Has Jeff Gordon Lost His Edge?

Jeff Gordon’s running out of gas on the last lap of the Pocono race this past weekend is symbolic of where he is as a race car driver this season.  Whether he is out of gas, has lost his edge, or is just not focused, there is definitely something not quite right with that driver and/or his team. 

Although Gordon talks a great game and appears enthused before and after the race when the cameras are rolling, he just does not seem to have that “fire in his belly” as he has so often in the past.  He seems almost complacent, like he is just going through the motions each week.

So what is Jeff Gordon’s problem?  Is it his age?  Has he just become too “old” in a series full of young guns who are hungry to win and drive with reckless abandon?  One fan at Pocono remarked that Gordon has been acting like a “little old man” who is content to ride around and not really push too hard.

Or is it that Jeff Gordon has lost his focus on racing as the prime motivator in his life?  Let’s face it, as he was coming up in the series, racing was his entire life and winning was his sole focus.

Now, he is married, and not only to a beautiful woman, but one who also has a career. They, as a couple, are out on the social scene.  Even more important, they have a gorgeous young daughter, who obviously is the apple of her daddy’s eye. 

You can see how content Gordon is with his new family life and perhaps that has been distracting, as it rightfully should, from his full-time racing abilities.

Or perhaps it is that Jeff Gordon has so diversified himself that there is only a little piece of him left for stock car racing.  So many other aspects of his life seem to be occupying his time. 

There is Jeff Gordon the pitch man, on various commercials, hawking various products.  There is Jeff Gordon, the TV host, filling in as often as he can for Regis Philbin. There is also Jeff Gordon, the philanthropist.  He and wife Ingrid are very hands-on with the Jeff Gordon Foundation and his myriad of other charitable interests and obligations.

For NASCAR fans, however, the bottom line is performance at the track.  And with no wins yet to his name this season, Jeff Gordon fans are definitely starting to ask these tough questions of their favorite driver.   

Sixth in points, no wins, and running out of gas at Pocono is definitely not the way to keep the Gordon faithful happy, no matter how loyal they are. 

Jeff Gordon, it is now time to get up on the wheel and get back on track.