Jeff Gordon was born on Aug. 4, 1971, in Vallejo, Calif. By the time he was 18, he had decided to take up stock-car racing. During the next two years, he gained invaluable experience at a number of driving schools, including that run by the National Motorsports Press Association's Hall of Fame race-car driver Buck Baker.

He became the youngest driver in history to win the sport's premier event, the Daytona 500. Later he became the first driver since Bill Elliott in 1985 to win the Winston Million, a prize awarded to any driver who can win three of the sport's four most difficult races in one season. At the season's end Gordon led all drivers with a total of 10 victories and a record $6.5 million in earnings.