Team owner Rick Hendrick was diagnosed with leukemia before the season started. Displaying the 1-800-MARROW-2 bone marrow information number in his car, Jeff led teammates Terry Labonte and Ricky Craven to the checkered flag in the Daytona 500. Jeff appeared on the 'Late Show With David Letterman' after winning and then won the following week at Rockingham. Engine failure at Atlanta and an accident at Texas derailed the 'Gordon Express' but only temporarily. Jeff won at Bristol and Martinsville and later won the Winston all star race driving the newly designed T-Rex chassis. Jeff won at Charlotte, Pocono and the inaugural race at California Speedway. A mid-summer swoon at Daytona and New Hampshire was a distant memory after he ran strong at Pocono and Indianapolis before winning his first road course race in his career at Watkins Glen in August. He won at Darlington (to win the Winston Million) and New Hampshire in September before a late season swoon at Talladega and Phoenix. In Atlanta, he finished 17th in a backup car to win the Winston Cup title by 14 points. In 1997, he won ten races, won the Winston Million, won the Daytona 500, and won the Winston Cup title. It was all for Rick.