Every NASCAR legend of their era fought the old guard to establish their stardom. But Jeff Gordon’s case was a little different. Not only was he fighting to dethrone the era of the mighty Dale Earnhardt, but he was also fighting against old NASCAR.

When Gordon arrived in the sport, he was this young, polarizing kid from California, all set to compete in a garage with a crazy fandom for its superstars like Dale Earnhardt, Rusty Wallace, Mark Martin, Bill Elliott, Terry Labonte, and Dale Jarrett.

And it didn't take long for him to realize how unfiltered the wrath of the fans was in the grandstands. Even when he was at his best.

“To have that much success that quickly against these legends of the sport, and then get introduced to what it was like... I never thought of it as me and Dale as rivals or me and Rusty as rivals. It was really our fans who were rivals,” Gordon said on his recent appearance on the Racin’ With The Boys podcast.

“So I'm feeling like I'm doing everything right. We're winning races, we're winning championships, and yet the boos kept getting louder and louder. I'm like, ‘Man, what did I do wrong here?’ It took me a while to embrace that or understand it,” he added.

Gordon’s rise collided with the time of NASCAR’s biggest names. As he began to beat the fan favorites, whether it was Earnhardt or Rusty Wallace, many traditional fans saw him as someone who was actually changing the sport and not just talented.

The hardcore fanbase wasn’t always ready to embrace that change, and Gordon became their new villain at the time.

And those who know the 90s NASCAR know that if they didn’t like you, the grandstands would really let you know clearly.

Interestingly, one piece of advice from his biggest rival became Gordon’s guiding light.

The Intimidator’s advice that restored Gordon’s faith

In the same podcast, Gordon narrated an incident from 1994, where he was shocked to see fans holding anti-Gordon signs and booing loudly at him during the pre-race driver introductions at Sonoma.

Perplexed, he questioned why that was the case. And the answer from the fans was: Earnhardt.

The fans were cheering for the Intimidator. Gordon narrated that he turned towards Earnhardt at the time and said, ‘Man, what's up with that?’

“And he's like, ‘Kid, long as they're making noise…’, and they're making a lot of noise. Whether it was good or bad, that always stuck with me.”

Eventually, that simple piece of advice changed Gordon's perspective of the sport forever. With time, he came to realize the boos weren't a sign of his failure but just proof that NASCAR fans couldn’t ignore him anymore.

Written by

Suyashdeep Sason

Edited by

Suyashdeep Sason