NASCAR Jeff Gordon masters Infineon road course

He managed to overcome heat due to ventilation problems in the cockpit.
SONOMA, Calif. (AP) -- Jeff Gordon has been so dominant on NASCAR's road courses that it was considered a slump when he went four races without a victory.
The slump is over.
Gordon overpowered the field and completed a near-perfect weekend Sunday with a victory in the Dodge/Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway.
It was his eighth road course victory, extending his own NASCAR record. But it was his first win at either Infineon or Watkins Glen -- the only tracks where Nextel Cup cars turn both left and right -- since 2001.
Team was confident
"In 2002, the competition got better and we just got a little behind," Gordon said. "Last year, we got our act together and I felt like we were the best car and circumstances worked out to where we didn't win.
"This year, we've taken what we had last year and improved it. I feel like we should be a dominant force on the road courses."
That's exactly what the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet was at Infineon, winning the pole Friday with a record lap, topping every practice session and setting another record by leading 92 of the 110 laps Sunday on the 1.99-mile, 10-turn course.
It was Gordon's fourth Infineon victory and his third win from the pole. Gordon, who jumped from sixth to fourth in the season points, has three wins this season and 67 in his career.
His only real problem on Sunday was the heat.
As temperatures at the scenic wine country circuit neared 90 degrees, the ventilation system in Gordon's Chevrolet became as overpowered as his competition.
"Today, I was challenged by my physical fitness," Gordon said. "Those cautions we had with about 40 and 30 laps to go really helped me a lot. It gave me a chance to get a few moments to relax and it gave the crew a chance to give me some ice packs and cool me down a little."
The late yellow flags also helped Gordon with another possible problem as crew chief Robbie Loomis cautioned him constantly on the radio to conserve gas.
"I was shutting the engine off rolling downhill and conserving any way I could," said Gordon, whose last pit stop came on lap 68.
"I drove out and got as big a lead as I could and gave a lot of it up there at the end," Gordon said. "It was real tough."
It certainly didn't look it.
Gordon beat Jamie McMurray, in only his second start at the Sonoma track, to the finish line by 1.032 seconds -- about 10 car-lengths, with road racing specialist Scott Pruett third.
"I knew Jeff was going to have to run off the track or goof up and, typically, he doesn't do that," McMurray said. "I was just waiting on him to make a mistake, but I was driving as hard as I could."