Gordon has won the prestigious event three times, with his third win in 2001 matching Dale Earnhardt. But Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson surpassed both Gordon and Earnhardt last year, winning his fourth all-star race.
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Gordon, who scored his first win of the season last week at Kansas, would love nothing more than to match his teammate with a fourth all-star race victory. And as the series points leader, he has his best shot in years.
“I love racing at Charlotte, and to be at home and also race … is just one of those races where you go all out, and it's more about pride and honor and just kind of showing your competitors what you can do,” Gordon said. “So we're going to be pushing really, really hard to follow up with a great performance there.”
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Johnson has won the past two all-star races and is one of only two drivers to win the event in consecutive years, joining Davey Allison (1991-92).
There have been 19 different winners in the 29 all-star races, with six drivers winning it multiple times.
Here’s a look at the winners of NASCAR’s all-star classic.
1985 Darrell Waltrip 1986 Bill Elliott 1987 Dale Earnhardt 1988 Terry Labonte 1989 Rusty Wallace 1990 Dale Earnhardt 1991 Davey Allison 1992 Davey Allison 1993 Dale Earnhardt 1994 Geoff Bodine 1995 Jeff Gordon 1996 Michael Waltrip 1997 Jeff Gordon 1998 Mark Martin 1999 Terry Labonte 2000 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 2001 Jeff Gordon 2002 Ryan Newman 2003 Jimmie Johnson 2004 Matt Kenseth 2005 Mark Martin 2006 Jimmie Johnson 2007 Kevin Harvick 2008 Kasey Kahne 2009 Tony Stewart 2010 Kurt Busch 2011 Carl Edwards 2012 Jimmie Johnson 2013 Jimmie Johnson
