Robby Gordon

For other people named Robert Gordon, see Robert Gordon (disambiguation).
Robby Gordon

Gordon in November 2004
Nationality  United States
Born (1969-01-02) January 2, 1969
Cerritos, California
Related to Huntley Gordon (great-grandfather)
Bob Gordon (father)
Beccy Gordon (sister)
Robyn Gordon (sister)
Ryan Hunter-Reay (brother in-law)
Speed Energy Formula Off-Road career
Debut season 2013
Car no. 7
Championships 2
Wins 10
Poles 3
Best finish 1st in 2013, 2014
Finished last season 2nd (2015)
Championship titles
2013–2014 Speed Energy Formula Off-Road
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series career
396 races run over 20 years
2012 position 52nd
Best finish 16th (2003)
First race 1991 Daytona 500 (Daytona)
Last race 2013 Toyota/Save Mart 350 (Sonoma)
First win 2001 New Hampshire 300 (New Hampshire)
Last win 2003 Sirius at the Glen (Watkins Glen)
Wins Top tens Poles
3 39 1
NASCAR Xfinity Series career
54 races run over 9 years
2011 position 129th
Best finish 21st (2004)
First race 2001 GNC Live Well 250 (Watkins Glen)
Last race 2011 NAPA Auto Parts 200 (Montreal)
First win 2004 Emerson Radio 250 (Richmond)
Wins Top tens Poles
1 18 0
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series career
4 races run over 3 years
2008 position 71st
Best finish 68th (1996)
First race 1996 Lowe's 250 (North Wilkesboro)
Last race 2004 O'Reilly 200 (Bristol)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 2 0
Statistics current as of June 28, 2013.
IndyCar Series career
8 races run over 7 years
Best finish 29th (2000)
First race 1996 Las Vegas 500K (Las Vegas)
Last race 2004 Indianapolis 500 (Indy)
Wins Podiums Poles
0 0 0
Champ Car career
153 races run over 10 years
Years active 1989–1999
Best finish 1st (1994, 1995)
First race 1989 ITT Automotive Grand Prix of Detroit (Belle Isle)
Last race 1999 Marlboro 500 (California)
First win 1991 Slick 50 200 (Phoenix)
Last win 1995 ITT Automotive Grand Prix of Detroit (Belle Isle)
Wins Podiums Poles
2 9 4
Medal record
Representing  United States
Summer X Games
2015 Austin Stadium Super Trucks
2014 Austin Stadium Super Trucks

Robert W. "Robby" Gordon (born January 2, 1969) is an American racecar driver. He has raced in NASCAR, CART, IndyCar, Trans-Am, IMSA, IROC and Dakar Rally. He currently competes in the Speed Energy Formula Off-Road series, a series that he had created in 2013.

Off-road racing

Gordon, the son of off-road racer "Baja Bob" Gordon, started out competing in off road racing. He won 5 consecutive SCORE International off-road class championships from 1986–1990, a sixth championship in 1996, and a seventh championship in 2009. Gordon also won two championships in the Mickey Thompson stadium series, three Baja 500 in 1989, 1990, and 2005, and three Baja 1000 in 1987, 1989, and 2006.

Gordon has continued off-road racing throughout his career in Champ Car and NASCAR. In 2005 Gordon took part in the famous 16-day Dakar Rally, driving for the Red Bull sponsored Volkswagen team. He became the first American to win a stage in the car division. He won two stages in total and a 12th place division finish. In 2006, Gordon took part in the Dakar Rally in a Hummer H3. Team Dakar USA did well until stage 9, when a damaged radiator caused late arrival at Atar, Mauritania, and subsequent disqualification. Gordon and co-driver Andy McMillin won the trophy truck class in the 2006 Baja 1000, finishing second overall in the race. After that, Gordon competed in his third Dakar Rally in 2007, driving the Monster Energy Hummer H3 for Team Dakar USA. He finished in the 8th position, his best finish in this race. His current trophy truck sponsor is Speed Energy and drove his Monster Energy truck in the 2007 Baja 500 with a second overall finish. Gordon's sisters Beccy Gordon and Robyn Gordon competed in the 2006 Baja 1000 on the all-woman team All-American Girl Racing.

Gordon raced in selected Traxxas TORC Series events, including the 2010 AMSOIL Cup World Championship race at Crandon International Off-Road Raceway.[1] He led the first lap of the race before retiring with mechanical difficulties.

Gordon finished 3rd in the 2009 Dakar Rally in South America, where the event was moved after terrorist threats led the cancellation of the 2008 event. He finished 8th in the 2010 Dakar Rally in South America with his Monster Energy truck. He had been excluded from the 2012 edition after stage 10 for illegal modifications of his engine.

Stadium Super Trucks

The Stadium Super Truck of Gordon at the 2015 Clipsal 500 Adelaide

In June 2012, Gordon announced that he was founding and owning a stadium truck racing series of his own, titled the Stadium Super Trucks, based on the stadium truck racing concept developed by Mickey Thompson. The series ran its first season in 2013.[2]

A lot of drivers affiliated with Gordon's closed Cup Series NASCAR team such as P. J. Jones for example,[3][4] followed Gordon to race in the Super Trucks. Gordon himself would be an owner-driver.

