Jeff Gordon Part 2

How about break dancer. He's from Vallejo, California, and he's a smurf d J smurf and he started dripping the call when he was like four years old. That's crazy. Um, when you're driving a car four years old, do you get diaper brakes? My mind is blown. I have no idea because you you know, he's tinkling on himself for four years you're driving. But I gotta have partty breaks. Yeah.

So hey, well Part two is pretty awesome. You love to hear Jeff Gordon go in depth about his career, eighty one pole positions and just what he's learned about himself as he's gotten older. Let's cut to with Jeff Gordon Part two. How long of your career did you observe this was maybe a sport that wasn't for everyone. Well, I can the very first second year I was in quarter midgets, there was a black family that that raced,

and but they were one of the few. I mean they were one of the very few, and so you knew that it was rare, right, It was really primarily there was a few female drivers out there, and there are a few, you know, black families that were out there, but but it was very rare. And that was in California, so it would probably have more in California that it than it happened in other areas. Um. But you know, I didn't think anything of it at the time because

you were always used to being around so many different cultures. Yeah, and so I was. And then I looked at it as as more female start trying, and I had. There was a girl that I raced, girl named Kara Hendrick, very talented race car driver from southern California. Unfortunately she was killed in a race car, but I thought she

was she was going to be the next Janet Guthrie. Um, your or real major female to to go a long way, and and it was such a huge loss because it didn't it wasn't just what her it was going to do, but how she was going to influence others. Um. But I looked even at at the female pool of drivers, and I said, the only way that we're going to find the best to excel at the top level is we've got to have more of them competing, just like I did and others did before me, start at a

young age. You know, you've got to get the experience, you've got to have the talent, and and you know, the only way you do that is to have a large pool. So we've got to have more people engaged in the sport of all different types of ethnicities and genders, and and that's the only way we're really going to have somebody get to the top level and actually be

able to, um, you know, excel at it. And um you know, I mean, I certainly hope that we can find better pass as you mentioned, to to do that at a young age, because right now, yeah, it's it's usually not happening. If it does happen, it happens when they're older. So what was the race called utuer? You go from California, Indiana, now you're here in Charlotte. What was that race culture from the Midwest West to now the South? Um? Yeah, you know the South was all

about stock cars, right. It was full fender stock car racing, and and that was new to me. I was an outsider when I came to North Carolina. People looked at me as an outsider, you know. And what do you mean an outsider? Because because because I'm from California. Number One, I was racing sprint cars, in opal wheel, dirt cars, not not anything that most of the guys are racing to excel at NASCAR. You know, you look at I

mean Dale Earnhard. I think he you started racing some kind of stock car and probably dirt tracks when you're sixteen seventeen years old. You got a later start in racing and and then was introduced right into stock car some kind of street stalk or some some kind of full fingered vehicle, where for me it was very early age open wheel racing and all, you know, just oval stuff. So um so yeah, there's no doubt there there was

a difference. But you have to understand, I looked at it as, man, do you mean to tell me I could race every day of the week in Indiana? You know, I could go to Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky and there was a race happening somewhere in California. They wouldn't even let me race. And then, and this is the one thing I was you were you were talking about racing a car at five and six years old. I'm gonna

tell you what. That was nothing compared to driving a full blown sprint car six hundred fifty horsepower at that That that one scared. Yeah, that scared the crap. I mean, this is when I actually looked back on this, especially when I as a parent, I'd say to my step down, like you were either crazy or you didn't care whether I died. Thank you. Look look where you are now.

It was nuts, man, it was nuts, but it worked because here I am today, you know, talking about this crazy journey that that that that was created because of those two significant moments. Getting introduced a quartermadge it's at a young age. Getting introduced that sprint car at third team. That's crazy. How did you deal with not? I mean, even as you talked about coming in from the West Coast. How did you deal with not being accepted early on

as as a driver? I just wanted to prove myself, you know, and and and I wanted I just wanted to fit in, right, I wanted to do everything I could. I I I probably didn't take advantage of my uniqueness at that time. He was in me and I and I had my own path, and but I wanted so badly to fit in because I wanted to be there. I wanted to race against them, and I wanted to do more of it, and I wanted to excel at it.

And I felt like the only way I could do that is is to you know, say the right things, do the right things, not get in trouble um, you know, and and go perform on the racetrack. And and yeah, it wasn't until I got more confidence that okay, I'm here, I'm established. Now, Now I can start to be more me and and shoot, that probably didn't happen until almost

till I retired, to be honest. And just because you know, you're representing sponsors, a fan base and you know a team of people, and and to me, I didn't want to rock the boat. I just wanted to uh, you know, put my head down to do my job and represent all those entities the best I could, because I wanted to keep doing it, and I was getting paid really well to do it, so I didn't want that to stop. I mean, you lay right into it. NASCAR's heavily depending

on sponsorships. And you know, obviously more than anyone at this table, you how much sponsorships, Like you said, how much sponsors play a role in your the food on the table, how you travel, just everything is depending on on sponsorships. Why has that always been the case? Like what? Why is? Why is NASCAR always heavily depending on basically other people in investing, sponsor driven other people investing and you doing a sport and a skill that you love

