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Even with a sore back, Jeff Gordon is atop the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship standings. Makes you wonder what he's capable of if a procedure to alleviate the pain works.Doctors performed a facet block procedure on Gordon on Monday, hoping to reduce the chronic back pain the four-time champ says he's endured for years.
"I was a little sore after the procedure," Gordon said. "but I'll definitely take that brief bit of soreness if it stops the recurring back pain I've had."
Not only is Gordon fully expecting to compete in the series' longest race of the year on Sunday evening, the Coca-Cola 600, at Lowe's Motor Speedway, the 38-year-old is going to drive a go-kart in a charity race for his Jeff Gordon Foundation on Wednesday.
"That event is always a lot of fun and it shouldn't be a strain on my back,'' Gordon said. "Even running karts I've felt some discomfort in my back, so that event may provide an early indication of how well the procedure worked."
Gordon revealed two months ago that his lower back had been bothering him for some time. An MRI earlier this month revealed some arthritis and also showed damage likely stemming from years of racing competition.
The facet block procedure is considered a common out-patient treatment for back pain, where doctors inject a numbing agent such as lidocaine, followed by an anti-inflammatory medicine, according to Peter Ullrich Jr., MD.
The series starts its second weekend of racing at Lowe's on Friday. Gordon scored his first ever Cup victory in this race in 1994 and has five wins and seven poles on the 1.5-mile track.
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