A Family Feud

Doug Rice

There as been a constant voice from the fans and the media that NASCAR really needed a good feud, little did we suspect that feud would be Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson. 

These two have found themselves battling for the same real estate a lot lately.  There was battle at Martinsville that got a little testy, then more recently these two champions traded paint and irritated each other at Texas while battling for the lead. Then Jeff Gordon calls out Jimmie after Talladega, claiming that Jimmie cut him off in traffic and aided in the creating the wreck that eventually cost him any chance at winning. 

These 3 events alone are really not enough to create friction but if you look at the underlying circumstances you will see the real cause for this spat. 

Jeff Gordon brought Jimmie Johnson to NASCAR and from the moment Jimmie started racing fulltime in the Sprint Cup Circuit, Gordon has failed to win a championship while Johnson has won a record setting four in a row. 

One can only image that the routine of going over to congratulate Jimmie in victory lane is getting to be old news and each time it’s a little harder to smile and say "way to go buddy". Jeff Gordon is proud and a fierce competitor and he wants Jimmie to have to visit him in victory lane.  Plus, he would like to add a 5th championship to his collection and the primary person standing between him and that dream is none other than Jimmie Johnson.  

The outward feud may go away but the root cause won’t until Jeff Gordon outduels Johnson head to head.  You know the number 48 is two times 24, and it may take a times two effort from Gordon to turn the tide.  But no matter how the numbers add up, this battle may just be heating up.  

Before it's all over, we could be in for grand version of Family Feud.