Gordon appreciated the joke. The media originally wanted to honor Gordon at Homestead-Miami Speedway, but that was before Gordon won the Nov. 1 race at Martinsville and qualified for the Championship Round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. Gordon promised that, if he should win a fifth champion at Homestead, his emotional celebration at Martinsville would pale in comparison with the exultation he would feel at ending his career in the #24 Chevy as a champion. “Just like in Martinsville, I didn’t go into that race expecting us to win or think about what that was going to be like if we did win,” Gordon said. “But you saw the raw emotion of what that win meant to me. That’s nothing compared to what you’ll see in Homestead if we do that. I literally will be climbing the fences. I’ll be down with a bad back for the next week, but it will all be worth it.”(NASCAR Wire Service)(11-15-2015)