to do. And it's if you think, I mean you could you could isolate NASCAR or Formula one and and kind of have that story because you know that there there, that's the pinnacle, right that that's that's where the money is at. Every other form of racing is really hobby racing. Um, I shouldn't say everyone. I mean, there's there's guys making a living doing it, but the owners that provide the cars, if they don't have that sponsorship. They're just doing it

out of their pocket. And as I mentioned, it's not cheap, you know, and and and so it doesn't matter what level you're doing to that you're always and money does buy speed, you know, it's that that's you know term that we use. The more money that you can spend on either the best people, the best components in the car, maybe freshest component like like if if you can, if they would allow you to have the freshest engine and

in the latest greatest technology. I mean you're talking about titanium components, and you know it gets expensive, right, and it makes and you so you want more horse bier, you want you want more speed under the hood. But then you need more down force, more grip, new tires, new so the budget can just go through the roof.

So you're you're always dependent on on some kind of of income that goes beyond if you just took a race car, built the race car, and I'm talking about grassroots racing, right, you built a late model or a sprint car and you go to the racetrack and you just went off the winnings. You're not gonna make money. You're gonna you know, the winnings, the purse money that

you're competing for is not enough. Now if you get to NASCAR and Formula One, this this gets you know, deep into the business side of things because, um, you know, you've got a great TV contract for for racing, right, it's not great compared to NFL and being it is for the content it is great, and and it's you know, has great viewership, very you know, a very solid average viewership,

very loyal fan base. Um. And and so then you know you take that and and what's in the purse through the TV money to do it at the highest level, to win, you still don't make money. So you've got to have those sponsors and and you know you hope that you're given the sponsors enough value of what you're asking for or but you know, this day and age, with different media outlets, um, you know, companies are are are finding ways to spend their money in so many

different areas that that just isolating it. Now, live sports is still good, right, that's that's still a great way to advertise. So we still have solid sponsors. But you know, the sports got more expensive and and sports marketing and some of the money they're spending on on race cars has been kind of going down. That's why you see us have more sponsors. Used to be you know, stp was, Richard Petty, DuPont was was you you you are, Pepsi

Lows and Jimmy Johnson. Those days are you know, a few and far between now to to have one company that can do the full So does it take more work to keep multiple sponsors happy? Oh yeah, yeah, you gotta, you gotta, you know, you gotta do a lot um, you know, for them. But that's that's part of the deal.

I mean, ever since I came into racing, my understanding was the it took money to race, and and you either had somebody that had the money they wanted to spend, or they had a connection with the company, maybe a B two B type sponsor, or somebody just came in and um, you know, you're you're you're meeting people constantly and connecting and and saying, hey, would you like to I mean I can remember making phone calls it, you know, sixteen years old, Hey would you like to sponsor my

sprint car? To me? My parents couldn't afford to do all of it, but they could afford, you know, to introduce me to it. And along the way you meet people that want to help. They just like racing, maybe they like you whatever it is, and they're like, yeah. I would call people and he's like, I met you, you know, at this track, and you said you you'd be interested in maybe helping us South with every Yeah, what do you need? Well, we're trying to put this

program together and we need a new engine. What's that cost? Thirty thousand? Yeah, man, send me the bill. I'm like, he said, yes, you know, and You're like, wow, you know that's yeah, So well yeah, I mean you said that. So there's such a heavy business aspect of NASCAR. What were the factors if you, if we so may ask, what led you to move from four family to drive for the UM for Rick Hendrick and Chevrolet. Yeah. So when I came into NASCAR, my first opportunity was just random.

A guy that I I came across at a driving school was a NASCAR Buck Baker driving school in Rockingham, and and somehow they knew, you know, what my background was the racing I was doing, UM because the race I was doing at that time was these live races on ESPN, So I was I kind of had built up a name for myself in that in that world, but I was really wanting to get into NASCAR and stock cars um and and so he gave you know, he's like, hey man, you know you want to take

a few laps in my car. I'm doing this more just as a hobby for fun. I might do a couple of races. He's a busy. This guy wasn't a real pure racer. He just like cars and and so anyway, I got in there and and I went really fast, and so he's like, I realized when I saw you making those last maybe I shouldn't be in this thing. Maybe you should be. I was like, that sounds like a good idea. And so I would drove three races

for for him that year. Got named Hugh Connerdy and and we sat on the outside front row at Rocking him. In my second race, we qualified second, and all of a sudden, you know, phone start ringing back in Indiana when I got back from that race, and one of them was forward, and I said, hey, you know, we saw what you did at Rockingham. We'd like to talk

to you about an opportunity. And so they really did give me my first real opportunity, and and it was a great relationship, you know, Bill Davis and drove for Ford and Bill Davis for two years and the next Afinity back in the Bushground National Series, and so all of a sudden things were going really well, star winning races, star getting a lot of attention, and next thing I know, I'm getting offers from a few different owners, which I was flattered by, but but you know, I wanted to

