Short tracks have become a sticking point in the Next Gen era, with Goodyear, NASCAR, and manufacturers all searching for ways to breathe life back into the racing. Since 2022, the parity built into the cars has left many short-track events looking like a game of follow-the-leader, frustrating fans who come expecting elbows-out action.
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More often than not, position changes hinge on pit strategy rather than drivers muscling their way forward. Yet Jeff Gordon recently reminded fans of a time when short tracks brought the kind of electricity that not only hooked NASCAR loyalists but even turned the heads of Formula 1 stars.
In a conversation with RACER, the Hendrick Motorsports vice chairman didn’t blink when asked about the best track he ever raced.
“It’s hard to beat Bristol, because it’s the ultimate exhilaration for a NASCAR driver, to experience the acceleration and cornering ability of a stock car, and for the challenges it offers.”
He broke it down in racer’s terms: the rear end gets light rolling into the corner, then the banking loads up heavy, demanding total control. Drivers can work the bottom or the top, all while managing tire wear. “Even now, coming to it as a commentator or visitor, I watch it as just a pure fan,” Gordon admitted.
The appeal, he added, reaches beyond NASCAR’s borders. “And funnily enough, Mark Webber reached out to me and for the second time he’s saying, ‘Mate, I want to come to Bristol!’ I met him at the Abu Dhabi F1 Grand Prix, and he was asking me about Knoxville, Eldora, the Chili Bowl, and so on. I had no idea he loved short ovals.”
Jeff Gordon: “Ken Schrader was my best teammate. He was supportive of the whole Hendrick organization, open to sharing ideas and information, but also someone who kept us laughing. We’re still great friends to this day; I love that man.” #NASCAR
Story -> https://t.co/rTPvUtJM2t pic.twitter.com/HGe7SmKbdm— Jeff Gordon Online (@JGinfo) October 2, 2025
Gordon had already taken the Australian to Knoxville, and Webber loved every second. Now, he plans to take him to Bristol, a bucket-list stop for anyone who has only seen NASCAR from afar.
Still, when pressed on the best track he has ever experienced behind the wheel, the four-time NASCAR Cup Champion pointed to Europe’s Nürburgring.
“Chevrolet graciously took me there last year when they were testing the Corvette ZR1 and ZR1X, so I went through the normal industry pool training, and then I got to tool around in the Z06 for a couple of days. And I’ve gotta say, it is the ultimate track: there’s just no other place like it,” he said of the Nürburgring.
Asked which track he wished he could have raced, Gordon pointed to Belgium. Spa-Francorchamps, he explained, is both a favorite and a family tie.
With his Belgian wife, he has visited several times and even driven the circuit himself. For Gordon, the track is more than a postcard setting. It’s a driver’s track, fast, challenging, and one of the great racing theaters in the world.
