Jeff Gordon was in the thick of dissecting Hendrick Motorsports’ prospects for the NASCAR championship when he was interrupted by a text message from his team’s chief rival.

This wasn’t any typical trash talk about the title.

Joe Gibbs Racing president Dave Alpern instead was contacting the Hendrick vice chairman to convey how privileged JGR felt in facing a longtime adversary.

“He just beat me to the punch; I would have done the same thing,” Gordon said Sunday night at Martinsville Speedway, where Hendrick locked up the final two berths in the title round of NASCAR’s premier series. “It just goes to show you the respect we have for one another. We’re honored as well. I’m really proud to have the relationship that we have with Gibbs. Off the track, we say we’re teammates, but on the t

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