Robby Gordon

[Lee]

It appears that Robby Gordon has lost the ride in the Morgan-McClure Chevrolet! Although the team owners expressed "confidence" in him, This is usually a prelude to a driver being dismissed from a team. Annomimus sorces within the team stated that Gordon would be replaced. The question is wheather it would be before, or after Darlington. Gordon had signed a five year contract to drive, but it appears that that will last exactly 4, 5 at a maximum, races! Personally, I'm amazed that he lasted as long as he did. Once again, he has proven that he is not a stock car driver! Opinions?

[Joe Fan]

Robby Gordon has the talent to be a great racer but for whatever reason, he isn't getting the job done so far this year. This is a much better ride than he had last year, so expectations should be higher.

[Neil C]

There are so many people that beleive drivers from open-wheel/road race series can just waltz into NASCAR and be instant successes. Yet the records are full of those that have tried and failed.

I'd like to hear from those "Ovals are easy" folks on this.

[Heeltoe6]

what is this, his 3rd try at it? Loks like third time wasn't a charm. Robby, stick to OW where you can win, and you have fans that enjoy watching you. Robby's arrogant persona only works when he can back it up on the track, which he can only do in ow/offroad, not in stocks. I miss him in OW, but he can never seem to stick to one series for more than 1 yr.

[senna12]

It is true that Robbie is a quick driver, but you guys are absolutely right, he has a very arrogant attitude that seems to manifest itself on the track. Even in Champ Cars, he was always in trouble. And you can be sure that he has NO friends among the drivers fraternity. If a few of the good 'ol boys decided Robbie wasn't gonna get very far, then he didn't! Dale may have been the original and the greatest, but he's not the only intimidator out there!

[Crash Test]

From what i remember of Robby in Champ Cars was that he was as rough as sandpaper on the steering...he would usually make 3 corrections before making it around a croner...

Maybe he had an open wheel engineer that could get a car set up to his liking?

[Airhead]

I used to really like the agressive edge and undeniable talent that Robbie had in Indy Cars. Then he went to IRL. Then what? Back to Champ Cars in his own team then to NASCAR.

Sorry to be so obviously ignorant, but why?

The NASCAR boys seem to play really hard in a very competitive formula. While the same could be said for Champ Cars the number of guys going into the series who don't do well is astounding. I'm thinking of another favourite of mine Scott Pruett.

[kuchi]

I agree with some of you in the fact that Robby is a better open wheel racer than a stock car racer. I mean he almost won the Indy 500, he just went out of fuel. And last year at Sears Pint he prover he is a good road racer, so why not looking for a job at the IRL if ot is true he is going to loose his Nascar ride?. Anyway drivers that come from cart have still to prove their skills, but IRL pure oval racing has proved with Tony that going round in circles ain't that easy.

[Joe Fan]

Without starting a heated debate on the virtues of various forms of motorsport, I believe that a NASCAR Winston Cup stock car is the most difficult car to drive. Winston Cup stock cars are low downforce cars when compared to today's winged open wheel cars. Many of the open wheel drivers years ago, who used to be competitive quickly in Winston Cup (then Grand National) cars back then, used to also drive low downforce cars at that time since it was the pre-wing era.

These cars are also driven constantly in the range of their loss/control on ovals, where on a road course, they may only reach such range periodically.

The problem is, since NASCAR Winston Cup cars have enclosed roofs, the average fan sitting at home cannot see how busy the drivers get behind the wheel at times.

I am not trying to devalue the merits of open wheel racing, just trying to explain why "just driving around in circles" is tougher than many think in a Cup car. There are many who do not respect oval racing but this is why it has its merits in slower, stock cars. Sometimes it doesn't take any contact to spin someone in a Cup car, just have someone come up behind you an take air off your spoiler.

Another thing you rarely see is someone come into Winston Cup and win or run near the front early on in their careers like you do in open wheel series. If they do, history has proven them to the real deal. Now some will say that how can I say this after Kevin Harick won in his third Winston Cup start? Well, it is easy. Harvick has been a quick study in Winston West and Busch Grand National. He had significant experience driving in the cars that are closest to a Winston Cup stock car, a Winston West car (winning the Winston West series as a rookie in 1997) and a Nascar Craftman Truck Series car (in 1998 and 1999). For those who are not aware, a Winston West car is essentially the same as a Winston Cup car, just less horsepower due to a 9.5:1 compression ratio. It is not rare for a few Winston Cup drivers to race in their Winston Cup car in a companion Winston West Saturday event at the same track. Ken Schrader did it a few years ago and if I remember correctly, it was a Las Vegas or Fontana. Last year, Harvick drove in the series that is best for learning Winston Cup circuits, Busch Grand National, and finished third as a rookie.

[Heeltoe6]

AMoffat, good question, one I don't think anyone really has the answer to. I do know is that the reson he switched from cart in 99 to cup in 2000 was the john menrard, his co owner, pulled the rug out form under him and wanted to get out of cart and in stocks. So Robby followed, a stayed because he somehow landed a good ride. But once he is gone, I would think he'd stick to open wheel, I never got the idea he really wanted to leave(despite his rehtoric), it was Menard's choice. But that still doesn't expalin all his bouncing around before that

[Lee]

Good points Joe.

