Race 2 Win: Aaron’s 499 - Robby Gordon Notes

Nextel Cup Series

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Aaron’s 499 - Robby Gordon Notes

Robby Gordon
Event Preview Fact Sheet
Event/Date: Aaron’s 499/April 25, 2004
Venue: Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway

NASCAR Cup Points Position: 25th

NOTES:

This Week’s Race Car at Talladega Superspeedway (chassis No. 119) was run in the Daytona 500 earlier this year, where Gordon was running inside the top 15 before he got caught up in the “big one” on lap 71. The team had to settle for a 35th-place finish, took the car home, repaired it and will race it again this weekend.

Testing Time … Team Cingular is testing at Michigan International Speedway April 20 and 21

Kill Two Birds with One Stone … After Gordon tests his Cingular Wireless Chevrolet Monte Carlo at MIS this week, he will test his Chevrolet-powered Dallara for the upcoming Indianapolis 500. Gordon also is scheduled to take advantage of the open pre-May test next week at Indianapolis Motor Speedway April 27 and 28, along with the other contending teams.

Make it Four for RCR … Kerry Earnhardt will make his debut as a driver for Richard Childress Racing this weekend at the Talladega Superspeedway in the No. 33 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet for the Aaron’s 499. Earnhardt will be the fourth RCR entry in Sunday’s Cup event.

The Aaron’s 499 will be broadcast live 1:30 p.m. EDT Sunday, April 25, on FOX, MRN and XM Radio. Qualifying for the Aaron’s 499 will broadcast live Friday, April 23, starting at 4 p.m. EDT on SPEED, MRN and XM Radio.

TEAM CINGULAR QUOTES:
Robby Gordon on upcoming weekend of racing at Talladega Superspeedway:
“Team Cingular is definitely going to be looking for some redemption in Alabama this weekend. The last time we competed on a superspeedway we had a great car, but we didn’t have great luck. As most people know our day had a premature conclusion in Daytona because of the big crash. The good thing is we were able to salvage the car, repair it and will return it to the track this weekend. Hopefully, it will be able to make a repeat performance, but without interruption this time.”

Chris Andrews, Cingular Wireless Crew Chief, on racing in Talladega:
“Almost everything we applied in Daytona will apply to Talladega, except we do race with a different tire on that superspeedway. Overall the two are similar enough that a lot of the same setup and race trim applies. We are taking the same car we raced at Daytona, but it has been repaired, of course. We sent it back to Hopkins and had a new front clip, new nose and front fenders put on it. Probably three-quarters of the car is the same car we raced in Florida.

“We are still within the obtainable range to get inside the top 10, however, without a doubt we need to start finishing better on a more regular basis. This past weekend at Martinsville was the same old story for us. We had a top-10 car all weekend, but finished 30th. That seems to be the turn most of the races have taken for the Cingular Wireless team this year. We’ve had a top-15 race car almost every weekend, but we keep finishing outside of that. I can look back and see some of the reasons why, but the main one is bad luck. We just keep ending up in the right place, but at the wrong time.”

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