Car: #24 Dupont Chevrolet
Drives for: Hendrick Motorsports
Crew chief: Steve Letarte
Born: August 4, 1971; Vallejo, CA
Teammates: Jimmie Johnson (48), Mark Martin (5), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (88)
Marital status: Married; Ingrid Vandebosch

Career highlights: Gordon is one of the most successful and popular drivers in NASCAR history, though he is also arguably the most hated driver in NASCAR history. Fans are sharply divided on Gordon; they either seem to love him or hate him.

He is a four-time Cup Series champion, and has 79 victories in his career, including three wins in the Daytona 500 and four wins at Indianapolis.

Gordon was married to Brooke Sealey, a former Miss Winston he’d met in Victory Lane at Daytona. The couple went through a messy public divorce, after Sealey’s lawyers subpoenaed closely guarded information from many of the NASCAR teams to attempt to figure out how much money Gordon made.

• Gordon began racing at age four after his stepfather, John Bickford, brought home go-karts one day for Gordon and his sister. He immediately proved himself to be a racing prodigy, and the family moved to Indiana so Gordon could pursue his racing career.

• In 1989, he was the USAC Midget Car Racing Rookie of the Year, and won the title the following year. In 1991, he moved up to the USAC Silver Crown and became the youngest driver to win the title, when he captured it at the age of 20

• In 1991, he moved up to the NASCAR Busch Series, where he competed for two years. Gordon made his Busch Series debut in 1990 and raced a full-time slate in '91, but Gordon's breakout year came in '92. He recorded his first victory in the season's fourth race at Atlanta. He finished the year with three victories, 10 top-fives, 15 top-10s and 11 poles to rank fourth in the final point standings.In 1992, he made his Winston Cup Series debut in the Hooters 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, which was also the final race for Richard Petty.

• In 1993, Gordon raced a full season in the Cup Series for Hendrick Motorsports, finishing 14th in the points and capturing Rookie of the Year.

• In 1994, he won his first race, the Coca Cola 600 in Charlotte, and then won the inaugural Brickyard 400 in his hometown of Indianapolis.

• In 1995, at age 24, Gordon won the first of his NASCAR Winston Cup Championships.

• In 1997, he won his second Cup Championship and, at age 25, became the youngest-ever winner of the Daytona 500.

• He repeated as Cup champion in 1998, and won the Daytona 500 again in 1999.

• In 2001, he won his fourth Cup Championship, putting him second to Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt for the most championships (they each have seven).Gordon won his fourth championship in 2001, beginning a four-year run of finishing in the top five in points. He became the first driver to eclipse $10 million in season earnings in 2001 and holds numerous other records, including all-time money won. He also has won consecutive races 20 times.

• In 2005, Gordon captured his third Daytona 500, but suffered a disappointing season, failing to make the Chase for the Championship and finishing the season in 11th place. With 10 races to go, Gordon’s longtime crew chief, Robbie Loomis, departed from the pit box and was replaced by Steve Letarte, who continued on as Gordon’s crew chief for the 2006 season.
  
  
• Gordons first win of the 2006 season came at Infineon Raceway where he climbed back into the points standings. He was eleventh coming from MIS, but went up to eighth following his victory. This was a very special weekend for Gordon because he announced his engagment to his longtime girlfriend, Ingrid Vandebosch, a month after he proposed. Going into the 2006 season Gordon has amassed 73 victories, 199 top-fives and 269 top-10s in 437 starts spanning 14 years.

• Jeff won 2 races the 2006 season. The first came at the Dodge/Save Mart 350 at the Infineon Raceway and the second came as a controversial win at Chicagoland Speedway in the USG Sheetrock 400 after an altercation late in the race with Matt Kenseth.

• In 2007 Jeff won 6 races and was leading the point standings entering the chase, however the team ended up a disapointing second to Jimmie Johnson for the championship.

• 2008 was a hard year for Jeff Gordon. He failed to win a race for the first time since his rookie season. He still managed to make the chase and finished 7th in the points, amassing four poles.