stay loyal to build, and we started searching for sponsors and like it was okay, you've got Jack Rausch, and you've got Rick Hendrick and and you know, even kayle Yarborough had a team at the time and that was talking to me, and I started looking at their organizations

and they're already established. This team was trying to get from Vixfinity to cut It was a big mountain to climb and a lot of money to do it, and so you know, and just just kind of came to this place where Rick Hendrick made me, you know, like a real offer. I didn't have a contract with four past that year, but we're trying to make it work. And I just realized that, you know, this is this is a long road, and this is man, I get

to go right into the best stuff. So, you know, I wish I could say it was a harder decision than it was, because it was a pretty easy one, to be honest. So it wasn't hard at all. It wasn't It was hard after the decision was made because I got criticized and judged because everybody looked at me as a Ford guy, you know, Ford to Seviest polarized. I was with Ford for for a year and a half. You know, my whole career, I drove Chevrolet engine cars

and nondescriptive cars of of of a make. But NASCAR is a different deal man that and you get with that manufacturer and that that those fans are a lot of supposed to be brandy and but so you's the best decision I've ever made. So you were basically disliked because you switched to brand. Yeah, and it was from Callie any Young. Well you you know, honestly, you know

who makes me think. It makes me think about Kobe Bryant, seriously think about it, Like he got drafted really early, had success, first ever guard out of high school, like non traditional background, came from Italy, smoke Italian. I think about it like early on success that that ruffles people's feathers. So I definitely get the Kobe Bryant compared it. You know, I would say there there was a probably a five year period where just man, everything I did just turned

out good. Right, it's just the timing of who I've met, the car I got in, and then you don't track performances success bam bam, bam bam bam, and next thing I know, I went from you know, graduating high school to win in a Cup championship like three or four years later. Uh yeah, it was nuts. Yeah, all right, So let's let's switch gears. Let's we usually call this let's talk ball, but um no football, So let's let's talk gears. There you go, son in talking these gears.

We're gonna be okay with showing the lack of understanding. We haven't. And for the listeners that may be dumb questions, but there's never a dumb question. You gotta you gotta, you gotta school me and Smith. But there are some dumb questions. Yeah, they're really I just imagine imagine NASCAR one oh one and you're the professor. Okay, here we go. I'll try. I'm not a professor, but I told you how that I was in school for us. You are opppe since ye did you have a routine while driving?

If so, what was that routine? Yeah? I mean I think a routine is so important, but we're talking about driving a car though, well, I'm probably talking about routine of prepping in the car. That's what I Yeah, see, that's what I wanted to know. Yeah, I mean to me, and you have to understand and and I'm ignorant to to you know what your day would have looked like on on game day, but on race day it's you.

You're with sponsors and fans, and you know, you're interacting with all these different people from the time you get

up in the morning on race day. That's just part of it, man, I mean it's I would be well, I mean, I don't know if it was hours, but you're you would go to three to four different hospitalities, suites or or you know, at the at the race haller meeting five ten people that were somehow connected to one of the sponsors on your so you every morning that so so at first, it was like, man, I can't believe I got to do all this stuff before I go get in the race car, but then becomes

part of your routine. You just got to get into the mental place of I'm gonna talk to these people, but like i'm talking, they're talking through me. Whatever it was, I mean, it was hard for it to actually penetrate because I'm thinking, okay, but what you gotta do. What that car is gonna feel like, you know, turn one? Okay, we made these adjustments from practice. So the whole time I'm thinking about that, but I'm interacting and I'm putting on a smile and I'm shaking hands and taking that

takes skill by itself. It took it took a long time to really get comfortable with with doing that. And then and then you go to what they call the you know, the driver's meeting, which is basically a bunch of sponsors and your dignitaries or whatever that are there. You're really not they're learning. It's not like they're saying, hey, here's how you're gonna drive the race today. I mean, you already had that out all figured out, so we

kind of figuring race. You know, where the clutches. But it was a big left turn But but what I what really became part of my routine later was was would from that moment, from the time you finally got away from all of the distractions, was I would I would go do a warm up just you know. And this is more. When I got older, my body started failing on me in my back issues and things like that.

But just I get on a bike, I'd warm up, do a few stretches, exercises, have somebody you know, kind of pushed me a little bit, and and then I would go get into my ratio form. But it was left leg, right leg, left sock right, superstitious, you know. I mean you could look at it that way. I think you could look at it that way. I didn't look at that way. But I'm gonna tell you what right now, if I have somebody, like if my crew chief walked in, he's like, hey man, what about I'd

put my hang on one second back. So I did not want to mess up the routine. You know. I wasn't about like lucky pennies and like a baseball player almost. I mean some like like eat like like eat all

your fries. No matter what if you were like if you were a former picture like like backstage Joe backstage is a former picture who they knew he would eat fries and it would do various things with those figs. He still hadn't had it because you know, you know, had more to do than his actual velocity of arm strength.

