Gordon’s win keeps NASCAR in the (positive) spotlight

The scene must have been all too familiar for Alan Gustafson: leading an older driver into victory lane at Phoenix after snapping a long winless streak. And the first driver into victory lane to congratulate Gordon was none other than the man Gustafson sprayed with champagne two seasons ago, Mark Martin.

That crew chief swap at Hendrick Motorsports is working out pretty well. With the win, Gordon moved to tied for fifth in the points. He’s tied with Mark Martin.

Right now, ‘tis good to be a NASCAR official and a NASCAR fan. Trevor Bayne, a 20-year-old kid, wins the season’s biggest race and now Jeff Gordon, who’s turning 40 in August, just won the season’s second race.

Fans are tuning in, and that’s a good thing for NASCAR. This weekend’s race drew a 5.3 rating, which is up six percent from last year.

It’s a long way away from the pothole marred Daytona 500 from a year ago. Bayne’s youthful exuberance shined in the national spotlight all week, a definite plus for NASCAR’s PR. And it was tough to root against Gordon as the race wound down.

“We just beat Kyle Busch!” Gordon screamed on the radio after the race was over. Gordon happened to be the only driver all weekend who was able to defeat Busch in any of the three races this weekend.

Not that it would have been bad to see Busch win, but any NASCAR fan knows that Busch is a lightning-rod character in the sport. Gordon used to be that young, brazen guy who got booed all the time, but he won all the time as well.

For traditional fans of the sport, these first two weeks have been pretty darn good. My question is who will carry the banner this upcoming weekend in Vegas?

Anyone want to bet?
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More on NASCAR and so much more as the week progresses.