LOUDON, N.H. – Retired four-time Sprint Cup champion Jeff Gordon would return to the driver’s seat next week at Indianapolis Motor Speedway if Dale Earnhardt Jr. is unable to drive, Hendrick Motorsports said Friday.
Earnhardt will not be in the Hendrick No. 88 Chevrolet this weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway because he is suffering from concussion-like symptoms. Alex Bowman is the replacement driver this weekend. Duchardt would not confirm whether Earnhardt has been diagnosed with a concussion.
Hendrick general manager Doug Duchardt dropped the stunning news about Gordon’s possible role in the Earnhardt scenario in a news conference at the speedway. Gordon is on vacation in France this week and was not immediately available for comment.
Duchardt said a decision about Gordon filling in in the Brickyard 400 probably would be made by Wednesday of next week. The 400, which Gordon has won a record five times, is one of the season’s spotlighted races. Gordon grew up in nearby Pittsboro, Ind.
Gordon retired from driving at the end of the 2015 season after a decorated 23-year career that produced four Cup championships and 93 Cup victories (third on the all-time list behind Richard Petty and David Pearson). He is working as a race analyst for Fox Sports, which just completed its portion of the NASCAR schedule before NBC picked up starting with the July 2 race at Daytona International Speedway.
Upon his retirement, Gordon didn’t rule out driving occasionally in selected events or other series, but his possible return in the Cup Series at one of the sport’s iconic speedways is a scenario few could have expected.
Duchardt refused to speculate on the possibility of Gordon staying in the No. 88 car indefinitely if Earnhardt remains sidelined.
“I’m not going to speculate on what-ifs and all that stuff,” Duchardt said. “As we gain information through this, we’ll look at the scenario whether it’s short-term or long-term. We’re not sure what will happen beyond Indy.”
Duchardt described Gordon as “not a bad person to think about to put in the car. This week he’s in France. If Dale is not able to go at Indy, we will put Jeff Gordon in the car. When Dale is ready, it’s his car to get back into.”
If Gordon runs at Indy, would he be the victory threat he was throughout his career at one of his favorite tracks?
“I think he’ll do a good job at Indy if that happens,” retired driver and ESPN analyst Ricky Craven told USA TODAY Sports on Friday. “But it’s not easy to be away from the sport and jump back in the saddle. It’s just not.”
Kyle Busch, who returned to driving after surgery and rehabilitation for leg and injuries last season and won the Cup championship, said Gordon would hit the track running.
“I think that he would be able to handle it just fine,” Busch said Friday. “He’s been around the sport all this year and the beginning part of the season, and he has seen the races and has commentated on the races and he hasn’t missed much, so I’m sure he’d be ready to go right out of the box.”
Driver Ryan Newman said Gordon would not face any significant issues racing after an eight-month layoff.
“Yeah, just because you go to the nude beach for a couple of months doesn’t mean you don’t know how to put your underwear back on,” Newman said, smiling.
Earnhardt, NASCAR's most popular driver, sat out two races in 2012 after suffering two concussions in a six-week span. This marks the third race he will sit out in his 17-year career.
He originally thought he was suffering from allergies or perhaps a sinus infection, according to Duchardt. He informed the team Tuesday he wasn't feeling well and they should consider having a driver ready to spell him should he need help this weekend. Bowman, 23, was fitted for the seat that night.
Duchardt said Earnhardt saw a team of doctors over two days and he learned he could not drive around noon Thursday. Duchardt would not speculate on whether this is a career-threatening issue.
In a statement Thursday, Earnhardt said:
“I wasn’t feeling great the week going into Kentucky (Speedway, for last week’s race) and thought it was possibly severe allergies. I saw a family doctor and was given medication for allergies and a sinus infection. When that didn’t help, I decided to dig a little deeper. Because of my symptoms and my history with concussions, and after my recent wrecks at Michigan and Daytona, I reached out and met with a neurological specialist. After further evaluation, they felt it was best for me to sit out.
“I’m disappointed about missing New Hampshire this weekend. I’m looking forward to treatment with the goal of getting back in the race car when the doctors say I’m ready.”
He later tweeted: "I appreciate everyone's support and prayers and will miss my team terribly this weekend. I'm working with some great doctors to get well."
Earnhardt has admitted racing with a concussion in the past. NASCAR has paid much closer attention to concussions and drivers’ health in recent seasons.
Earlier this year, Earnhardt announced that he had decided to donate his brain for scientific and medical research. He made that decision, he said, after hearing about professional football players making the same choice because concussions and other head injuries have been a significant problem in the National Football League.
Before the 2014 season, NASCAR, in part because of concussion issues, instituted neurocognitive tests for all drivers in its three national series. The baseline tests measure visual memory, verbal memory, processing speed and reaction time and set baselines in each area. If a driver appears to suffer a head injury, a repeat of the test can help doctors determine the impact of the injury based on how the results compare.
Earnhardt must be cleared by a neurologist before he can return.