Gordon won the inaugural Stadium Super Truck championship in 2013, by seven points following a year-long battle with former Mickey Thompson Off-Road teammate Rob MacCachren.[5]

Gordon's series was renamed to the Speed Energy Formula Off-Road Series in 2014.

IMSA

In 1990, Gordon began racing sports cars. He won races in both Trans-Am and IMSA Camel GT, where he had four consecutive class wins in the 24 Hours of Daytona from 1990–1994, and three consecutive 12 Hours of Sebring class wins.

Open-wheel racing

Gordon’s first start in the CART IndyCar series came in 1992. His first full season and Indy 500 start would come in 1993. He raced for Derrick Walker from 1994–96. With Walker, he captured his first career pole in 1994 (Toronto), and both his CART career wins in 1995 (Phoenix and Detroit). For 1999, Gordon fielded his own team in the series with little success as the Toyota power the team used was still sub-par in performance.

Gordon raced 10 times in the Indy 500 from 1993 to 2004 fielding his own team in 1999, 2000 and 2004. He, along with John Andretti, Tony Stewart, and Kurt Busch are the only four drivers to race in the Coca-Cola 600 and Indy 500 in the same day. In 1999, Gordon came within one lap of winning the Indianapolis 500. He inherited the lead by virtue of not stopping for a final pit stop and tried to conserve enough fuel to last until the end of the race. His fuel ran out coming out of turn 3 on second last lap and he had to give up the lead to Sweden's Kenny Bräck.

During his time in open-wheel, Gordon earned a reputation as a tough and sometimes overly aggressive racer. According to Gordon, his decision to leave open wheel was based largely on safety concerns.[6]

Stock cars

Gordon made his debut in stock car racing in November 1990 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, driving for Junie Donlavey in the Automobile Racing Club of America season finale; he finished 21st, but turned heads by winning the pole for the event.[7]

NASCAR

Sprint Cup Series

Gordon signing autographs at his souvenir trailer, a very common sight during most NASCAR weekends
2004 racecar

Gordon's Winston Cup debut came in 1991, driving two races, including the Daytona 500 for Junie Donlavey in the No. 90 Ford. In 1993, Gordon drove the No. 28 Texaco-sponsored Ford for Robert Yates Racing at Talladega in the team's first race after the death of driver Davey Allison. In 1994 Gordon drove in one race for Michael Kranefuss starting and finishing 38th at Michigan. In 1996, Gordon raced at Charlotte in what was one of the first starts ever for Dale Earnhardt, Inc.. He also raced at Rockingham and Phoenix for Felix Sabates. Gordon's first full-time ride came in 1997 with Felix Sabates' Team SABCO. Gordon raced in 22 starts with SABCO, and captured the pole at Atlanta. He also finished fourth at Watkins Glen, his only Top 10 finish of the year. He returned to NASCAR full-time in 2000, attempting to run his own team. Again, the results were disappointing; he failed to qualify for several races and finished with only two Top 10's in 17 starts.

Gordon started the 2001 season driving for Morgan-McClure Motorsports in the No. 4 Kodak-sponsored Chevrolet, but was replaced by Kevin Lepage after only five races. Gordon returned to racing in a one-off agreement with Ultra Motorsports, where he replaced the team's regular driver Mike Wallace in the No. 7 NationsRent-sponsored Ford for the June race at Sears Point. Gordon was leading that race near the end, but was passed by Tony Stewart, when Gordon repeatedly fought to hold off a lapped Kevin Harvick, which gave Stewart the chance to overtake Gordon and win the race.

Later in the same season, he joined Richard Childress Racing as a replacement for an injured Mike Skinner. In the rescheduled season finale at New Hampshire, Gordon was engaged in a closing-laps battle with eventual champion Jeff Gordon (no relation). With 16 laps to go, leader Jeff Gordon (who ended up leading 257 of the 300 laps) was stuck behind the 12th place No. 77 car of Robert Pressley trying to stay on the lead lap, with Robby right on his tail. In the middle of turns three and four, Robby gave a bump to Jeff while he had slowed down to try and pass the lapped car of Mike Wallace, sending him into Wallace's No. 12 car and inflicting damage on the 24 car. Jeff was black flagged while attempting to retaliate under caution, and Robby went on to earn a controversial first career victory.[8] The race, which had originally been scheduled for September, was postponed after the September 11 attacks, and after the event Gordon announced he would donate all his winnings to the victims of the 9/11 attacks.

Gordon continued to race for Richard Childress Racing in 2002. He crashed in the Daytona 500 and had a string of poor finishes in the spring. He performed well at Sonoma and led the most laps at Watkins Glen with 21 and finished third. He had a Top 10 running at the Bank of America 500 but crashed in a 10-car-pileup which also collected his teammates, Jeff Green, and Kevin Harvick. 2002 was a bad year for him in performance and he finished in 20th in the championship standings.

