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ONLY ONE REMAINS FOR
TEAM DUPONT |
HOMESTEAD, Fla. (November 17, 2009) -
Indianapolis, California and
Kansas were done in their first attempt. Michigan, Phoenix and Texas are
the three that took more than 10. Now, only Homestead-Miami Speedway
remains to be conquered by Jeff Gordon and Team DuPont, and they are looking to
do so in the Ford 400 on Sunday in their 11th start at the 1.5-mile track.
"A win in this race would be huge for us," said Gordon,
who has five top-fives and eight top-10's in 10 starts at the Florida track.
"This is the last race of the season, and a win gives you confidence and
bragging rights over the offseason.
"And we've never won here before."
Since their arrival full time in NASCAR's top division
in 1993, Gordon and the No. 24 team have adapted quickly to the varying tracks
that comprise the championship. It has taken an average of only 6.4 starts per
track for Gordon and Team DuPont to capture wins on 21 of the 22 tracks
currently on the NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule. In addition to those tracks, Gordon
also won at North Carolina Motor Speedway in Rockingham, N.C. in his fifth
attempt and at North Wilkesboro in his eighth - and final - start at the North
Carolina short track.
"It would be nice to say that we've won on all the
tracks, but we want to do it for ourselves - not because of a statistic," said
the 82-time winner. "It's a victory that has eluded us - so far.
"Our mile-and-a-half program has been good this year,
so we are definitely looking forward to this event and possibly battling for the
win."
Gordon, who is third in the standings, is 169 behind
teammate and leader Jimmie Johnson. Since 161 is the maximum number of points
that can be made up in one event, Gordon will be eliminated from championship
contention when Johnson takes the green flag on Sunday. But points are still on
Gordon's mind heading into the season finale.
"We could possibly finish second in final points," said
the four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion who trails teammate Mark Martin by 61.
"And there are some guys right behind us that could possible overtake us.
"We know that a Hendrick Motorsports (HMS) driver will
be this year's champion. Hopefully, we can make it a 1-2-3 finish in the final
standings for HMS."
And a win will finish off the schedule for Team DuPont.
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