Unrivaled: Earnhardt vs. Gordon

Unrivaled: Earnhardt vs. Gordon
Poster
Directed by	Michael Hughes
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
Production
Producers	Dave Bragg, Sol Horner, Jon Housholder, Jeff Schafer, Mike Thompson, Griffin Van Malssen
Running time	60 minutes
Production companies	NASCAR Productions DLP Media Group
Original release
Release	February 14, 2019 (2019-02-14)

Unrivaled: Earnhardt vs. Gordon is a 2019 documentary television film about the on-track rivalry and off-track relationship between NASCAR drivers Dale Earnhardt and Jeff Gordon. ^{[1] [2]}

Cast

Interviewees

• Jeff Gordon, No. 24 driver, also executive producer
• Dale Earnhardt Jr., Earnhardt's son and NASCAR driver, also executive producer
• Rick Hendrick, No. 24 owner
• Ray Evernham, No. 24 crew chief
• Richard Childress, No. 3 owner
• Larry McReynolds, No. 3 crew chief from 1997 to 1998
• Jay Wells, Earnhardt's friend
• JR Rhodes, Earnhardt's PR director
• Don Hawk, Earnhardt's business manager
• Daniel Ricciardo, Earnhardt fan and Formula 1 driver
• Ricky Craven, Gordon's teammate and NASCAR driver
• John Bickford, Gordon's stepfather
• Carol Bickford, Gordon's mother
• Joe Garner, Gordon biographer
• Jerry Punch, ESPN broadcaster
• Ryan McGee, ESPN writer and reporter
• Marty Smith, ESPN writer and reporter
• Kyle Busch, Gordon fan and NASCAR driver
• Austin Dillon, Earnhardt fan and NASCAR driver
• Mike Helton, President of NASCAR
• Brian Williams, Earnhardt fan and NBC anchor
• Gavin Kilduff
• Chocolate Myers, No. 3 pit crew member
• Andy Petree, No. 3 crew chief from 1993 to 1995
• Chris Williams, Earnhardt's friend

Uncredited

• Dale Earnhardt, No. 3 driver (archive footage)
• Buck Baker (archive footage)
• Rusty Wallace (archive footage)

Production

The scene where Gordon pays tribute to Earnhardt was filmed on location at Dale Earnhardt Plaza in Kannapolis, North Carolina. ^[3]

Release

In the United States, the documentary premiered on Fox Sports 1 on February 14, 2019, immediately after the running of the Gander RV Duels. ^[4]

Reception

In an interview with Fox Sports, Dale Earnhardt Jr. commented that the film told the story "just the way it was" and that he appreciated Gordon's tribute to his father: "It was real, you know? It was real." ^[5]

According to Nielsen Media Research, Unrivaled earned 854,000 viewers during its premiere, making it FS1's most-watched original film debut. ^[6]

References

1. "Rally driver Benito Guerra victorious at 2019 Race of Champions". Motor Authority. Retrieved February 20, 2019.
2. "'Unrivaled: Earnhardt vs. Gordon' documentary premiers in February". ClassicCars.com Journal. January 30, 2019. Retrieved February 20, 2019.
3. "Jeff Gordon on Dale Earnhardt: 'I miss him'". FoxSports.com. February 15, 2019. Retrieved February 18, 2019.
4. "New FOX Sports Films Documentary Explores Rivalry & Friendship of NASCAR Icons Dale Earnhardt and Jeff Gordon". Fox Sports PressPass. January 22, 2019. Retrieved February 18, 2019.
5. @NASCARONFOX (February 16, 2019). ""It was real, you know? It was real."- @DaleJr talks about why he loved Unrivaled: #EarnhardtVsGordon" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
6. "Thank you to everyone who tuned in! Congrats to all involved with putting this together. Been really cool to see all the feedback from both #3 fans & #24 fans". jeffgordonweb on Instagram. February 16, 2019. Archived from the original on December 26, 2021. Retrieved February 18, 2019.