In 2003, he had his best NASCAR performing year. He finished 6th place in the Daytona 500 and finished 10th in the Aaron's 499. Then he earned his first road course win at Infineon Raceway, after a controversial but legal pass under caution of his then-teammate, Kevin Harvick. Gordon took his third career win later in the year at Watkins Glen. He, Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, and Kyle Busch are the only drivers to win both road course events (at Infineon Raceway and Watkins Glen) in one season since the two became part of the current Sprint Cup schedule.

In summer 2004, Gordon hinted desire to leave the No. 31 team for his poor season. Despite Richard Childress asking Gordon to stay on RCR, Gordon announced in late 2004 that he would be operating his own Nextel Cup team Robby Gordon Motorsports. Childress initially refused to let Gordon go but when Roush Fenway Racing fired Jeff Burton, Childress released Gordon and hired Burton to replace Gordon.

For 2005, Gordon moved his Busch Series team up to the Nextel Cup, and was the only owner/driver left. Gordon's primary sponsor was Jim Beam Bourbon; his crew chief was Greg Erwin. Fruit of the Loom was the primary sponsor for nine races in the 2005 season. His friend John Menard had his hardware corporation, Menards also become sponsors, as well as Harrah's. Gordon again struggled as an owner/driver, finishing with only two-top tens in 29 starts and failing to qualify for several races.

Gordon racing at Martinsville in October 2007.

In 2006, Gordon's team used engines from Dale Earnhardt, Inc., and showed slight improvement over the previous year's performance over the first few races. He performed well at Sonoma and Watkins Glen, qualifying and finishing in the top 10 in both races. For the 2007 season, Gordon switched to the Ford Fusion, with engines supplied from Roush-Yates. He had two Top 10's and finished 26th in points.

2008 racecar

On February 1, 2008, Gordon said he would go to Dodge in 2008, marking his 4th change in as many years. He also announced a technical, manufacturing and marketing services agreement with Gillett Evernham Motorsports. After dropping to 33rd in points, Gordon announced he would be running Toyotas in 2009, which would be his 5th change in as many years.[9]

Gordon competed in fewer races in 2010, as Jim Beam did not renew its contract and due to Gordon's poor performance. The team finished 34th in 2009 owner's standings. In January 2010, Gordon formed an alliance with BAM Racing, his sixth change in six years. In 2010, with Ted Musgrave driving, his team failed to qualify at Pocono, the first time since the 2005 race at Texas. He performed well at Sonoma in the Toyota Save Mart 350 and ended up second to Jimmie Johnson, which secured some part-time sponsorship for RGM. A penalty involving another team moved the No. 7 back into the Top 35. Due to a commitment in Argentina, Bobby Labonte drove the No. 7 at Loudon. P. J. Jones and Kevin Conway have also shared the No. 7; Gordon entered a No. 07 car for a number of races.

He secured a sponsorship to compete in the 2012 Daytona 500,[10] but poor performance resulted in Gordon racing only at Phoenix and the road-course race at Sonoma. He failed to qualify for early-season races at Las Vegas and Fontana.[11]

In 2012, Gordon announced a money-sponsorship crisis. Robby Gordon Motorsports was facing bankruptcy in regards to the NASCAR operations because of bad finishes. As a result, he only raced on the road course events in NASCAR for 2012 but when he had poor finishes in those races Gordon's NASCAR career ended in 2013 as he was unable to attract sponsorship for any more NASCAR seasons.[11] The No. 7 was taken by Dave Blaney of Tommy Baldwin Racing.

In 2013, Gordon officially closed RGM's NASCAR headquarters in Charlotte to form the Stadium Super Truck series.

Nationwide Series

Gordon's first Busch Series experience came in 2001 when he ran 3 races for Richard Childress Racing in the No. 21 Rockwell Automation Chevrolet. His best finish was 5th at Watkins Glen International.

In 2004 Gordon started his own then Busch Series team, Robby Gordon Motorsports, driving in 25 NBS races and earning one win which came at Richmond in his new self-owned No. 55 Chevy. From 2004-2010 drivers that have driven for Robby Gordon Motorsports included PJ Jones, Bobby Labonte, David Gilliland, Kevin Conway, Scott Wimmer, Reed Sorenson and Johnny Sauter.

Gordon in the qualification for the 2010 NAPA Auto Parts 200 at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal.

He participated in several Busch races in 2006, including a few for Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s Nationwide team (JR Motorsports). The most notable highlight of his season was a second-place finish at Watkins Glen on August 12. Driving his own No. 7 Chevy, Gordon went door-to-door with Kurt Busch, driver of the No. 39 car for Penske South Racing, for the final few laps. Gordon gained ground in the chicane, almost catching Busch. The two cars went wildly into the grass and dirt, almost wrecking each other. Gordon was able to save his car, as Busch went down the final straightaway to win the race. While being interviewed in victory lane Busch gave Gordon praise for a great race and said it reminded him of his race with Ricky Craven at Darlington in 2003.