It was of course skill, no, no skill. And now he has so much you know, like post draumatic that it carries over and like we can't we have to have certain meetings and we have to have certain post games, and because the backstage, so that so that that became a place for me to just kind of get relaxed. So that routine, in that superstitition actually was a time for you to kind of reset to it. Okay, we're done with the sponsorships. Now we're in race mode. You

still gotta gout and driver. Yeah, but I'm just saying that after driving introductions, it's the best thing that would happen was and my wife would even tell you, like when her and my kids were there, because you know NASCAR, that's a cool thing about Nascars. You get to interact with him right right until the time you get in the car. It's cool, and it's not cool because you know you're you are in this game mode. Yeah, man, I'm I'm wound up. Whether the day before went good

or whatever our situation is. I could not wait to get in that car. I mean like, like it could be a hundred degrees outside. I'm sweating my butt off, but I'm like, get me in the car because i just want to get in there and get the helmet on, get strapped in and just truly get into that place.

And and that was if I miss anything now that I'm not racing, it's those moments like you get in there and the anticipation of getting the green flag and going racing and competing against uh, you know, some of the best out there. That and and with a great team and the great car that was. That was a cool thing to experience. We have to take a break and we gotta pay some bills that I love cut to It and I love it even more when you download us and subscribe, and you can follow us on

social media too, Smithie where where at that's at? Cut to It on Instagram? What about Twitter? At cut to It? Facebook? Cut to It featuring Steve Smith singr. What about online? And you can follow us at cut to It podcast dot com where you can buy merch and you can subscribe to us wherever you listen to podcasts. I got all my answers questions. Um, yeah, I got all my questions answered. That's what I'm here for, a brother cut

to a podcast dot com. I've always wanted to ask a guy, especially because I know you've had some rivals. Now I've watched you drivers sometimes y'all hold me back, hold me back, man. I see you guys go after it. But I gotta ask you too, though, Like, have you like gotten to that fight modem? And then you you forget to unbuckle, I'm gonna I'm on my seat belt or you still got the harness. Harness We get made

fun of because we leave our helmets on. Like you get out of the car so fast that if you got to get in a fight, you gotta take your helmet off. It's like, yeah, I probably should, but I mean a one time I did, I flipped over. H car was upside down, and especially in a stock car win it's upside down. Do you have an oil tank behind you and and there's hot oil pouring out that thing, and you're going, I need to get hell out of here, and and so you're laying upside down and you're like, Okay,

I know I shouldn't be taking my belts up. I really want to get out of I bet I can get out of here. And you do it. Bad mistake because as soon as you unbuckled, you go, you go straight to the roof your whole body. You don't wait, and the belts have enough straps and things where usually it's gonna catch on something. So now not only are you hanging, but you can't get undone. And oh it's scary, you know, it's it's like God, that wasn't very smart,

and so I tipped over. Um it was a slow roll at Dayton, wasn't a bad accent, but it did go upside down. But I ended up upside down and so undid the belts. I was like, that was stupid. They finally got the car right side up and I got the belts off of me, but I've taken my gloves off and that was the really big mistake because as I climbed out, I didn't realize the sheet metal had been all torn up and it just sliced my fing So I get out of the car and they're like,

oh blood. You know immediately they're calling, you know, people over. I'm like, no, no, no, it's just my finger, man. I just I just cut my finger. It's not a kind of great thing. It was embarrassing, but it's like, oh yeah, leave the gloves on. So what does what does uh a NASCAR rival mean to Jeff Gordon? Um, well, it's funny. It means something different to me now right now that I do TV, man, we need rivals. Yes,

it's like I totally when I was in it. When I was you know, like I had arrival with Dale Earnhardt and and he played it up good. I mean he he was a master of that, and me, I was just like, I don't want to have anything to do with that. I just I just want to go out and do my job. I don't want to get distracted. He's just trying to mess with me and getting my head, get an advantage or you know, the media is gonna gonna take something and then I'm gonna have to answer

those questions and deal. I don't want to do that. I just want to race. And I probably I wish I would have played into a little bit more because I realized, you know that the fans what they love so much is like you mentioned earlier, they love to love somebody, that love to hate somebody, and they love it when there's a rivalry. It just it just builds more interest and gives people way more. The personal aspect of it, the human aspect of it, is sometimes more

entertaining than the actual race. And we had, I mean we had to fight this past weekend on on Saturday, not in the Sunday race. Saturday race, man that's always showed on Sunday. Was these two guys swinging, going at it. Anything they swing, the questions wasn't intentionally amiss? You know, I mean, you you connect to somebody, you getting suspend your you know, you get you probably won't be the

next the next week. Yeah, if if they see you make make contact by throwing a fist, you're you're gonna you can you can wreck a guy like I've done. Unfortunately. Uh, you can do a lot of things, but man, you can't swing and hit again. So what about would you get to spend it for open palm slap since you can't, Since you can't punch, that's a good smart that's a smart way to get around. And you still keep the helmet on like you can still smack somebody hard enough

and then well there's like a right slapping competitions. But you can shove and you can talk smack, but I don't think you could hit him in any No, open, open palm is disrespectful. Of course you'd say that. Dudes in the locker room, you know, you backhand somebody in the locker room, it's intentionally disrespect you in the locker room. In the locker room, you can do all you want. So is it fighting in all? Well, you gotta understand

the locker room. That's that's usually just like the locker room to us would be like at the airport getting ready to leave. They don't really have a locker room. Yeah, it's it's you know, you eat have your own individual trailer. But if somebody walked up into your trailer and punch you, are you that's that's so I want to revisit you backhanding people in your locker Why would you backhand somebody?

