Fox' Jeff Gordon said he has one year left on his broadcasting deal and is unsure what will happen after '18 as he starts to take on a larger role with Hendrick Motorsports. Gordon, who has had a well-known stake in HMS for years, stepped out of the car full time after '15 and started commentating the following year. He has started to take on an increasingly active role at the team for multiple reasons. He said of broadcasting, “I’ve really enjoyed it; it’s been a lot of fun, very educational. To me, it’s the best way to step out of driving, because it’s enough pressure to make you work hard at it but it’s also an adrenaline rush because it’s live TV. And I’ve also learned a lot about the sport and people in the sport. But, yeah, if my role increases here (at HMS), it’s hard to do both. I can do both right now at the level that I’m at." Gordon noted he and team owner Rick Hendrick are "constantly talking about the future and what that looks like, but no decisions have been made.” Fox declined comment. The comments came just a few days before Gordon’s minor verbal altercation with driver Ryan Newman after Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Dover, which left some on social media debating whether his dual roles constitute a conflict of interest. The verbal altercation came after HMS driver Chase Elliott missed out on his first Cup Series win. Elliott was passed by Kyle Busch on the final lap in part because Elliott had trouble getting around Newman, who was fighting to stay on the lead lap. That led on cameras and saw Newman call Gordon a “smart ass” before the two were later seen making up. Fox also declined comment on the incident.
