Why does the average nascar fan hate Jeff Gordon so much? I was watching Spcntr "whos now" and they said this.

Answer 1

Reaction to Gordon's success has been sharply divided among NASCAR fans. Gordon remains popular in his home state of Indiana and his birth state of California, and as indicated by the success of merchandising of #24 products, outside the Deep South, but is often booed by fans in traditional NASCAR venues.

Part of this schism in popularity is attributed to Gordon's "Madison Avenue" appeal, his apparent rivalry with Dale Earnhardt during the 1990s, and the resentment in the Deep South of perceived "Yankees." NASCAR for years had been a predominantly Southern sport, and many fans today attribute NASCAR's changes, not all of which are popular, to the influence of corporate sponsorships and the media.

During a February, 2007 appearance on the Bob & Tom radio program, Jeff Foxworthy joked that he had discovered why Gordon remained a controversial figure. "He enunciates," the comedian explained, "and people from the South ain't having it."

Answer 2

Everybody hates a winning driver. Well I don't but most people do. Winning and hard racing is what NASCAR is about. Jeff didn't come from the south like all the other drivers, so people despised him. There was a rivalry between the fans of Earnhardt and Gordon and there still is. That is just the way it is and will be.

Go Jeff Gordon!!!

Answer 3

So one of the popular answers is because he's from California and because he was Earnhardt rival. Well how come then a lot of Sr. fans I know became Harvick fans when he took over after Dale's death. Guess where Harvick is from? California. And he's much more of an arrogant prick then Gordon. When someone else wins it's not uncommon to see Gordon congratulate him or praise him in the interview. Most just give excuses why they didn't win. I remember when Kurt Busch won the championship, Jeff was the first(and only I think) driver to go up onstage and congratulate him. A friend of mine who didn't like Gordon said he gained a lot of respect for him right there(still won't root for him though). Even if you still think he's arrogant, at least he's got more wins and championships then any other current driver to back it up.

Answer 4

I'm an average nascar fan. Jeff Gordon Rocks!!

Answer 5

Gordon has had a history of fan hatred. There's typically two reasons why sports stars are hated; 1) they're good, or, 2) They mouth off and are pompous.

Gordon is good, as his alltime wins record attests. He hasn't been intimidated by Dale Sr, he's raced against the best and beaten the best, and he's teed off Rusty Wallace fans for his chrome-horning him out of the way on the last half of lap in a race a couple of years ago.

I like Jeff Gordon. Sure, he looks whimpy, he doesn't have good stage presence when he talks, but he is the best racer Nextel Cup driver going right now. He's almost always competitive, he's tough to beat down the stretch, and he's tough on the pole.

And, when you're good, people don't like you. Take the recent USC TroJan football teams, Michael Jordan, Barry Bonds, Michael Vick. All are good, but all are maligned.

Gee, it's tough to be in the spotlight day in and day out.

Answer 6

I heard a desirable statistic final week. Jeff Gordon has been racing now for i think of 15 seasons. And he has had a Bud Pole for 14 consecutive seasons. that style of consistent extreme overall performance coupled with the undeniable fact that he did no longer truly represent the 'generic' NASCAR fan of the days while he first began... those are the two motives i think of a great variety of individuals have come to 'hate' him. the certainty is, it takes 'something' for individuals to hate someone. In Jeff's case it replaced into in all possibility jealousy over his speedy outcomes and disgust over the undeniable fact that somebody who wasn't a "reliable ole' boy" would desire to race as reliable as he would desire to. i'm nonetheless no longer a Jeff Gordon fan, yet after seeing him shake the cobwebs from his head after a no longer undemanding hit at Texas a 0.5-dozen years in the past, I resolved to no longer boo him anymore. no person who's prepared to place his existence on the line in that way for our entertainment and of undertaking at economic rewards merits to be boo'd. check out the tough and tumble look of drivers like Tony Stewart and Dale Earnhardt Jr. and you will understand the version between Gordon followers and Gordon haters. i do no longer think of i've got ever considered Jeff Gordon with 5 o'clock shadow or his hair tousled. And that irks some people.

Answer 7

...I thought I was an average NASCAR fan, but I like Jeff. So I guess I'm not.

I think its because people like to hate a winner.

WTH, I just read the one about him not being from the South. What does that have to do with anything? A lot of people like Ryan Newman, and that guy's from a town that's a couple of miles from the Michigan border! How is that the South?

Answer 8

Because he is not a southern good ole boy. Don't get me wrong I'm from south Georgia so I love the south. Most fans hate him b/c he is not from the south but on all of the all time record lists he is in the top 5, and he still has enough time left to top most of them, check the stats yourself. Also NASCAR is like pro wrestling in that they play like the drivers are against each other. Most people do not know that Dale Sr and Gordon were close friends and business partners. If they knew that they might look at him different.

Answer 9

As for Jeff Gordon I do not dislike his ability as a driver .
.There were some politics involved with his entry to the CUP level that was on the suspicious side.

Answer 10

The main reason why people don't like Gordon is because he probably singlehandedly stopped Dale Sr. from winning his 8th championship and because he was the California Kid. He came from a different background. In the early NASCAR days (and even now) , the fans wanted their heroes to be from the same blue collar, working class families that they were from. Gordon did NOT fit the mold, because he was born and bred to be a racer.

Answer 11

Jeff Gordon represents the "new" NASCAR, it's not the same as it used to be. It's not a bunch of Good Ol' Boys from the south anymore, and Jeff Gordon was one of the first Pretty Boys to come in. Most people didn't like that, people are resistant to change and Jeff Gordon was different. Top that with the apparent rivalry he had with Dale Earnhardt, that gave people enough reason to hate him.

I don't like him because, regardless of how he looks or where he's from, he is extremely arrogant, it's like he thinks that he's the only one who deserves to be on the track. He has this mindset that he's the best and everyone else is dirt. He is a constant complainer, if someone passes him maybe just a little unclean, but no contact, he has a hissy fit. I think a lot of people see that too, which adds on to why most people don't like him.