I mean, you're getting you're getting a little tussle with someone and um, not gonna punch because if first of all, if I'm punching, then as you know, we're really into it. But open for me why I was right, open palm is all disrespectful, but a backhand and that's like some old school like backhand. And so you wanted to show your disrespect, but you don't want to actually get into a real No. Let me see. This is where you explain you're missing. If I back hand you, I'm going

back handed, right. So what comes next is when I back here, you're gonna come back, and that's what you're gonna catch that two piece. This is how you orchestrate nasal fights. Everybody, did he just back hand you? Yes? I did? Is that like a player? And then here's the problem. When he realizes he our back hand, he's gonna say he hit me, like oh, and then he's going to approach and then it's on. Then it goes very quickly. Yeah, I'm this is this is smoke one

on one. First of all, if I back here, I have no respect for you, clearly clearly No, I mean I don't really think that's a respectable type. If your back hand someone, you respect the hell out of him. I've that's good point. I never thought of it that way. I never once thought it was like a warm greeting some man. I might just be mad at him. It doesn't mean I disrespect him. But if I backhand you anytime you're about to fight somebody and an open palm

is done, it's not gonna go. Well. So all right, um, so we've digressed, but um, I really want to talk about, which I think is really cool. You've had poles, which is unbelievable. Um, what what's the key to getting a pole? And when is the pole captured? Again? I know some of this stuff, but then I'm kind of like, I get I get the opportunity to talk to you, great, and you are you have done and doing commentary analysts work, but you also know exactly what these individuals are trying

to accomplish. Yeah, well, first let's established there's no actual physical polly. We may even start from the beginning. Someone may not even know what the what it so and and I think pole position goes back to like horse racing, where where there's like, you know, the pole is the other side some other um jobs that require I appreciate you clarified. You said like that goes back to I was like, yeah, okay, okay, cool. Well I think it may all come full circle in some forms, but I

see what you did. I see what you did. Is it that very thorough bread is? But h But but winning the pole position or being the fastest qualifier, Um, yeah, I think obviously you know. The need thing about racing is it's a team sport. But but it's it's machine. The machine is the athlete is the way I look at it, right, Like like people debate whether race car

drivers are athletes. And and don't get me wrong, you gotta be in in in very good physical shape, a different type of shape than to say, like you had to be for for football, But you gotta be in good shape. But the race car, that's what I want to be the thorough bread. I want that race car, you know, to have just a little more down force, a little less drag, a little more horror power, just a little more grip than anybody else out there. Now, if if you know, if all things were equal, which

they're not, I'm sorry, it's just not the case. It's just racing one oh one, the way it's been forever. Somebody is going to engineer something to make one car a little bit better than the next. And NASCAR does an excellent job at at at trying to create parody and all the different ways that they measure the car and and and you know, inspect the car, great job, but still there's always going to be a way to

try to get around that. And so you know, on that day where you go to qualify, it's it's that machine and it's you, and you're just pushing it to the absolute limit of what that car is capable of doing. And you know, if you do it right, then you're gonna be the fastest one and you're gonna win the pole position. And and if you if you mess it up, you're either gonna say, Okay, I didn't get all of it or the car wasn't capable of more than I got. And so I would you know, I I like to qualify.

I love being out there on that single lap just pushing it. I was I was always known to be a driver that drove, you know what we say, deep into the corner. So there's a lift point that every race track is not Daytona or Talladega, but on all the other tracks is this lift point of where you

get in there. You might use break not use break, depend on the track and corner size and everything, and you just want to carry as much speed in there, but you really want to get back to the throttle and carry all the speed through the center and all back onto the next straight away. So you know, I love that challenge, man, I mean I just did. To me, that's that's the purity of being a race car driver. So why why is the pole position so important? Well

because a couple of things. One is, it gives you the starting position to lead the field. You should be able to lead the field, um you know your side by side, so there's a chance that you might not, but gives you the best opportunity. Plus it allows you to get a better pit stall, so so where your picker is going to do their work. If you're the pole position, if you're you know, if you're number one on the grid, you get to pick where you want to be first. So it gives it has an advantage

throughout the entire race. And as as soon as I ask was all about is what tiny advantage can you get every single time? My starting position? Where my where my pit is? The modifications you make on your car is Nascar is almost like a game of interest. And and you know, we talked about clean air in racing and what that means is if you're the first car. All the air that's seeing your car. You know, it's there's nothing disrupting, it's seeing your car first. Okay, so

it's attaching itself giving you the best performance. As soon as you're the next one back. That air is doing all this. It's just dancing all of the place. Yeah. So it's like getting in a jet wash of an airplane and and you know they're just it's not going to attach itself to your car. And so you are already at a disadvantage. Now if you're five ten cars back home like you got nothing. You got no air

getting to your car. Um. Just random now just made me think, do you believe NASCAR will transform talking about clean their act, talking my climate change? Just my thoughts when you said that, do you believe NASCAR would transform itself into electric vehicle racing? One day? They'll have to? I mean, you know, you know, I think NASCAR plans to be around for a long time. A lot of the race teams planning to be around for a long time. And you see where the future is going in in automobiles. Um,

so it's happen. It's happening now. Um you know is it electric? Is it is it. It's just charge though, just something something that is even a supercharge station. With asking something that's more sustainable though, But and no I wasn't. I wasn't asking like higher level. I was asking bare bones. Yeah, you believe, well, elect your cars because a lot of what we do is driven by the O, E. M. S. Right.

