These days, most people may only remember him as the host of the since-cancelled game show Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?, but comedian Jeff Foxworthy has been in the game since the mid '80s.
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He got famous for his "you might be a redneck if" one-liners, and his stand-up comedy career really took off when he became a member of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour alongside Larry the Cable Guy, Bill Engvall, and Ron White. Given his Georgia roots and his good-ol-country boy persona, it shouldn't be all that shocking that Foxworthy has a decent amount of NASCAR jokes in his comedy act.
In one bit from his album Big Funny, which he performs in the below clip, Foxworthy gives his take on why NASCAR fans hate Jeff Gordon. Hint: It has nothing to do with his breakdancing skills (although I couldn't resist bringing that up).
WATCH: Jeff Foxworthy Reveals Why NASCAR Fans Don't Like Jeff Gordon
So, why do NASCAR fans hate Jeff Gordon? According to Foxworthy, it's because "Jeff Gordon enunciates."
If you know anything about NASCAR drivers, particularly from the '90s (Big Funny was released in 2000, but recorded right as the '99 Cup Series season had concluded), it's that most of them didn't enunciate. Cue Foxworthy's pinpoint accurate imitation of an intelligible driver during a post-race interview. Being born and raised in Vallejo, California, Gordon didn't have the problem of sounding like an auctioneer from the deep South.
As you probably know, 1999 was a bad year to hate Jeff Gordon. He had just come off another dominant season with Hendrick Motorsports, winning his third Cup title and his second in a row. Gordon wouldn't get the three-peat in '99 (he'd win his fourth and final championship in 2001), but "Wonder Boy" would still have a solid season worthy of an eventual NASCAR Hall of Fame induction.
Jeff Gordon's 1999 NASCAR Cup Series Season
Photo by George Tiedemann/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images
Jeff Gordon started the '99 Cup Series season with a bang, winning the second Daytona 500 of his career. His other NASCAR race wins that year came at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Auto Club Speedway, Sonoma Raceway, Watkins Glen, Martinsville, and Charlotte. Gordon would rack up an additional 11 top-five finishes on his way to an ultimate sixth-place finish in the standings.
Not surprisingly, Gordon was in high demand in '99, with team owner Chip Ganassi attempting to poach him for CGR in the middle of the season and Dallas Cowboys owners Jerry Jones expressing interest in partnering with Gordon to form their own team. I'm sure the offers were tempting, but Jeff decided to stick with Hendrick Motorsports. He signed a lifetime contract with the team to start the 2000 Cup Series, which gave him an equity owner's stake in his No. 24 team.
Clearly, Gordon's loyalty to Hendrick Motorsports has paid off, as he is currently the vice chairman of the team and raking in some serious dough. Today, Gordon has an estimated net worth of $200 million. Now, I'm not saying I'm a Jeff Gordon hater by any means, but if you're gonna hate the guy, don't hate him because he "enunciates." Hate him because he's freaking rich.
This post was originally published on April 29, 2021.