In 2007 Gordon only had a few top tens in the NBS and came near to a win at Montreal before being disqualified by NASCAR for ignoring a penalty. He was further in trouble when he reacted to the penalty by intentionally crashing Marcos Ambrose to retaliate for a previous crash – an action that denied Ambrose (who dominated the race) the win and got Gordon suspended from the Sprint Cup Race at Pocono the next day. A backup driver and one of Gordon's friends, P. J. Jones took over for Gordon upon his suspension. Gordon, to make up for the incident, gave Ambrose a free race for RGM at Watkins Glen International the next weekend to make his first Sprint Cup start but because of rain, Ambrose did not qualify. Gordon, his sponsors and fans have said to this day that he won the 2007 NAPA 200 but nonetheless have accepted the penalty. In 2010, Gordon announced that he made himself a banner and makeshift trophy similar to the NAPA 200 trophy saying he won the 2007 NAPA 200 and when asked by reporters about how he was going to recover in 2010's Montreal race Gordon chuckled and said "You mean since I won? We’ve still got the banner hanging on our wall. We came back for redemption, and we’ll do the best job we can.”[12]

On March 28, 2008, Gordon and the No. 22 Supercuts Dodge Team of Fitz Motorsports joined forces for a part-time schedule in the NASCAR Nationwide Series after driver Mike Bliss left the team to drive the No. 1 Chevrolet owned by James Finch. As of the press release Gordon is slated to drive both the Phoenix and Texas Nationwide Series events in the No. 22 car.

Gordon drove his No. 55 Mapei/Menards Dodge in the Chicagoland Race in July. He also started the Watkins Glen race in his No. 55 Jim Beam Dodge in 2nd place and finished in 19th position.

In 2009 he drove his No. 55 Hard-Rock Hotel car at the Watkins Glen Nationwide race. Starting 3rd he was briefly in contention for the win until he tangled with Joey Logano with 7 laps to go. He finished 14th.

In 2010 he drove the No. 07 Menards car in the Nationwide series at Montreal as part of his alliance with John Menard for RGM. It was the first time since 2007 that he drove at Montreal due to his altercation with Marcos Ambrose (see below) due to having made amends by skipping the next races at the track. He dominated the last 20 laps of the race but ran out of fuel with two laps to go handing the win to colleague veteran Boris Said and resulted in the top 20 in the finish.

In 2011 he drove his No. 77 Mapei car at Montreal. He led 5 laps but broke down from engine failure, finishing 31st.

Craftsman Truck Series

Gordon has run 4 career Craftsman Truck Series races with one top-5 and 2 top-10 finishes. He has run for Team SABCO, Bobby Hamilton Racing, and Morgan-Dollar Motorsports.

Other racing

Gordon competed twice in the Race of Champions, first in 2001 in Gran Canaria, where he broke the lap time record. In 2014, Gordon competed in the Nations Cup for Team Americas alongside 2014 World Touring Car champion José María López.[13]

Controversies

In the 2001 New Hampshire 300 the race was postponed due to the 9/11 attacks and Jeff Gordon clinched the 2001 Cup championship the previous week at Atlanta. The race was held around Thanksgiving in 2001 and Gordon driving the No. 31 Richard Childress Racing car, after Mike Skinner chose to retire from RCR after he was nearly killed in a crash at a previous race, won his first race in the Cup series after an incident with Jeff Gordon: with 16 laps to go Jeff was leading hoping to make his points bigger in his inevitable margin against Tony Stewart by winning the race but Robby in the No. 31 drove up to second place and made slight contact, getting Jeff Gordon loose, and giving Robby the lead. Jeff was angered and rushed under caution to retaliated by trying to cutting down Robby's tire but was black-flagged before he could make a second attempt to get to the No. 31's tire. Jeff served a one lap penalty, still won the championship and managed to race in the middle of the pack back up to 15th place and pocket a large purse of money. Robby on the final restart pulled away from Sterling Marlin and won his first cup race and victory on an oval. This win gave Robby the No. 31 RCR car for a multi-year deal after 2001. Jeff when interviewed maintained that he should have not been penalized and publicly retorted to Robby that he should have been embarrassed to have won in the way that the finish was; Robby said in reply that he Jeff "should be embarrassed for retaliating like he did."[14] Robby then promised to donate all his winning money by division to the 9/11 victims' relatives. (35)

In the 2003 Dodge/Save Mart 350, Gordon was so eager to try for his second cup win in the No. 31 RCR car. Prior to the race, Gordon was vomiting from food poisoning yet still ended Jeff Gordon's streak of domination at Sonoma for 6 years by dominating the race. Coming to the caution with 38 laps to go, Robby Gordon took advantage of his teammate and friend, Kevin Harvick by passing Harvick in turn 11 under caution and in the final laps was able to hold off Jeff Gordon for his second cup win in the No. 31 RCR team and his first cup win on a road course. Harvick ultimately finished 3rd. His pass under caution was ridiculed by Jeff Gordon, Kevin Harvick and several other drivers because while the pass was legal it was considered "ungentlemanly." However, NASCAR declared Robby Gordon as the winner and in reply to the ridicules he received from Jeff Gordon, NASCAR fans and Robby said "He's won enough of these things, and I guess he doesn't like it when someone else rains on his parade." This comment led NASCAR to give Robby Gordon and Jeff Gordon warnings to resolve their differences.[15]

During the 2005 Daytona 500, NASCAR penalized 10 race teams. Gordon's new No. 7 team was among them. His crew chief Bob Temple was fined $50,000 and Robby was deducted of 25 driver & owner points for an illegal unapproved installation on his racecar. With no owner points to fall back on, as his team was brand-new, Gordon didn't qualify for the 2005 Daytona 500 due to the penalty.

