Insider's View: Robby Gordon

TALLADEGA, Ala. -- I think that Talladega, in terms of the southeastern United States, is one of the biggest races besides Daytona. There's a lot of reasons why that's the case, and they're centered on the racetrack itself and the following that it's developed among the fans.

It's a superspeedway and it's got a lot of tradition here. There is so much mystique about how fast you used to go here.

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Now, with the way restrictor-plate racing is, it's some of the most competitive racing that we have. I like Talladega. It's different than Daytona because you can run three-wide all the way around this racetrack and not be concerned about it.

I know we ran our Cingular Wireless Chevrolet in a lot of three-wide packs at Daytona but I tell you what -- I get real nervous running three-wide through Daytona's (Turns) 1 and 2 and even more coming off 4, because there's a bump there.

At Talladega you can run three-wide and keep control of the car pretty well. But even at that, it's nerve wracking for us, because you have to pay attention every second.

You're always looking over your shoulder. We have two spotters at that racetrack -- two different guys looking out for you and telling you who's on the high side and who's on the low side and who's running side-by-side with you.

That race is probably the most mentally challenging that we have -- even more than Daytona where we talk about being scared to come off 4 three-wide.

At Talladega when you're three-wide all day long it seems like there's just so many things you have to be aware of. And now, the same as it was last fall and again at Daytona, getting yourself in position with these smaller gas tanks is going to be a challenge.

But at Richard Childress Racing we've got such good restrictor-plate race cars right now that we have high expectations. We were very good at Daytona -- Jeff Green won the pole and I was third and we won a (Gatorade) 125.

I am really looking forward to being back here because I know how hard my Cingular guys have worked -- to get our cars working and handling good.

I also feel really good about having teammates that I can depend on -- which is so important at these plate races. I have (Kevin) Harvick, who ran with me at Daytona and I ran with him. We stuck together like glue at Daytona for quite a few laps.

	Robby Gordon says he has no fear of racing three-wide at Talladega. Credit: Autostock

So I feel good about being at Talladega with Jeff Green and Kevin because if we can do what Michael (Waltrip) and Dale (Earnhardt Jr.) have done in these (restrictor plate) races, where they've stuck together and dominated them, winning seven of the last nine races -- I feel like we can make something happen.

I think we can really work together as a three-car team.

I feel very confident that we can win that race. Kevin Hamlin, my crew chief, and I worked real well together at Daytona and I think we were in a position to win the Daytona 500 this year.

For a while there the car got tight and we had to adjust on it -- but once we got the car good for the end we were as fast as anybody. Unfortunately it started raining.

We just didn't get the car in position to win the race when we needed to, but we had a car that certainly was capable enough to do it and I think we'll have the same type of situation at Talladega.

Everybody at Richard Childress Racing puts a lot of focus on our restrictor-plate programs and I think everyone will see that, this week, and we'll be real strong as well.

Winning that Gatorade 125 at Daytona was key for Robby Gordon and Cingular Wireless and Richard Childress Racing because it put us in a position that we had other teams believing that we could win the race. It's kind of weird how it works, but when they believe you have a fast race car, they'll go with you.

For sure, they definitely helped us out at Daytona and we're coming back to Talladega with a fast race car, again.

They feel that if they help you and you have a fast car to begin with that in effect it will help both of you -- and when you get down to the end they think they can leave you to hang.

Restrictor-plate racing is different than anything else we do all year long. You've got to have buddies out there, but then again, the most important thing is having a fast race car. Luckily, we've got that at RCR.

I hate the situation it puts us in. Because it puts us in the position of having a 10- or 20-car accident -- demolition derby -- whatever you want to call it. But the racing is actually fun. I just don't like the risk of the racing.

Sometimes we're not in control. If these guys tell you they're in control of their cars 100 percent of the time, well, that's not exactly accurate. Sometimes you'll just catch a big ol' aero push and you can't control it.

If you're only a foot away from a guy -- you collect him. That is something that we don't control. You can't control that air because you can't see it.

There are so many things that can happen out there. I think that 99 percent of the time we've got control of our cars. Everyone in Winston Cup is capable of driving these cars on superspeedways because they've been doing it for a long time, now.

Even the Greg Biffles and the Larry Foyts that have come up from the Busch Series have got experience running restrictor-plate races. I think everyone is getting better every time we do it. One of the (Talladega) races last year was caution free, so I think it will be a good race for us.

One thing we do at Talladega is getting out and mix it up with the fans a little bit. I've got a deal with E-Z-go golf carts that gives me a golf cart to use at the tracks. It's a four-wheel-drive golf cart that can climb over curbs when the traffic is backed up and not tear the bottom up, and stuff.

It really wasn't built for Talladega, or anything like that. It's for the infield anywhere.

But I do like Talladega. The fans here are some of the diehards. If you want to talk about the fans that live and breathe Winston Cup racing -- the fans that go to Talladega are diehard fans. You've got to appreciate these people because they've helped built this up to be the sport that it is.

They take their vacations and go to Talladega and just have a great time going wild and crazy. They love it. They're out here just having fun. They're just everyday hard working people that loosen up on the weekend down here at Talladega.

I'll be honest. It's no different than the infield anywhere we go. If it's wilder, I think that's only because there's more people than some of the other racetracks that we go to -- and there might be more camping here because there's not as many hotel rooms that are right close by. That's what probably makes it different than some of the other race tracks.

In the infield, this is their weekend off and they're letting loose and having fun. It is like the ultimate tailgate party you've ever seen -- except at tailgate parties you don't get to go and camp, so at Talladega you get to set up your camp and hang out for four days.

For these people it's just a party weekend, and that's cool. I look at Talladega like weekends that we used to have in California or Arizona, going to the Colorado River on Memorial Day weekend or Thanksgiving or Easter. This is where they go and have fun -- and they love stock car racing.

I think we have to appreciate these fans. I don't think they're any crazier than fans of other sports or at other tracks -- I just think there's more of them and that makes it seem crazier.