And so if they're oh that, I said, yeah, but I really like basically the manufacturer of the vehicle, so so Chevallet and Ford and Toyota, um or any other manufacturer that wants to come to NASCAR. If they say, listen, electric vehicles is our future. That's what we're gonna be building. We need to find a path to introduce that to NASCAR, then it's gonna happen. You know. I I think there's already discussions about it. But I think that what you're

gonna see is similar to what we've seen in Formula One. Yeah. Now there's an all electric Formula Series out there right now, and what they do is they swap cars. It's crazy. So they start in one car and run that thing to the batteries out, come in and get into another car. And then now I heard that this year they're gonna have one car with one battery, but it's all about

managing the power throughout the whole race. So like you might say, hey, right now, I'm gonna use of my battery to pass these two cars ahead of me, but then I'm going to have less later and right now I'm just talking about the one car. But yeah, this series, it's called Formulaly. When they started, you had two cars because they couldn't run long enough because it took so much because you speed exactly, I have electric car, So that's why I was asking, Yeah, so what, But what's

gonna happen? I think what we've seen in Formula one is they introduce electric motor just for boost, right, just for extra power, just to help the car accelerate off the corner. And now you're starting to see Ferraris and other cars that have purce. Ferrari has this in it that makes the car actually perform better. So you take a gas powered engine and the electric power. I think

that's what you're gonna see NASCAR do initially. Whenever that time comes, they'll probably just have some kind of electric motor and it might be a boost to pass right too that you get to use. So much of it throughout the race. Maybe it regeneralizes the extra you earn it like yeah, oh yeah, yeah not fan vote, or or you're like, hey, you gotta win two replays. Yeah,

I mean there there's some of that. So I think it's gonna now I will tell you this, if we ever go all electric, the thing I'm gonna push the hardest for is that it's got to make some kind of sound, right Like, like I don't want to hear the hissing and whistling of of the drive train or the electric motor winding up. Uh. There's there's technology out there right now for electric vehicles, um, you know that make their own amplified sound. Just make it sound cool

whatever it is. You know, if Chevrolet or Ford or Toyota says, okay we're going on electric, no problem. But man, give me some cool sounding thing that that when that car goes by, I'm like, I'm not gonna say that's a v A. I'm gonna say that's a kick ass sounding car. It just happens to be electric. I think it's about that time, just so I'll take a little breather, do it good doing. It's getting down to do it good, Hey, Gerard,

Why did you get that T shirt? Oh? Yes, I got it from cut to a podcast dot com where we have exclusive merchandise shout out to our guys at seven or four shot. But yeah, you can go on, buy you a T shirt, subscribe to us wherever you listen to podcasts. In you found you found it the Jeff Gordon Children's Foundation. Why was that important for you

to do? You had you already had so much, so many things going on, raising a family, traveling around the world, racing, and to try to, you know, establish a foundation, Um take take us through that? Why was that important for you? I mean, I think at that time of my life, I was I always go back, you know, to to the beginning and who my parents are when they taught me, and my parents always loved helping other people, didn't or what was going on in our lives. Somebody needed help,

boom they were. They were there to lend a helping hand or do what they could for them, And so I think I kind of go back to that. But I you know, I looked at my own career, my success, and I said, you know, there's got to be more than just collecting trophies and winning races, uh and and what what can I do uh to to get back? And along the way, one of my crew chiefs Ray Evernham,

and his son was diagnosed with leukemia. So I had never I didn't know a lot about uh pediatric cancer and and you know how it affected children families until that happened and when it hit close to home then and I had met a lot of kids to Make a Wish, and so I think, you know, the combination of meeting kids from Make a Wish, what Ray had gone through with his son, Um, you know, I wanted to do something that I thought I could get back, and because I met so many kids that had this,

I realized there's a real need out there. So so I wanted to do things for pediatric cancer. So that that's where it all started. Are you guys are an amazing job being able to work on somebody's foundation. Um, you know, we've definitely have paid attention and you guys do just an incredible and impactful work. So it definitely hats off to you, and we definitely see that from before.

But then just being here within the Charlotte community, greater Greater North Carolina, South Carolina community, you have an incredible impact on a lot of people. I appreciate. I'm really proud of what we've done. I thought when I retired, you know, that that would be something that, um, I could spend more time with. But also I didn't know what the future would hold for it, you know, not not being in the race car, being able to promote it wasn't you know, not making the kind of money

I was driving. And uh yet it's just continued to rise and take off. So uh, I've always had great people surrounding me on a race team, and I've got great people on our foundation team, and and they they they've they've just surpassed anything I could have ever hoped for. Thank you. Our last segment is called Deep three, and basically, these are three questions that takes us to a deeper level outside of who you are as a race car driver, as an analyst, and all the different hats that you wear.