During the 2005 running of the Sylvania 300, Gordon was involved in a wreck with Michael Waltrip, the driver of the No. 15 NAPA Chevrolet. The angered Gordon got out of his totaled car and threw his helmet at the No. 15 car as it was passing by. Tony Stewart's No. 20 missed the helmet just seconds after it hit Waltrip's car. When TNT interviewed him about the crash, he stated "You know Michael, everybody thinks Michael's a good guy. He's not the good guy like he actually is. The caution was out and he wrecked me and he's a piece of shit." TNT apologized for his language, and Gordon apologized after the race, but Gordon was fined $50,000 and docked 50 drivers points. When asked by some people for the helmet, Gordon decided to auction it for the benefit of the Harrah's Employee Relief Fund, a fund that provides aid to Harrah's employees displaced by Hurricane Katrina. The helmet fetched $51,100, and was purchased by GoldenPalace.com.

During the 2006 Bass Pro Shops 500, he brought controversy by allegedly throwing roll bar padding onto the track at Atlanta Motor Speedway, drawing a caution flag that had a significant impact for the end of the race, especially drivers in pit road, most notably NEXTEL Cup contender Jeff Burton who wound up finishing 13th. Video from the race was not conclusive as to if he did in fact put debris on the track but NASCAR reacted by docking Gordon 50 points (each in the Driver and Car Owner categories) and a $15,000 fine. Gordon has denied he intentionally threw the debris.[16]

During the inaugural NAPA Auto Parts 200 at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in 2007, Gordon was involved in an on-circuit altercation with fellow driver Marcos Ambrose. Gordon passed Ambrose to take the lead at the same time as a multi-car wreck was unfolding behind them; Ambrose spun him, under a yellow flag, to reclaim it seconds later.[17] After an unusually long delay in sorting out the field for the restart, NASCAR eventually determined that Gordon would restart in 13th position. Gordon, who had a strong race all day, refused to go to that position, and was black flagged after the restart, and after spinning out Ambrose. Gordon did not come in for his penalty and was then given the black flag with diagonal white cross, meaning that his subsequent laps were no longer being scored. As a result, he finished 18th. Following the race, Gordon proceeded to do burnouts on the front straightaway as if celebrating his victory, alongside race winner Kevin Harvick. He announced in a post-race interview that he would appeal the result of the race.[18] However, NASCAR suspended Gordon for the following race at Pocono. In a statement released soon after the NASCAR announcement, Gordon apologized for his actions but maintained that NASCAR made a mistake in telling him to line up in the 13th position.[19]

Gordon was docked 100 driver and owner points as a result of rule infractions during Speedweeks of 2008 at Daytona. Gordon's car was found with an unapproved front bumper cover. His crew chief Frank Kerr was suspended for 6 weeks until April 9, 2008, was fined $100,000, and placed on probation until December 31, 2008. Gordon was not fined. Gordon appealed the penalty issued by NASCAR in of February, 2008. Gordon issued a press statement. "This was an innocent mistake made by someone not even on our race team. They accidentally sent us the new Dodge noses that haven't yet been approved by NASCAR." According to NASCAR Gordon's Dodge nose says Charger, but it is actually an Avenger and it had the approved nose's part number. On March 5, 2008, the penalty against him was rescinded by NASCAR following the appeal, and he gained back his 100 driver points and the suspension was lifted. Despite this, the fine was increased to $150,000.

Gordon's off-road finishes have also been the source of controversy. His second-place finish in the San Felipe 250, March 2009, was overshadowed by allegations that in a very remote area he verred off course and drove down a cliff. The maneuver let him bypass a difficult section of the course, get ahead of another competitor without having to pass, and was a four-mile shortcut. Trophy Truck competitor Ed Herbst filed a protest,[20] which was supported by evidence from a pit crew known as the Baja Fools who had set up a pit stop in that section of the course. On investigation, two sets of Toyo tire tracks (identical to those on Gordon's truck) were found which established the four-mile shortcut.[20] The protest was denied[21] based on the fact that given Gordon's average speed, the four-mile shortcut would not have changed the results. After initially filing an appeal of the decision, Herbst, who shares a sponsor with Gordon, elected to withdraw the appeal and the results were deemed final.[22]

