Jeff Gordon is a retired professional racing driver with an estimated net worth of $200 million. He raced from 1993 to 2015, driving the #24 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports in the former NASCAR Winston Cup Series. He is also considered one of the most influential drivers in NASCAR history, helping the sport achieve mainstream popularity.
Biological data
| Full name | Jeffrey Michael Gordon |
| Date of Birth | August 4, 1971 |
| Genre | Man |
| Marital status | Married |
| Career | Race car |
| Net value | $200 million |
| Nationality | American |
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Biography
Jeff Gordon was born in Vallejo, California to Carol Ann Bickford (née Houston) and William Grinnell Gordon of Vacaville, California. His parent divorced when he was six months old, leading his mother to another marriage, to John Bickford in the 1970s.
When Jeff was four, his stepfather bought him a BMX bike and started racing quarter midgets when he was five. By the age of six, he had won 35 main events and set five track records. In 1979, Jeff won 51 quarterback midget races and won all 25 go-kart races he entered when he was 11 years old.
Jeff attended Tri-West Hendricks High School and was on the school’s cross-country team until he graduated in 1989. In 1986 Gordon began racing cars sprint, winning three races. The following year Gordon earned a USAC license at age 16, the youngest driver to do so.
During the 1980s he competed in the World of Outlaws series and had a few wins. He became the youngest pilot in the outlaw world at the time. He also won races at Bloomington and Eldora Speedways. Before the age of 18 Gordon had already won three short track races and received the USAC Midget Car Racing Rookie of the Year award in 1989. In 1991 Gordon won the USAC Silver Crown and at the age of 20, became the youngest driver to win the season championship. He also won all 4 Crown Nationals midget car races that season.
Career
Jeff Gordon began his professional racing career in the Busch Series with Hugh Connerty Racing, followed by Bill Davis Racing, winning three races, and began racing full-time in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series for Hendrick Motorsports in 1993. He is four-time Cup Series Champion, having won the title in 1995, 1997, 1998 and 2001.
Jeff was the youngest driver to win a NASCAR title, turning 24 at the end of the 1995 season. He also won the Daytona 500 three times in 1997, 1999 and 2005. Jeff has completed three career Grand Slams and won a total of sixteen Crown Jewel races (three Daytona 500s, four Talladega 500s, three Coca-Cola 600s and six Southern 500s), both of which are all-time records.
Jeff Gordon is third on the all-time Cup winning list with 93 career wins, while also having the record for most wins in NASCAR’s modern era (1972-present) and the most wins in a season in the modern era, with 13 in the 1998 NASCAR Winston Cup Series. His 81 pole positions led all active drivers and is third all-time, as well as a modern-era record; Gordon has won at least one pole in 23 consecutive seasons, making it a NASCAR record.
Honors and Distinctions
Jeff Gordon is the recipient of many honors and accolades, but most importantly, he was one of NASCAR’s 50 Greatest Drivers in 1998. In 2008, ESPN ranked him 10th among the 25 Greatest Drivers of All Time. Foxsports.com named him the fifth best NASCAR driver of all time. He was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2019.
He is also a recipient of the Pat O’Connor Award in 1992; Jerry Titus Memorial in 1995, 1998 and 2001; Richard Petty Driver of the Year in 1995 and 1998 and inducted into the Vallejo Sports Hall of Fame in 2005, National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame in 2009 and Legends of The Glen in 2011.
Jeff Gordon’s net worth
Jeff Gordon has an estimated net worth of $200 million, making him one of the richest racing drivers in the world. In 2016, he was one of the highest paid NASCAR drivers of all time and the 18th highest paid athlete of all time with $515 million in career earnings, according to Forbes.
Like many successful athletes, Jeff has numerous sponsorship deals and business ventures to supplement his income from NASCAR. Prior to his sponsorship with Pepsi, Gordon had been sponsored by Coca-Cola. It was also sponsored by Kellogg Company, Frito-Lay, Edy’s and Ray-Ban.
Jeff Gordon owns JG Motorsports to handle the licensing, and the company has received up to 20% of Gordon’s licensed products. These items produced $112 million in 1998. It also has a dealership, Jeff Gordon Chevrolet, located in Wilmington, North Carolina, and was opened in 1998.
Jeff is currently Vice President of Hendrick Motorsports. Alongside Rick Hendrick, he co-owns the No. 48 Chevrolet previously driven by Jimmie Johnson. He also owns a stake in the No. 24 team.