Cecil Gordon facts for kids

Cecil Gordon (born June 21, 1941 – died September 19, 2012) was an American stock car driver. He raced in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series for 17 years. From 1968 to 1985, he competed in 449 races. Even though he never won a race, he was known for being a very consistent driver.

NASCAR Racing Career

Gordon's 1983 Winston Cup car

Driving for Himself

Cecil Gordon drove in the NASCAR Grand National and Winston Cup Series for 17 years. He took part in a total of 449 races during his career. He never won a race or earned a pole position. A pole position means starting first in a race. He also never finished a race on the lead lap.

However, Cecil was very consistent. He earned 29 top-five finishes. This means he finished in the top five cars 29 times. He also had 111 top-ten finishes. This shows he was often among the best drivers.

He finished third in the overall points standings twice. This happened in 1971 and again in 1973. Over his career, he completed 112,908 laps. He led only 23 of those laps. By the end of his racing days, he had earned about $940,000. His average finish in every race he entered was 17.3.

From Driver to Owner

Cecil Gordon began his racing career driving for other teams. He drove cars for Henley Gray and Bill Seifert. Starting in 1970, he mostly raced in cars that he owned himself. He also had a few other drivers race his cars sometimes.

For many years, he raced cars made by General Motors, mostly Chevrolets. This continued until the end of 1982. At that time, he crashed his Buick Regal. In 1983, he bought a Chrysler Imperial car. He bought it from a team that had stopped racing.

He was able to qualify for eight races that year with the Imperial. He finished five of those races. His best finish in the Imperial was 15th place. Another driver, Jim VanDiver, also drove the car for him in two races. At the end of 1983, Cecil sold the Imperial car. He sold it to fellow racer Buddy Arrington. Cecil Gordon raced one more time in 1985. This was for the team owned by Greg Sacks' family.

Working as a Crewman

After he stopped being a driver and car owner, Cecil Gordon continued to work in racing. He became a crewman for other racing teams. First, he worked for Richard Childress Racing. Later, he worked for Travis Carter Enterprises. A crewman helps prepare the race car and supports the driver during races.

Personal Life

Cecil Gordon was not related to the famous four-time NASCAR champion, Jeff Gordon. However, it's a fun coincidence that both drivers used the number 24 on their race cars.

Cecil Gordon was married and had four children. Their names were Charlene (who passed away in 2006), Douglas, Stefanie, and Jonathon. Cecil Gordon passed away on September 19, 2012. He died in Lexington, North Carolina.

See also

In Spanish: Cecil Gordon para niños