Originally Posted on April 2, 2007 on foxsports.com
Jeff Gordon stands in third position of modern era winners, with 75 wins. He has not won in 24 races, since late last summer. One win ahead of him on the list is the late, great Dale Earnhardt. At 84 wins, atop the standings, rests Darrell Waltrip. Of the remaining top 10 drivers, only three are active - Gordon, Bill Elliott (who drives an occasional race each year) and Mark Martin, who is semi-retired/who knows this week.
Of the top three, Gordon is the only one still running Nextel Cup races. Gordon had the perfect opportunity to tie Earnhardt's record at Martinsville. He was racing with his Hendrick teammate Jimmie Johnson, beating and banging on each other's front fenders and doors. Johnson held on and won the race.
As the two were battling out who would win, I imagined what Dale Earnhardt would have done in the same situation. It wasn't difficult, as Earnhardt memorably won several races by bumping the leader out of the way.
I thought how fitting it would be if Gordon had tied Earnhardt's record by using the same tactic. Sure, a thumping of the rest of the field would be great too, but I think Earnhardt would have been the first to raise the toast of a glass of milk if Gordon had bumped his teammate out of the way for the win.
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