Likewise, Gordon was initially declared the winner of the 2009 Baja 500 on June 6, 2009. However, he was stripped of the title and moved to seventh place after it was determined that he violated two rules: one a fueling violation, the other a highway speed violation. A total of 100 minutes in penalties were assessed: 90 minutes for the more serious fueling violation where an amateur video proved that he illegally received fuel on the highway, and 10 minutes for the speed violation.[23]

Gordon's troubles with NASCAR rules continued in 2009. He was caught with excessive rear toe (angle of the wheels to the car) after the May 27, 2009 Coca-Cola 600 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. This illegal adjustment permits the car to carry more speed into the corner. Gordon was docked 50 points and his crew chief was fined $50,000. Gordon elected not to appeal the infraction.[24]

In 2010, the car Gordon owns and drives was found to have illegal parts during inspection on May 7, 2010 before a race at Darlington Raceway. Gordon was docked 25 owner points and 25 driver points. His crew chief, Samuel Stanley was fined $25,000 and placed on NASCAR probation for the rest of the year.[25] This fine brought Gordon's five year total to $290,000 paid to NASCAR.

On March 4, 2011, Gordon was placed on indefinite probation in NASCAR due to an altercation he had with driver Kevin Conway in the garage area the night before.[26] According to published reports, the two were involved in a scuffle over lawsuits each has filed against the other. Las Vegas police confirmed that Conway filed a criminal complaint charging Gordon with misdemeanor battery.[27]

On August 25, 2011, Danica Patrick officially announced her plans to leave the IndyCar Series to race in NASCAR and expressed her hope that she'd keep the number 7 that she has had throughout her motorsports career. Gordon, who has raced under many numbers but had the number 7 for the last six years, refused to give up the number, stating: "Why would I?"[28]

After the August 2011 Bristol race, Gordon admitted that he is now a "start and park" driver and will do so for most of the remainder of the season.[29] "Start and park" is a controversial practice whereby a driver starts the race but then immediately parks his car, collecting last place prize money and protecting his car from any on-track incidents. At Bristol, Gordon completed only 10 laps but pocketed $85,960.[30]

Ironically, in 2012, Gordon blasted past-champion Terry Labonte for "starting and parking" after 12 laps at the Daytona 500 qualifying race. As a past champion whose team was not in the Top 35 in 2011 owner's points, Labonte was guaranteed a start regardless of how he finished. Gordon stated: "It's just not right. Why take a free ride when the rest of us have to bust our butts to get into the 500?"[31] Labonte responded that his team had only one car and they needed it for the race.[32] Labonte ran the full race, leading three laps and finishing 18th, while Gordon retired after 25 laps and finished 41st.

Controversy continued to plague Gordon in 2012. While participating in the Dakar Rally, Gordon was running a strong second after nine stages before being disqualified after stewards ruled that the tire inflation system on his Hummer was illegal[33] after another competitor made an anonymous suggestion to the tech inspectors along the rally route, where it was called into question. Gordon stated that if there was a problem with the system, he would plug it and still win stages. He did so the following day, winning the stage by more than 15 minutes in front of the second-place finisher.[34]

Gordon was permitted to continue while the ruling was appealed to the French Automobile Sport Federation (FFSA).[35] The appeal was denied two months later.[36] After Gordon disqualification was upheld, he was stricken from the race results.[37]

Gordon's Hummer crashed and rolled over in the sand dunes of Peru in the penultimate stage of the rally (01/14/2012), but was set back on its wheels by spectators and Gordon continued on to a 10th-place finish of that stage.[38] He then won the final stage the following day, finishing the rally in 5th place overall.[39]

Personal life

On September 14, 2016, around 5 pm, Gordon's father, Robert, and his wife Sharon, were found dead in their Orange County home in an apparent murder-suicide.[40] It was confirmed later that week after a careful investigation, that it was indeed a murder-suicide. It was verified that Robert strangled Sharon and then committed suicide. Upon hearing the news, Gordon broke down in tears in an interview.

Significant victories

Racing record

American open-wheel racing results

(key)

