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 When
Richard Petty said good-bye at Atlanta in 1992, Jeff Gordon said hello, and he
hasn't stopped since. Gordon will receive his most recent honor Oct. 16, when he
takes his place in the Talladega/Texaco Walk of Fame, alongside Petty and other
legends. He is the youngest driver to be inducted into the Walk of Fame.Gordon didn't know at age 5 what the future had in store for him. His first championship was not a NASCAR Winston Cup, but a quarter-midget national championship in 1979. After Gordon got that first taste of victory there was no stopping him, and since then he has added three Winston Cup Championships to the list. In the DuPont Chevrolet, owned by Rick Hendrick, Gordon has won race after race, breaking records along the way. 
Among Gordon's first accomplishments in Winston Cup, are a pole position at
Charlotte's Mello Yello 500 during his rookie season, and his first career
victory in the Coca-Cola 600 in 1994 at Charlotte. It didn't take Gordon long to
start turning heads. During his rookie year, he nabbed the top slot in the
125-mile qualifying race for the Daytona 500, marking the first time that had
happened since 1963.Gordon's age plays a major role in his list of achievements. In 1995, he became the youngest NASCAR Winston Cup champion since 1950. Gordon also has the honor of being the youngest three time Winston Cup champion in history. But not all his awards are age related. Gordon's 13 victories in 1998 tied him with Richard Petty for most races won in a season. He is also the first 2-time winner of the Brickyard 400, and won an unparalleled fourth consecutive Southern 500. Gordon holds the honor of winning the highest single-season money total in NASCAR Winston Cup history, bringing home more than $9 million 1998. Skill has also played a part in Gordon's success. Gordon has proven he can win at most any track, as he has visited victory lane in all but three tracks on NASCAR's Winston Cup circuit. Gordon has already enjoyed a mountain of success, but there may be more to come.
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