We want to know about you. I get my deeper. I mean, we opened this thing up with some antastro DJ skills. So some medi go ahead and ask them the first one. You've done a ton of interviews now doing uh your TV work, what is something you've never been asked in an interview about yourself that you know it gets overlooked. I mean I did a I did a book when I uh in my final year in retirement,

so I got I feel like I got everything. Um. You know, I think most people probably stay away from you know, my my biological father and that that side of my my my life and upbringing, um and and really don't dive very deep into the Valleos stuff either. You know of of what that was like, but I don't know. I feel like we kind of touched on on some of that. So God, you know, when you've been doing this as long as I have, I feel like I've been asked everything. I can't think of anything

I haven't been asked. I'm not uh yeah that that that that one might might keep me speechless. I'm not sure you've mentioned NASCAR has diehard fans. How did your relationship to your fans changed from the beginning of your career not to the end. Yeah, I think it's gone through a wave of interactions because I think it was. It started out as and and and you you brought this up early on when we started this about I started getting cheers, you know, new guy on on the

track and and all you know, he's doing good. Oh you know, I might have a new guy to cheer for, or maybe they like the way my car looked whatever it was. And I was like, I'm starting to hear some cheers. That's awesome, that feels good. And then I started winning more and I was racing with Dale Earnhardt Sr. Right became rivalries, and all of a sudden, those those cheers quickly turned into booze that we're definitely louder than than the cheers. And so then I was at this

place where I was like, I don't like them. You know, I don't like them for you know, why why do they not? They don't even know me, And so then then you know, you get experienced with it and you go, Okay. I realized that has nothing to do with me personally. It's it's what they're passionate about, and I respect that. And so I think I went through and also with my own fans, I went through this place of you know, hey, don't bother me while I'm eating, don't bother me in

the bathroom. Don't you know, like give me my personal time. If I'm with my family, you should know not but but I'm actually, you know, I think now that I'm removed from it and not in it is entrenched from a race car driver standpoint. Now, I'm like, man, anybody that followed me, fan of mine, that that that wants to to you know, get that picture. I'm all for it. And okay, there's still limits. But but but I just I think I have a greater respect and appreciation for

their giddiness there. You know, their their excitement or or you know that you know, take I don't know if if I've ever been that big of a fan of anybody's or or any one thing to fully relate, but I do know that some of the times I've met some cool people, I was like, you know, okay, I'm I might. I might at this moment, go this is my one opportunity. I'm going to take advantage of it.

I've done that before, and and so I get it now, you know, And and so I think I've just the things kind of come full certain from Oh man, I love this too. Oh man. I I don't know if I like all this and and then then didn't think I like the ones that were against me. Now I'm like, man, the more the merrier, make all the noise, like I love now seeing fans. We we had a kid on TV that this past weekend had a big sign Sam.

You know, I hope anybody wins, but but Kyle Busch, you know, and and uh, you know, Kyle Busch kind of gets gets some heat for some of that set. But man, people are listening, people watching what he's doing, and I think it's about embracing it. That's the That's the one thing you know, I was I was always afraid of, Okay, what are people gonna think? Or how

is this going to affect our sponsors, our career. I wish that you could just go out there and NASCAR, no sponsors, number on the car, your team, your race car, and just go race and be you, like completely be you. That would be that would be one entertaining form of racing. But uh, you know, I think we're we're all sort of held to some some sort of of of standard that we've got to got to live up to to keep us in check or might get out of control.

So that that leads me to the final question here and Jeff Gordon of Today, if you go back in time and talk to Jeff Gordon, years old, what would you tell oh my gosh, well, would I be able to tell him how how much, how good things are gonna go? Yeah? Um, you know, I think that it's crazy.

I'm almost fifty now and and I feel like, you know, I'm still learning things about me that that it's so cool to be in that place where you're just like, you know what, I've lived a great life and I'm very comfortable with who I am, and I'm sure that will even get greater as I as I go along. I I wish that even though I had a lot of confidence on the race track, off the racetrack, you know, you have those insecurities, you have those those things where

you're just not so sure. And I see now, um, you know, just being able to to to what I see people relating to the most is people that are just genuinely being them and not holding back. And I always always just held back a little bit. Was it because I was from California? Was it because I raced

open Wheel? Was it you know, the type of sponsors that had I'm not sure, but I always held back, always held back just a little bit, um not necessarily on the track, but but off the track, and Uh, you know, I don't haven't many regrets, but but you know, I would probably just would have wanted people to to see a little more of me along the way media, friends, fans, because you know, at home, I mean they get to

see that. But you know, just wasn't always there when I was when I was racing or at the track that when I came to NASCAR a lot and again this is just people not really even knowing me, just assumed that I got handed everything on a on a silver platter and that I had the easy street. And don't get me wrong, I mean it went well, but I had to work my ass off, you know, and and a lot of things you lined up, but I

felt like I had to earn it. Maybe I didn't have to earn it like Earnhardt had to earn it, but but I had to do it in my own way. But in your own way is but it lined up based off the fruits of your labor, like it lined up because you you raced and met someone, they gave you their number. Then after your race or a couple of days or weeks later, you had to keep that piece of paper. Then you had to call them. They had to pick it up and then you had to speak.

