Charlotte, N.C. (September 28, 2009) – Robby Gordon and the Camping World team were optimistic about their chances at Dover International Speedway this weekend. The team has recorded strong runs at the one-mile oval in the past and hoped to build upon their prior success to bring home a top finish this weekend. However, “The Monster Mile” lived up to its name as Gordon was collected in a wildly dangerous wreck on Lap 31 of the 400-mile event. The No. 7 Camping World team repaired the front-end damage and returned to the race, finishing in the 34th position.


The No. 7 Camping World team knew that today’s race would pose a challenge. Rain fell around the track on Saturday night and showers passed through the area on Sunday morning. With all of the rubber washed away, the team knew that a series of adjustments would likely be needed to get the handling on the Camping World Camry back to where Gordon had practiced it on Saturday afternoon.

After taking the green flag in the 31st position, Gordon dropped back a few spots as he struggled with an ill-handling racecar. The car was tight on entry, but Gordon’s main struggle was intense tire chatter as he tried to travel through the turns. The crew used the scheduled competition caution to make a variety of changes to the No. 7 Camping World Camry, which they believed would help the handling and allow Gordon to carry more power through the turns.

Unfortunately, Gordon never had the chance to see what the changes had done as he was caught up in a multi-car pile-up on Lap 31. The wreck occurred in the center of turns 3 and 4 after contact was made further up in the field, and resulted in a wild ride for driver Joey Logano, who rolled his car more than 7 times. Luckily, all drivers were able to escape the accident without injury, but the No. 7 Camping World Camry was not quite as lucky.

The crew rushed to the garage where they began assessing the damage to the No. 7 machine and determined a plan to return to the track. Immediately following the 24-minute red flag period, the crew began repairs to Gordon’s mangled Camry. After replacing the nose, radiator and front cross bar, the No. 7 Camping World crew sent Gordon back on track.

Once back on track, Gordon continued to complete circuits around the Monster Mile until he finally had logged enough laps to surpass some of his competitors and move from the 42nd position. By the time the checkered flag fell, Gordon had raced into the 34th position.

“I’m proud of the effort our guys put forth this afternoon,” said Gordon. “We went to the high side to avoid the wreck with the No. 20, but by that time he had shot across the track and we had nowhere to go. It was a scary wreck, and I’m just happy that everyone walked away from it ok. I was happy to see Joey get out of his car. It was not the ideal performance for our first race of the 2009 season with Camping World on board, but it showed our team’s determination and dedication to this sport and running well. The guys did a great job fixing the car quickly and correctly, and getting us back on track to pick up positions as soon as possible.”

Next weekend, the Sprint Cup Series travels to Kansas Speedway for the Price Chopper 400 presented by Kraft Foods. ABC will provide a live television broadcast of the event beginning at 1:00 p.m. EST on Sunday, October 4. Radio coverage of the race will be broadcast on MRN and Sirius Satellite radio beginning at 1:15 p.m. EST. Qualifying for the event will be broadcast on SPEED Channel beginning at 4:30 p.m. EST on Friday, October 2.