“My heart is full… this experience was just off the charts.” Jimmie Johnson’s reaction to successful participation in the 2023 24 Hours of Le Mans indicated a lot of things. Firstly, the success of Rick Hendrick enrolling his team in the Garage 56 entry was visible in the feverish excitement among European fans in Le Mans, France. Secondly, the scope to do wonders in the same car also popped up – and Jeff Gordon is optimistic about that.
The four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and current vice chairman of Hendrick Motorsports, Jeff Gordon, has a special connection with that car. He took a ride in the Next Gen Garage 56 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 last year. After his heart-warming experience, Gordon expects exciting prospects ahead.
Jeff Gordon woos another HMS glory ride
Rick Hendrick’s 24 Hours of Le Mans entry was a resounding success. The 2023 Garage 56 entry featured three legends – 7-time Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson, 2009 Formula One world champion Jenson Button, and two-time 24 Hours of Le Mans winner Mike Rockenfeller. All three drivers made the car a hit for the event. The car ran near the top of the GT field for more than 20 hours. Although a drive line issue sidelined the team for more than an hour, it completed 285 laps on the 8.4-mile circuit and finished 39th in the 62-car field.
Despite the finish, the event was a resounding success, as it marked NASCAR’s return to Le Mans in over four decades. This prompted Jeff Gordon to do something more in November last year. He took out the Garage 56 car for a ride as part of the Ten-Tenths Motor Club. After that experience, the HMS executive dropped an encouraging hint about cooking new plans. “You know, I’d like to have it…I’d like to experience it on different tracks kind of just to really stretch out the legs.”
Jeff Gordon is looking forward to revamping the vehicle for more events. Although his experience driving it was not without faults – a tall rear gear setting temporarily dropped the RPM. So Gordon emphasized working on it more: “I had a lot of fun. We’re going to actually tune it up a little bit more specifically for Ten Tenths… looking forward to going back there and getting some more laps in the car. It had a lot of power, a lot of grip, a lot of acceleration, a lot of cool gadgets, and a lot of technology in the car. So yeah, that’s a cool car.”
Rick Hendrick‘s Chevrolet entry at Le Mans was the result of over a year of collaborative effort. The entities who worked together were NASCAR, Chevrolet, IMSA, and Goodyear. This marked the first NASCAR entry in Le Mans since 1976 when Dick Hutcherson and Herschel McGriff famously ran modified Cup cars. So Jeff Gordon emphasized that the Garage 56 entry was specifically designed for the European motorsports event. “It’s kind of designed for Le Mans – some really long straightaways and some heavy braking zones. Our car has a tremendous amount of capabilities, downforce, and tire.”
The Hendrick Motorsports crew obviously counted the 2023 entry as a resounding success. What is more important is their European candidate also loved the experience.
Golden words of appreciation
Four decades ago, Rick Hendrick’s organization was still a blip on the radar of motorsports. Yet the gigantic efforts that Hendrick Motorsports put in signaled the great times ahead. In 1985, Hendrick teamed up with the GM Motorsports Technology Group to field the Corvette GTP prototype in the IMSA Camel GT championship. They received fast success, with drivers like Doc Bundy and Sarel van der Merwe winning races. Subsequently, Hendrick enlisted in many such side projects while his NASCAR organization skyrocketed to success. Currently, HMS boasts 313 Cup Series victories and 14 championships. Yet Hendrick still keeps pursuing motorsports laurels – as evidenced by the 2023 Le Mans effort.
So when Jenson Button agreed to be part of the Garage 56 entry, he knew what he was doing. Besides his Formula One fame, Button is also a 2018 champion of the Super GT Series. After his experience in the 2023 Le Mans alongside Rick Hendrick, he was full of gratitude and praise. “You can certainly see why they’ve won so many championships over the years. Great team to work with but also not just how good they are with what they do, but the attitude. They know the importance of this race, but they also want to enjoy themselves while doing it. And that’s exactly why I’m here. It’s fun and we’ve enjoyed this journey. We’re going to savor this moment.”
Now that Jeff Gordon is planning to bring the Garage 56 entry back, more such laurels may be in place for Rick Hendrick. Let us wait and see what the iconic HMS team cooks up next.
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