[senna12]

I also agree totally with Joe Fan. These cars are no spring picnic to drive. At least with the number of in car cameras in use now, you can really see the back ends of the cars on the very edge of adhesion. And you're running side by side at 190 mph, sometimes 4 or 5 wide, in a pack of as many as 25 or 30 if you're at Talladega, my favorite tintop race.
I guess thats the thing for a lot of open wheel drivers, they just can't get used to the lack of downforce, and the willingness of their competitors to "get physical" when necessary!

[dei3fan]

In another forum where we discussed this subject an 'insider' reported that Robby can't get used to the feel of the cup car and keeps trying to get them to set his car up like an open wheeler and get it to feel like one which is impossible.apparently he's made a real pain in the but of himself.he has a contract which they were trying to find a way around and LePage was going to drive the car this week at Darlington till Robby shows up friday am with a lawyer and they had to take LePages seat out of the car and put
robby back in.I think he finished about 29th in todays race what a jerk. I'll be glad when he's gone and it WILL happen.
great points everyone on the differences between openwheel and stock.apparently Robby is one openwheeler who is not gonna get the hang of driving a stock car.

[Ax Slinger]

You've all made some valid points, but I also think it is a case of "some got it, and some don't". Tony Stewart used to drive open wheel cars too, and he is faring much better than Robby Gordon. I think Robby Gordon's problem is in his helmet. (In other words... Robby Gordon is Robby Gordon's problem.)

[Ax Slinger]

Well, it's official.

Rumors ring true: Gordon gone from Morgan-McClure Motorsports

[Lee]

Tim,

"Robby Gordon is Robby Gordon's problem" My friend, you have certianly hit the nail squarly on the head with that statement! I doubt you will get any argurment, from anyone, on that point! No truer words were ever spoken!

[Ax Slinger]

Well, thank ya Lee. Sadly though, this is a very common problem. It falls under that "You're your own worst enemy" thing...

Then again, if Robby Gordon was half as good a race car driver as his ego makes him think he is, he might not have lost his ride.

[Ax Slinger]

Sometimes I think my wife watches too much TV. (Except for racing, of course...) But today she got me good. During the race we were talking about Robby Gordon getting sacked, and she says she saw something on TV she just had to tell me about. With a very serious look, she told me this story.

Kevin LaPage walked into the garage at Morgan-McClure Motorsports, looked at the #4 Kodak Max race car, and said "Isn't that Robby Gordon's car?"

Crew Chief David Ifft looked at him kind of puzzled and said "No Kevin, that's your car."

Kevin just grinned and said "Yes, it is, isn't it..."

[Lee]

OMG! ROTFLMAO!!!! Good one Tim!

[Ax Slinger]

Ya made her day, Lee. She is now quite pleased with herself to have made you laugh so hard. I take it you've seen that dumb commercial she based her joke from on TV then? I don't watch much TV. (Except on race day, of course.) I'm more of a computer nerd myself, and have only seen that commercial once or twice, but it was enough to understand the joke. And considering how I view ol' Robby, it was funny...

[jimbo]

I agree that Robbie Gordon's biggest enemy is in fact Robbie Gordon. He is arrogant and has a big mouth and probably has ticked off more than one person in every series he has been in.

[KC]

I have never doubted that a WC car is very difficult to drive. They are overweight and under-tired. But I do believe they have a larger window of forgiveness than most open-wheelers when oval racing. We have all seen a WC driver catch a sliding car before doing major damage to it, but I think the Indy cars and CART cars are not so easy to catch if and when something goes wrong. More than one being more difficult than another to drive, I think they both require a different sub-set of racing skills to learn and get right.

WC cars and Indy cars both require incessant concentration to get them around the track at front running race speeds. Both require excellent tire management. WC cars require excellent large pack driving tactics, more so than Indy cars. But Indy cars require fast laps while using the minimum amount of fuel. While the draft is super critical in WC racing, it can catch an Indy car driver out as the closure rates are so much faster between the 190mph WC car and the 230mph Indy car.

Tony Stewart has proven that a good race driver can drive anything. I have no doubt that Dale Earnhardt Sr. could have made an excellent Indy driver because he had the consumate racer's skills. He was only starting to prove that he was a good sports car driver. Thats not something you learn from just turning left at superspeedways, that comes from having the pure unadulterated ability to know what that car was doing even while pushing the ragged edge. I believe the term is called mechanical sympathy.

[Raoul Duke]

Well one thing I have noticed is the difference in drafting. In a WC car at Talladega and Daytona the drafting is all natural.
But I was watching last years CART race at Fontana, and at one point Helio Castro Neves was behind Juan Montoya and he got so close that he nearly got sucked into the back of him and had to swerve out of the way. In WC racing you will see, so often, a car hit the back of another car withought any damage done. It even helps sometimes. Bobby Hamilton's victory at Talladega was partly due to the cars behind him that were giving him a push in those final laps.