Gordon: Road Course Racing Changes For The Better
Jeff Gordon is a five-time Sonoma winner but that doesn’t mean he’s got the keys to the Northern California course in his pocket. Far from it. Gordon last won in 2006 – the season before the current NASCAR Sprint Cup chassis was introduced. The new car has evened the playing field and brought more contenders into the mix. No longer do many teams bring older, short track cars to the road courses. And, Gordon added, double-file restarts have made the road races more like Martinsville’s slamming and shoving than traditional, follow the leaders and hit your marks affairs.

Want more proof? Sonoma’s last seven races have produced seven different winners. The last four – Kurt Busch, Jimmie Johnson, Kasey Kahne and Kyle Busch – posted their first Sprint Cup road course victories.

It’s the annual homecoming race for Gordon, who was born in Vallejo a few miles east of Sonoma. Busch, Kahne, Johnson and the Busch brothers also hail from the west coast along with Watkins Glen road race winner Kevin Harvick.