This weekend will be Robby Gordon’s second racing trip to Nevada in 2010. He wrapped up his “offseason” competing at the Score Laughlin Challenge the day after he completed the Dakar Rally in South America.
Heading into the Shelby American, Gordon says, “I love to come to Las Vegas, but I love to race here even more. How could anyone not like racing out there? They have done a great job with the track, and I think the fans will see some good racing action this weekend. I really hope this track gets two races. After last weekend, I really think that the No. 7 Jim Beam Toyota will have a strong showing.”

Much like his off-road season this winter, Gordon says he’s been disappointed by some performances but also hopeful for the future. Gordon’s in 31st place in the Cup Series standings entering the season’s third race at one of his favorite tracks. He finished eighth overall in the Dakar Rally. He told Sporting News about his desert racing adventures over the winter.

SN: How was this Dakar Rally different from ones in the past, with venue being the most obvious change?

RG: The 2010 rally was very similar to the Rally in 2009 -- it was just run in the opposite direction and it also went a little farther north in Chile. The dirt and sand in Northern Chile was very soft with a lot of silt beds. It is like having a thin crust of dirt and then under the crust there is baby powder. 

SN: With some time to reflect, please sum up your thoughts about this year’s results for the Monster Energy / Toyo Tires team.

RG: Looking back after the Rally, I'm a little disappointed that we had the problems that we had. Air inflation was for sure our biggest problem. I would say that we lost about 2 hours of time with broken air lines, then one day we had the compressors short out and fail.

We had a alternator fail on one stage where we lost about 3 hours and 30 minutes. It happened on a day that our other team had a problem with air inflation and also got lost. If they would have been closer to us we wouldn't have lost as much time. That was a huge bummer that was the one item that cost us a podium finish.

This is where it gets very difficult keeping the team morale up. We went from fourth, 30 minutes back, to 12th and 4 hours back. But there were still 8 days of racing left.

SN: What was your favorite part about visiting Chile and Argentina?

RG: A lot of things are my favorite parts. Off-road being on live TV, the fans are very enthusiastic and the Challenge of Dakar.

Winning a stage shows that we produce a very competitive car in major auto racing.

SN: We know you’ll be back in the Rally. What are you thinking about 2011 and beyond in the Dakar Rally right now?

RG: We are at the end of our current contracts for Dakar, so the most important thing to do is put new agreements in place with sponsors then start making modifications to our cars to make them faster and more reliable.

SN: Is there a race abroad that you haven’t participated in yet that you want to run in?

RG: I would like to take our Hummers to Dubai for the race over there. 

SN: How would you assess your off-road season?

RG: I'm pretty happy with the final results … to finish in the top 10 again, it’s a huge accomplishment. The Dakar Rally is the toughest race in the world by far. I have raced in the 24 hours of Daytona and the 12 hours of Sebring and won both four times, but Dakar is a logistical nightmare, and that is one of the coolest things about it. The terrain is brutal, huge sand dunes baked with crust is very difficult on the cars and their parts. I feel that our team for Dakar is getting better and better every year. Maybe 2011 will be our year.