CART

Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Rank Points
1992 Chip Ganassi Racing Australia
SRF		 United States
PHX		 United States
LBH		 United States
INDY		 United States
DET
Ret		 United States
POR
13		 United States
MIL
Ret		 United States
NHA		 Canada
TOR
8		 United States
MIS		 United States
CLE
8		 United States
ROA
Ret		 Canada
VAN
Ret		 United States
MDO		 United States
NZR		 United States
LS		 20th 10
1993 A. J. Foyt Enterprises Australia
SRF
3		 United States
PHX
Ret		 United States
LBH
DSQ		 United States
INDY
Ret		 United States
MIL
Ret		 United States
DET
8		 United States
POR
8		 United States
CLE
6		 Canada
TOR
6		 United States
MIS
Ret		 United States
NHA
5		 United States
ROA
Ret		 Canada
VAN
Ret		 United States
MDO
2		 United States
NZR
4		 United States
LS
10		 10th 84
1994 Walker Racing Australia
SRF
Ret		 United States
PHX
7		 United States
LBH
3		 United States
INDY
5		 United States
MIL
6		 United States
DET
3		 United States
POR
4		 United States
CLE
11		 Canada
TOR
6		 United States
MIS
Ret		 United States
MDO
4		 United States
NHA
13		 Canada
VAN
2		 United States
ROA
Ret		 United States
NZR
Ret		 United States
LS
13		 5th 104
1995 Walker Racing United States
MIA
Ret		 Australia
SRF
Ret		 United States
PHX
1		 United States
LBH
Ret		 United States
NZR
4		 United States
INDY
5		 United States
MIL
5		 United States
DET
1		 United States
POR
8		 United States
ROA
Ret		 Canada
TOR
5		 United States
CLE
6		 United States
MIS
DNS		 United States
MDO
8		 United States
NHA
9		 Canada
VAN
3		 United States
LS
15		 5th 121
1996 Walker Racing United States
MIA
3		 Brazil
RIO
Ret		 Australia
SRF
Ret		 United States
LBH
13		 United States
NZR
Ret		 United States
500
Ret		 United States
MIL
17		 United States
DET
Ret		 United States
POR
10		 United States
CLE
18		 Canada
TOR
9		 United States
MIS
8		 United States
MDO
Ret		 United States
ROA
Ret		 Canada
VAN
10		 United States
LS
15		 18th 29
1997 Hogan Racing United States
MIA		 Australia
SRF		 United States
LBH		 United States
NZR		 Brazil
RIO		 United States
STL		 United States
MIL		 United States
DET		 United States
POR		 United States
CLE		 Canada
TOR		 United States
MIS		 United States
MDO		 United States
ROA		 Canada
VAN		 United States
LS		 United States
FON
8		 26th 5
1998 Arciero-Wells Racing United States
MIA		 Japan
MOT		 United States
LBH		 United States
NZR
7		 Brazil
RIO		 United States
STL
13		 United States
MIL
Ret		 United States
DET
14		 United States
POR
Ret		 United States
CLE
Ret		 Canada
TOR
13		 United States
MIS
Ret		 United States
MDO
11		 United States
ROA
12		 Canada
VAN
Ret		 United States
LS
13		 United States
HOU
Ret		 Australia
SRF
16		 United States
FON
9		 23rd 13
1999 Team Gordon United States
MIA
Ret		 Japan
MOT
8		 United States
LBH
16		 United States
NZR
19		 Brazil
RIO
14		 United States
STL
Ret		 United States
MIL
Ret		 United States
POR
17		 United States
CLE
9		 United States
ROA
8		 Canada
TOR
13		 United States
MIS
Ret		 United States
DET
Ret		 United States
MDO
10		 United States
CHI
10		 Canada
VAN
Ret		 United States
LS
Ret		 United States
HOU
Ret		 Australia
SRF
8		 United States
FON
11		 20th 27

Indianapolis 500 results

Year Chassis Engine Start Finish Team
1993 Lola Ford-Cosworth 25 27 Foyt
1994 Lola Ford-Cosworth 19 5 Walker
1995 Lola Ford-Cosworth 7 5 Walker
1997 G-Force Oldsmobile 12 29 SABCO
1999 Dallara Oldsmobile 4 4 Menard
2000 Dallara Oldsmobile 4 6 Menard
2001 Dallara Oldsmobile 3 21 Foyt/Childress
2002 Dallara Chevrolet 11 8 Menard/Childress
2003 Dallara Honda 3 22 Andretti Green
2004 Dallara Chevrolet 18 29 Gordon

Dakar Rally

Year Class Vehicle Position Stages won
2005 Cars Volkswagen 12th 2
2006 Hummer DNF 0
2007 8 1
2008 Event cancelled – replaced by Central Europe Rally
2009 Car Hummer 3rd 0
2010 8 1
2011 DNF 0
2012 DSQ 1
2013 14 2
2014 DNF 0
2015 19 1
2016 Gordini 25 0

NASCAR

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Sprint Cup Series

Daytona 500
Year Team Manufacturer Start Finish
1991 Donlavey Racing Ford 35 18
1997 Team SABCO Chevrolet 20 16
2000 Team Menard Ford 17 18
2001 Morgan-McClure Motorsports Chevrolet 41 37
2002 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 12 13
2003 3 6
2004 30 35
2005 Robby Gordon Motorsports Chevrolet DNQ
2006 20 13
2007 Ford 39 15
2008 Dodge 26 8
2009 Toyota 31 34
2010 34 28
2011 Dodge 30 16
2012 17 41

Nationwide Series

Craftsman Truck Series

* Season still in progress
1 Ineligible for series points

ARCA Permatex SuperCar Series

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

International Race of Champions

(key) (Bold – Pole position. * – Most laps led.)

