It’s been eight years since Jeff Gordon last won a road course race, but the series points leader is confident about his chances Sunday.
For five straight races, a Hendrick Motorsports driver has taken the checkered flag. And if that streak is to continue for another week, the team's best bet is Jeff Gordon.
After all, Gordon is NASCAR's all-time leader with nine road course wins. He has four at Watkins Glen and five at Sonoma Raceway, the site of Sunday's Save Mart/Toyota 350.
Gordon's teammates, Jimmie Johnson, Kasey Kahne and Dale Earnhardt Jr., have two combined road course wins. Johnson and Kahne each have won at Sonoma, and Earnhardt has never finished in the top-10 in 14 career starts on the Northern California track.
So what's Gordon's secret at navigating Sonoma, a 1.99-mile track featuring 12 distinct turns?
"Once you get the green flag here on Sunday, there are very few adjustments you can make," Gordon said. "So, it is really up to you to maintain the durability of the tires; they are really soft and fast in the beginning, but they are falling off quite a bit on the longer runs. So, wheel spin and trying not to lock-up front tires -- managing that.
"Here at Sonoma, you have to be very careful not to overdrive it of course as well."
Yet as good as he is at turning left and right, it's been since 2006 since Gordon last won on a road course. It's a drought the four-time Cup champion can't really explain.
Nevertheless, Gordon is confident about his prospects on Sunday, and with good reason. He enters the event leading the Sprint Cup standings, and it was Gordon's victory May 10 at Kansas Speedway that kicked off the run Hendrick is currently on.
"I think we have had one of the best starts to the season that I can remember possibly ever having," Gordon said. "When you are in the position that we are in we are happy with that, but at the same time we know we have to keep pushing hard and hard because we have Jimmie Johnson right there next to us with two more wins than us."
In part, the dominance Hendrick drivers have enjoyed recently is attributed to an engine that produces more horsepower than the competition. Brad Keselowski estimates Hendrick is a full season ahead in the development of its motors, an assertion Gordon disputes.
"I definitely saw some cars at Michigan last week that were not Hendrick, that didn't need to be complaining about their engines," Gordon said. "They were getting down the straightaway plenty good. We were beating them in the corner, though.
"All I know is that over the years when other teams are complaining about us, that's usually when things are going really well for us. It's like getting booed. When you're getting boos, that's usually a good sign. So, we're just going to focus on what we're doing and continue to try to maintain that high level of competition on the track."