#24 Jeff Gordon

Back home in Knoxville and showing up at his race shop is NASCAR Billy and to show up at the shop all he had to do was walk around the building. His COPO Camaro has been pushed outside of the shop and sits on cement blocks and has been stripped down even more. All that is left is a shell of a car, one that cost him six figures.


Inside the shop bright and early Monday morning while nursing a hangover is Billy with his new ride. A brand spanking new Bicknell Modified dirt race car and next to it is a GM Crate motor. A big block crate motor. Billy wheels over a tool cart with a pile of tools on it. The brand new race car is all white to match the hauler and his drag car and the only thing painted on the side panels and roof is a gold leaf number.


Number 88.


"I got thinkin’ dis week. I needed to make a change. I needed to stand up not only to the bullies of the UWL. But to the cheaters and liars in the UWL. Beatin Steve….it made me change da way I look at da UWL, How I see the current lay of the landscape. Fer a year I have been held down by Steve. I have been kept under his thumb. He dictated who I fought, when I fought and why I fought. Well!”


Billy reaches in his back pocket for his can of chew.


"I can stand here and tell you dis! When I put dat mask on and became DJR…….man oh man! The freedom I felt. I was able to navigate my way through the UWL! I along with my cousin was able to get a shot at the UWL tag team titles on our own. We won those titles on our own. We fought Shadows and Hammerstorm and we battled and battled over those tiles and while in the end we came up short.”


Billy taps the top of his chew can.


"At least we did it our way! We can hold our heads up and say we did our way. Win or lose we got it done the way we wanted it without Steve standing behind us and telling us, no you can’t do that! You're not fightin’ them. You’re not doing dat!”


Billy takes a pinch of chew and stuffs his bottom lip.


"Now with Steve out of the picture. Ima callin’ my own shots! Dat is why the other night instead of fightin’ Jason Michaels, which I know if Steve was callin’ da shots I would have fought him and what would have dat gained me? Jason didn’t want to fight me. He wants to get his hands on Justin Brooks and me? Well if you were watchin’ on Fox Sports 1 Saturday night den you know who I want to get my hands on. You see. Ima headin’ in a new direction. Dat is why…”


Billy turns towards his new race car and he slaps the sheet metal hood of the car.


"I got dis. Now what does this have to do with what Ima doin’ in da ring? Nothing and yet everything. You see I was only thinkin’ one thing. Championship gold. I only wanted to get my hands on da gold and that is all I was fixated on. Now we all know that there is nothing better den da Triple Crown, TV, Tag Team and now da Young Lions belt around yer waist. It speaks to who you are, what you have done and where ya goin’ you know but I was going in a straight line. All I wanted to do was go from A to B as quickly as I could. Much like a COPO Camaro you know. A straight line beast of a car ripping up tires, blownin’ motors and smoking da other guy down da strip. Well I gots thinkin’.”


Billy picks up his spit bottle off of his tool cart and unscrews the top.


"Anybody could do dat. You don’t need skill to go in a straight line. But what if da road is rocky, has some turns in it? Den what? I’ve gots to change my game. I want dat UWL TV title more than anything. Dat is my goal dis year, to win dat title. Ima fixated on dat title and da man who holds it, I view as a cheatin low life who shouldn’t be holdin’ on to dat title. I knows at one time Josh Eagles was the bees knees to da UWL but those days are long gone. He has dat elbow pad and I know first hand something isn’t up to snuff with dat thing. And Ima gunna fix dat. Dere might be some twist and turns along da way but at the end of the road…..Ima gunna be der first.”


Billy nods and takes a glance at his new race car and uses his spit bottle quick.


"Dis year in da ring, Ima gunna win da gold and on da track, Ima gunna win da track championship and both, won’t happen overnight. And dat journey happens dis week. Today Ima takin’ dis car, and all of da parts I have and start building this big block tire shredding’ clay turning monster of a modified and tomorrow I will get into da ring and look across it and see Bowers. He is the shake down match up on my road to da UWL TV title. I don’t have anything against you Bowers and I think dat dog of yours, Gordon is awesome. If I had more time I would want a dog just like him. But in dis match someone has to win.”


Billy turns and points to himself meaning he’s going to win.


"And someone has to lose.”


Billy points at the camera.


"Don’t take it personal, it’s just da way it has to be. Ima a man on a mission and no one including you will stop me at winning da race fer da UWL TV title. Just remember Bowers. I fully expect you to play within da rules, to uphold the rules inside dat ring and not to pull any funny stuff. But Ima tellin’ ya….you start playin’ dirty. Dat will piss me off and I might end up serving justice of my own. Redneck justice. Der is no place for cheaters and rule breakers in da UWL. Got it?”


Billy crosses his arms as the scene fades to black……….