They had to accept it like it's not you were given everything. You had to do it. You have some you have some some sweat equity into it. And the thing I can relate, you know, with you about it is that there were certain people out there and that it didn't matter what I said, what I could sit there and have an hour long conversation show with them and they were gonna walk away with that going. Yeah, Jeff Gordon, he you know, he had it easy, or or you know, man, he got so lucky. They were

going to judge. And so you know, I learned along the way. Okay, I gotta stopped trying to convince everybody of of how I got here, why, and just go do do my thing. And you know, luckily that that thing worked out pretty good. The mistake, the mistake I made, was I would I knew the reporters and what they wanted. I knew some reporters had a preconceived notion of me, So I gave them the lazy cursing smithy, you gave me exactly what there. I gave him exactly what they wanted.

Because if I spent an hour with them and then after that hour. A couple of days later, the article was written. I was the son of a like I gave. I gave them so much of who I am and they took that and just wrote this. And I kind of like, it doesn't matter what I say, Like everybody always says that, like Steve had a chip on their shoulder if I break down. When I was in college. Coming out of college, I broke my C four vertebrate. I went to the University of Utah. It was not

considered a good school. I was five nine. A guy drafted by the New York Jets from the University of Miami named Santana Moss was drafted in the first round. Had the same height as me, but he wasn't too small. H And the reason I'm saying that is obviously I'm not jealous at Santana Moss, but I'm when you compare,

it's like, well, he's an apple. I'm an apple right now. Yeah, he maybe he's from Florida, so his apple maybe tastes weeder, but he's still an apple, right He had a better product he was, you know, honey, Cris, I was an apples. I can still be used to press with your knowledge of apples, right, and so I always felt this like I didn't have a chip. It was I never got a I never got the benefit of the doubt. Like

I broke my neck in college. You know why they infused my neck because I was told if you got your neck fused, you automatically were not a draft eligible. Fourth round draft pick Chris Winky, he broke his neck in Florida State one Heisman. You know what they did. They fused his neck. He actually signed two days before listen this. He signed two days before training camp as a fourth round draft pick and got more signing bonus

money than me. Well All and Steve All, I can tell I don't know a lot about sent Tony Moss. I know the name, but I've watched a lot more uh you know, Panther games than than then. I watched whatever team he played for, And what I saw in the field was a guy that was just a fighter, man like like you, just digging, just getting after every

single play. And maybe it was exactly that meant. You know what I like about my side of view and you, right, is that now as I've gotten to know you better, especially sitting down here, is all those things that happened in your life, like that was in you on that field right, that that was making you do things that were pretty extraordinary and and it might have been something you were you're battling with, you know, emotionally and internally, but I think there were a lot of positives that

came out on how you played the game. I'll be honest, just after talking to you, I'm like, you know, we've been here twenty years. We met each other here and there, but man, never really I've met one or two other drivers, And I'll be honest, I I just don't see and identify and kind of see the relationship just because there's just two different sports. You Also, I felt like at times I'm getting that best version of them. And when I get the best version, I'm like, man, I'm still

figuring out my version of me. So uh man, after hearing you talk and just man, it's like, man, I love the you know, grab a bite to him, to grab a bite with you, just kind of chomp it up and talking and here the more parts of Jeff Gordon that that makes you you. I appreciate Listen. I love opportunities like this that you've given me to to kind of pull back the layers and open up a little bit more and and hit me with some different things that you know, I don't normally get hit up with.

So that's cool and uh and just mad respect to you know. Definitely I love being able to sit down and hear other people's journey. Yeah, so we gotta we gotta get that bite if IF, IF I'm coming is probably gonna be mixed with some kind of a beverage. I feel you, but but I would love I'd love to uh listen to hear more about your journey. We're gonna do something different. I'm Steve Smith Singer, I'm a Little John, and I'm Jeff Gordon and this is cut

to It. You are a unique person. You are well worth it, you are competent and most of all, your lovable. Cut to It with Steve Smith Senior. That Is Me is a production of Cut to It LLC, Baltoe Creative Media, The Black Effect, and I Heart Radio. For more podcast from I Heart Radio, visit the I Heart Radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows

from Cut to It. Executive producer Steve Smith, Singer, co host Gerard Little John, Talent and booking manager Joe Fusci, Social media team Wesley Robinson and John Show from Balto Creative Media. Cut To It is produced by Brian Baltaschevic and Meredith Carter, with production assistance by Alex Lebrec. Production Coordinator Taylor Robinson. Theme music by Alex Johnson, lyrics and vocals by Anthony Hamilton. You ain't heard about it, then we're about to let you know. It's all