Gordon aiming to bow out a five-time champion

Jeff Gordon heads into the finale of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at the Homestead-Miami Speedway on Sunday hoping to bow out in the perfect manner.

Hendrick Motorsports driver Gordon is one of four men who can win the Sprint Cup at the Ford Ecoboost 400, which will serve as his final race before retirement.

The 44-year-old will become a five-time champion should he win the cup, but faces competition from defending champion Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch and Martin Truex Jr.

"When I set out into this season and made the announcement that I made, I just hoped that this could possibly happen, and it is," Gordon said.

"And now it's not enough for us just to go down there and be a part of it.

"We want to go there and push hard and get every single thing we can out of ourselves and our team and see if we can't give these guys a run for their money."

Stewart-Haas Racing's Harvick admits he has felt the pressure on his shoulders this season following his maiden title last year, saying: "It's definitely, definitely different.

"There's a lot more to think about. There's a lot more to do. There's a lot more things to manage. I feel like the playbook worked OK last year, so we'll just try that again."

While Gordon and Harvick have pedigree when it comes to winning the cup, Joe Gibbs Racing's Busch is aiming to do so for the first time following a remarkable campaign.

Busch missed the first 11 races of the season due to a crash the day before the Daytona 500 but came back to qualify for the Sprint Cup Chase thanks to four race wins.

Truex, meanwhile, is aiming to seal a first Sprint Cup for one-car team Furniture Row Racing, and does so with the freedom of perspective having witnessed his girlfriend battle ovarian cancer for more than a year.

"Racing is certainly important, and it's a big part of my life, but it's not the only thing that matters," Truex said.

"Each and every single weekend, and every week getting prepared for the race, I give it my all. That's all I can do. There's a lot of things in this sport you can't control. And I've just learned not to worry about those."