NASCAR Cup Series: Top 10 Darlington paint scheme wish list

DARLINGTON, SC - SEPTEMBER 02: Paul Menard, driver of the #21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center Ford, leads Clint Bowyer, driver of the #14 Carolina Ford Dealers Ford, and Bubba Wallace, driver of the #43 STP Chevrolet, during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Bojangles' Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway on September 2, 2018 in Darlington, South Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) /

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24 Feb 2001: Jeff Gordon in the #24 DuPont Chevrolet Mandatory Credit: Robert Laberge/ALLSPORT /

William Byron – Jeff Gordon tribute

Every year, somebody unveils their Jeff Gordon tribute car. It’s a decked-out throwback to Gordon’s “Rainbow Warrior” days. The offer is appreciated, but it always the same car that is honored.

A man with the magnitude of Gordon’s deserves throwbacks to different parts of his career, including this flame scheme he ran for several years.

The flames debuted on Gordon’s Dupont machine in 2001, the same year he won his fourth NASCAR Winston Cup Series championship. Many people originally viewed this paint scheme with high regard, but as the years went on, they started to miss the rainbow colors, which became a retro classic.

Both the “rainbow” and “flame” designs represent significantly different periods in Gordon’s career. The rainbow design represents Gordon as a flashy youngster who took the sport by storm. He drove nearly flawlessly near the end of the 1990s by winning three championships in four years.

The flame design, meanwhile, shows a slightly older Gordon who became somewhat of a villain as time went on. Fans grew weary of his constant winning and growing ego. All of this together gave Gordon’s flames a bad vibe.

It is only fitting that the rainbow throwback is in high demand, but the flames are undoubtedly cooler and represent a great time in Gordon’s legendary career. Even if this one is ignored, Gordon’s numerous Pepsi cars looked just as splendid.

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