Jeff Gordon was arguably the face of NASCAR when it went through its last boom period during the 2000’s.
The 53-year-old NASCAR legend was a mainstream name along with a cast of others throughout the decade, including the likes of Tony Stewart, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jimmy Johnson, Kyle Bush and Kevin Harvick.
The era saw an increase in viewership and mainstream popularity, eventually resulting in an eight-year, $4.48 billion deal to broadcast NASCAR races on ABC/ESPN, FOX and TNT.
One of the talking points facing NASCAR these days is how its popularity feels stagnant and how it obviously hasn’t reached its growth the way that it did in the 2000s.
Gordon — who stopped racing full-time in 2015 — details how NASCAR can increase its popularity the way that it did in the 2000s.
“You have to go back to some of the things that maybe contribute to where it’s at today,” says Gordon in a one-on-one interview. “Over a five-year span of time, we had the biggest names and most recognized faces in our sport exit. Tony Stewart, Carl Edwards, myself, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jimmy Johnson, that’s a lot of star power that left in a pretty short period of time, replacing them with current star power.”
The current vice chairman of Hendrick Motorsports mentions the number of options that consumers have these days. When you factor in the speed at which culture moves these days, you have to find a way to really grab the attention of the casual fan.
Gordon mentions how NASCAR has to do a better job of showcasing the personalities in order to generate interest among the casual fan.
“We’ve got to make sure that on track probably continues to be the best,” says Gordon. “It’s the best in motor sports. There’s no better form of motor sports that puts on a better show in the world. But we’ve got to showcase our personalities. We got to showcase the star power that we have.”
One of the issues that has faced NASCAR is its inability to attract younger fans. A significant portion of its fan base is between ages 55 and 64, with 34% of its demographic being in that age range. Only 3% of sports fans between 18-24 and 4% of sports fans between 25-34 follow NASCAR in the United States.
“We got to bring in new, younger fans, different demographic fans,” says Gordon. “Just left Chicago, they have a street course. It’s a great way to bring in people that have never seen a NASCAR race. The first year they had it — three years ago — 80% of the people that showed up to that race were first-time NASCAR fans. We’re going to Mexico City, it’s going to be the same kind of thing there. Making strategic plays like that is incredibly important.”
Another way of increasing NASCAR’s popularity? Play up the rivalries. Every sport thrives when its best rivalries are on display. Whether that be the Los Angeles Lakers against the Boston Celtics in the NBA, the New York Yankees versus the Boston Red Sox in the MLB or the Pittsburgh Steelers against the Baltimore Ravens in the NFL.
Gordon himself had a notable rivalry with Clint Bowyer — and even his former teammate, Johnson — and Busch and Harvick was probably one of the more notable rivalries during Gordon’s racing career.
NASCAR: Full Speed, a Netflix series that documents some of the sports biggest drivers throughout a season, is doing a good job of that — which is showcasing the driver behind the helmet and some of the personal rivalries that take place.
“Personalities, rivalries — authentic rivalries,” says Gordon. “You have to get behind the scenes and let people get to know who you know, who they can cheer for, who they’re rooting for, and have a personal connection. When I see my fans, even still today, there was a connection that they had, that they related to, and that’s why they became a fan. Whether it’s me, Dale Earnhardt Jr., or whoever it was. We’ve got to make sure that exists today as well with these young drivers.”