Leaving Petty was tough decision for Loomis

By Marty Smith, Turner Sports Interactive
December 11, 2001
3:59 PM EST (2059 GMT)

CONCORD, N.C. -- Being the noted workaholic that he is, Robbie Loomis is not easily convinced to take vacation time. Even if he did take some personal R&R time, he'd likely struggle to relax therein.

Robbie Loomis

The consummate case in point:

In November, Loomis joined Jeff Gordon and the rest of the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports contingent in New York for the celebration of their 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series championship. During the week-long event, series sponsor R.J. Reynolds made it their sole purpose to pamper the champions by any means necessary.

Gordon's 2001 Stats  Robbie Loomis Bio  Video: Gordon on Loomis

Yet Loomis, ever humble, had some trouble fully accepting their generosity.

"Man, they sure are on me to use that room service phone," he said with a sly grin, as if this were the most daunting task known to mankind. "I'm serious. They want me using it all the time. You got like 1,900 maids and servants there to help you out. It's crazy.

"They're doing everything they can to help you out in any way they can. It makes it really, really nice. They're really on me to use that room service phone. I'm not really used to that."

Robbie Loomis and Jeff Gordon have nine victories in two years.

It's typical. Not one to take the easy route, Loomis' dedication to excellence was quite apparent during the 2001 campaign. He led the No. 24 team to six wins, 18 top-five finishes and their fourth championship in the past seven seasons. It was Loomis' first title in just his second season atop Gordon's pit box.

After serving 12 years at Petty Enterprises under the tutelage of King Richard, Gordon himself summoned Loomis in the winter of 1999 to lead a team left hanging by Ray Evernham's abrupt departure. Despite the obvious allure of joining the most dominant team of the 1990s, Loomis was plagued with the decision.

Loyal almost to a fault, Loomis stewed heavily over whether he should leave the man who had embraced him like a son and gave him his start in racing. Would it be like he abandoned them? Petty knew it was the chance of a lifetime, and encouraged Loomis to join Hendrick Motorsports. Thus, he made the difficult decision to leave.

Richard Petty

Now, Loomis knows it was the right move. After clinching the championship at Atlanta, Loomis was quick to thank the Pettys. They were even among the first congratulatory callers.

"I owe them everything," Loomis said. "They're still like parents to me."

While peachy keen now, the transition to Hendrick wasn't always so easy. This time last year, countless skeptics surfaced, questioning whether the 24 team's dynasty died when Evernham left and the famed Rainbow Warriors jumped ship to Robert Yates Racing.

Gordon had just finished ninth in the point standings, his worst effort since his rookie season in 1993.

Those detractors now stand collectively silent, but Loomis could care less.

"It really doesn't mean anything to me, honestly, compared to what it means just (winning) it," Loomis said. "There's certain things out there in life, professionally, that you want to attain, and to attain this is just unreal.

"There's always a void in your life if you don't have that one thing, and to have it helps bring completeness to your life. I'm not saying this is the only thing like that for me, but it's certainly one of them."

One major reason the 24 returned to dominance is Loomis' tireless work ethic -- one he has since instilled in his current team.

Jeff Gordon's win at Michigan was the 100th victory for Hendrick Motorsports.

Daytona is less than two months away. Because of that, Loomis was back in the shop the Monday after the Winston Cup Awards Ceremony.

"I think it's funny. A couple of days after Atlanta I called Mr. Hendrick and we started talking about things we needed to do to be prepared for next year," Loomis said. "That's where he's really good for me because he's been through championships before.

"He knows the cycle, the highs and the lows. It's going to be a tough challenge, but it's like I told my guys, I said, 'All our life, whatever you do, it's not good enough. You want to do better, better, better. Finish 15th, you want to be 10th, 10th you want to be fifth, fifth you want to win it all, win it you want to win it by more (of a margin).'

"I told them when we went to New York, we're going to go up here and have a great time, but when we get back Monday we're going to start worrying about next year."

Come on, man. Pick up the phone and order some Evian.