Jeff Gordon celebrates his win in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series auto race at Phoenix International Raceway on Sunday in Avondale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)AVONDALE, Ariz. – Just before peeling off what he called a lame burnout near the finish line, Jeff Gordon screamed into his radio, the emotion pouring out with his voice.
“We just beat Kyle Busch!” he yelled.
Gordon did much more than that. He was headed back to Victory Circle, the longest winless streak of his career finally in the rearview mirror.
Overcoming a slew of potentially disastrous incidents, Gordon passed Kyle Busch with eight laps left and stretched his lead from there, ending his winless streak at 66 races Sunday at Phoenix International Raceway.
“It feels so amazing. I can’t tell you how amazing this feels,” Gordon said. “It’s been a long time, I know, and I’m going to savor this one so much.”