References

  1. ↑ "World Championship Off-Road Races program". Crandon International Off-Road Raceway. September 3–5, 2010.
  2. ↑ Sanchez, Edward A. (June 5, 2012). "Robby Gordon Revives Stadium Racing for 2013 Season". Truck Trend. El Segundo, CA: Interlink Media, Inc. Retrieved 2012-06-07.
  3. ↑ "P.J. Jones: 2007 NASCAR Nextel Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved January 29, 2016.
  4. ↑ "P.J. Jones: 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved January 29, 2016.
  5. ↑ Wagner, Jan (2013-11-22). "AutoMatters: Stadium SUPER Trucks at Caesars Palace". Del Mar Times. Retrieved 2013-11-25.
  6. ↑ Ryan, Nate; Graves, Gary (March 26, 2006). "Dana's death hits home". USA Today.
  7. ↑ Glick, Shav (January 13, 1991). "Best young driver is Gordon, but Jeff and Robby both claim it". The Baltimore Sun. Baltimore, MD. Retrieved 2014-05-15.
  8. ↑ "Robby Gordon Bumps And Wins". MRN.com. Loudon, New Hampshire: Motor Racing Network. November 23, 2001. Retrieved 26 September 2014.
  9. ↑ "News & Media". nascar.com. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
  10. ↑ Adamczyk, Jay (February 16, 2012). "Robby Gordon to attempt to make Daytona 500". Jayski's NASCAR Sprint Cup News Page. ESPN. Retrieved 2012-02-16.
  11. 1 2 Josh Stewart (2012-12-18). "Robby Gordon unlikely to race in NASCAR in 2013". As The World Turns Left. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
  12. ↑ Kekis, John (2010-08-28). "Robby Gordon back in Montreal to make amends". Washington Times. Retrieved 2013-06-19.
  13. ↑ "Robby Gordon Brings His Stadium Super Trucks To Barbados". Speed Energy Formula Off-Road. December 4, 2014. Archived from the original on December 8, 2014. Retrieved December 4, 2014.
  14. ↑ "Robby Gordon Bumps And Wins". Motor Racing Network. 2001-11-23. Retrieved 2013-06-19.
  15. ↑ Jenkins, Chris (2003-06-22). "Robby Gordon wins road race at Sonoma". USA Today. Retrieved 2013-06-19.
  16. ↑ Yahoo! Sports – Sports News, Scores, Rumors, Fantasy Games, and more
  17. ↑ "Harvick wins, but Robby Gordon claims crown – Motor Sports – MSNBC.com". MSNBC. 2007-08-04. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
  18. ↑ "ESPN – Harvick wins wild Busch race, but disqualified Gordon claims he won – Nascar". ESPN. 2007-08-05. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
  19. ↑ "ESPN – NASCAR parks Gordon after his actions in Busch race. In RG's Shop there is a banner that states he won the race. Nascar was wrong. – Nascar". ESPN. 2007-08-06. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
  20. 1 2 "2009 SCORE SAN FELIPE 250". Dirtnewz.com. 2009-03-15. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
  21. ↑ Archived March 22, 2009, at the Wayback Machine.
  22. ↑ Archived March 24, 2012, at the Wayback Machine.
  23. ↑ "2009 SCORE BAJA 500: AMERICAN HONDA PRO ATV TEAM WIN THE 41st ANNUAL TECATE SCORE BAJA 500!". Dirtnewz.com. 2009-06-11. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
  24. ↑ "NASCAR news, rumors, results, video highlights and more". scenedaily.com. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
  25. ↑ "Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site - Sprint Cup 2010 Penalties". Jayski Silly Season Site. ESPN. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
  26. ↑ "Sprint Cup driver Robby Gordon placed on indefinite probation - ESPN". ESPN. 2011-03-08. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
  27. ↑ "NASCAR places Robby Gordon on probation for Conway tussle | Las Vegas Review-Journal". Lvrj.com. 2011-03-06. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
  28. ↑ "Robby Gordon won't give Danica Patrick No. 7 in Sprint Cup - ESPN". ESPN. 2011-08-26. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
  29. ↑ "Robby Gordon says he plans to start and park many of remaining Cup races | HamptonRoads.com | PilotOnline.com". HamptonRoads.com. 2011-08-27. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
  30. ↑ "2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Race Results". Jayski's Silly Season Site. ESPN. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
  31. ↑ Archived February 26, 2012, at the Wayback Machine.
  32. ↑ "Fwd: The Frontstretch Newsletter: February 24th, 2012 - The Frontstretch | Google Groups". Groups.google.com. 2012-02-24. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
  33. ↑ "CUP: Robby Gordon Has Problems At Dakar". Speed. Archived from the original on 2013-08-09. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
  34. ↑ "Team SPEED Stage 12 Recap". Planet Robby. 2012-01-14. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
  35. ↑ "Gordon could face disqualification at Dakar Rally". CNN. January 12, 2012.
  36. ↑ "SA Toyotas benefit as Gordon loses appeal". The Star. 2012-03-29. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
  37. ↑ IOL Motoring (2012-03-27). "Gordon loses Dakar exclusion appeal - IOL Motoring Motorsport". IOL.co.za. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
  38. ↑ "ARGENTINA CHILE PERU DAKAR 2012". dakar.com. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
  39. ↑ http://www.dakar.com/dakar/2012/us/summary/rankings/overall-cars.html#ancre
  40. ↑ "Ex-NASCAR racer's dad, stepmom dead; possible murder-suicide". msn.com. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
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