MBNA 400: A Salute to Heroes - Robby Gordon Notes

Robby Gordon
Team Cingular Event Preview

Race/Date: MBNA America 400 “A Salute to Heroes”/June 6, 2004
Location: Dover (Del.) International Speedway

NASCAR Cup Points Position: 19th

NOTES:

This Week’s Race Car at Dover International Speedway (Chassis No. 100) has run at almost every short track on the NASAR Cup schedule, including Bristol, Richmond, Dover, Martinsville, Loudon and Rockingham. The chassis was first run as the No. 29 Chevrolet at Bristol Motor Speedway in August 2002 when Kevin Harvick posted his second-best NASCAR Cup finish on the short track, finishing fourth after starting 23rd. Earlier this year in February, the car was having a strong run as the No. 31 Cingular Wireless Chevrolet in Rockingham before getting caught up in a wreck toward the latter part of the race (finishing 36th).

Test to the west … As soon as Gordon and his Team Cingular crew return from Delaware this weekend, they will jump on another plane Monday morning to head out to Sonoma, Calif., to test the No. 31 Chevrolet at Infineon Raceway Tuesday, June 8.

Gordon gets a shot at Helton … Gordon along with six other NASCAR celebrity panel members, including: Jeff Burton, Richard Childress, Jimmy Spencer, Tony Stewart, Rusty Wallace and Michael Waltrip, get to roast NASCAR President Mike Helton at the 2004 Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Dinner of Champions Wednesday, June 2, in Greensboro, N.C. Barney Hall, the voice of NASCAR on the Motor Racing Network, will emcee the program as the panel members tell amusing stories about Helton. The Central North Carolina Chapter of the National MS Society is hosting the dinner to raise funds for people with MS, their families and to support research into the cause and cure for the disease.

Back to Busch … Gordon will return to Busch Series racing this weekend competing as a driver and team owner of the No. 55 Robby Gordon Motorsports Fruit of the Loom Chevrolet in the MBNA America 200 Saturday, June 5.

Tune in … the MBNA America 400 “A Salute to Heroes” NASCAR Cup race will broadcast live at 1 p.m. EDT Sunday, June 6, on FX, MRN and XM Radio. Qualifying for the MBNA America 400 “A Salute to Heroes” will broadcast live at 2:40 p.m. EDT Friday, June 4, on SPEED, MRN and XM Radio.

Team Cingular Quotes:

Robby Gordon on racing at Dover International Speedway:
“Dover is tough, but fun. The concrete surface has always been kind to the tires we have taken there in the past, so we will see if that holds true this weekend. I have ran well at Dover in the past few years and I know we are taking a good car there, so hopefully that combination will result in a good day or better yet, a great win.

I also look forward to getting back in my Busch car in Dover. I did the “Double” this past weekend, but me and some of the other guys in the Cup garage do a double deal almost every weekend when there is Busch and Cup racing in the same town, and some still do it even when the two series are not in the same town. I will admit it is a lot easier racing two races on the same weekend at the same track compared to running two on the same weekend in different states with different time zones.”

Chris Andrews, Team Cingular crew chief, on racing at Dover International Speedway:
“We are taking the same car to Dover that we took to Rockingham earlier this year. It is a good car and Robby was running strong up toward the top 10 when he crashed with another car nearing the end of the race. He and I were talking on the radio when Shannon [McGlamery, Team Cingular spotter] was trying to tell us there was a car approaching Robby on the inside. We didn’t hear him and everyone saw what happened after that. It was disappointing to have that happen, but it hurt even more because we had such a good car and had just come off from getting caught up in the Big One in Daytona. Hopefully, we’ll have another good run with it this weekend, minus the interruptions. Needless to say, we definitely try to keep our radio communications to a minimum so Shannon can do most of the talking. A lesson was learned that day, but unfortunately, the hard way.”