Now that William Byron and Kyle Larson have dominated Phoenix weekend, Jeff Gordon wanted to dismiss some rumors. When it comes to the louvers, Hendrick Motorsports isn’t worried it seems. Gordon says this weekend’s results prove the louvers had no effect on performance.
On Friday, it was announced that NASCAR was taking all the louvers from every Hendrick car. Jeff Gordon and other HMS leaders likely didn’t see that coming. After replacing the louvers with some from another Chevy team, Hendrick went back to business.
It resulted in the pole win with Kyle Larson and of course, William Byron won the race. Hendrick led for a majority of the way, outside of a long run from Kevin Harvick.
Jeff Gordon doesn’t want people to focus on the parts, but to look at the results.
“I’m probably most proud of these guys went through that [louvers being taken], then they went out there. We had the pole, third. The other two guys were fast, just slipped up a little big. All four cars in the top 10 today.
“I think that really solidified some of the hype and things that were being focused on on Friday. These guys have speed in the car. There was nothing, not last week, not this week, that was getting them to Victory Lane other than a lot of hard work and great teamwork.”
Jeff Gordon did admit that the thought of the potential penalties is on his mind.
Jeff Gordon Chalks Louvers Up to ‘Miscommunication’
If you ask Jeff Gordon what went wrong with the louvers, it is a “miscommunication” issue. He is proud of his drivers and proud of the results they got. He does know that he’ll be worried until NASCAR puts out their findings.
“I can tell you it was weighing on all of our minds coming into today. Certainly will continue.”
Gordon went on in the press conference.
“I think it really opened up the door for some miscommunication. I don’t want to go any further than that. We’ll continue to just share all the facts and be transparent with NASCAR as we have been so far.”
For right now, Hendrick Motorsports will take the win which has been certified by the inspection and keep it moving. Jeff Gordon won’t dwell on what might be.