"You're far more than just a team owner to me" - When Jeff Gordon gave a tearful tribute to Rick Hendrick during his Hall of Fame speech

In 2019, Jeff Gordon thanked Rick Hendrick at the NASCAR Hall of Fame induction ceremony during his heartfelt speech in Charlotte, North Carolina. Since his full-time retirement, Gordon has served as the vice chairman of Hendrick Motorsports.

With a storied NASCAR career, four-time Cup Series champion Gordon was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2019 with Davey Allison, Alan Kulwicki, Jack Roush, and Roger Penske.

During his acceptance speech, Gordon thanked Mr. H and shared his appreciation towards the owner of one of the most successful NASCAR organizations. Gordon said:

"There's no way to describe it any other way other than you're a great man. You've been far more than just a team owner to me. You've constantly set the bar to make everyone around you want to be a better person at the job, a better person in every walk of life and that includes me."

He added:

"So I will forever be grateful for your friendship, your mentoring, including all those great one-liners and quotes that you have, I want that book by the way one day you write those down they're so good. And the faith that you put in me as your driver and with our partnership that still happens today."

In a career spanning 25 years, Jeff Gordon competed only for HMS in the Cup Series. In more than 800 starts behind the #24, the California native secured 93 Cup wins, of which three were Daytona 500.

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"Who is this?" - When Rick Hendrick first noticed Jeff Gordon

During a 1992 Xfinity race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Rick Hendrick first spotted Jeff Gordon when the latter managed to secure victory despite having a smoking tire. Before joining Hendrick Motorsport, Gordon competed in the Xfinity Series for Bill Davis Racing, driving a Ford.

In an interview, Gordon shared how his partnership with Hendrick started. He said:

"He (Rick Hendrick) just happened to be there on a Saturday, which was pretty rare for him. (He) Was walking to a suite along the side of the track and saw smoke rolling off the right rear tire of the car I was driving."

"It made him stop, look and tell the people he was with, 'Let’s see what’s going on here. He’s got a tire going down or he’s blowing up or something.' I just kept going and I was still smoking the tire and he was like 'This driver is going to wreck. Who is this?’"

Soon after the race, Jeff Gordon was spotted driving through the victory lane. His prowess led to a full-time ride the next season in the Cup Series and the success that followed with Hendrick Motorsports.