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No. 7 Jim Beam Dodge Las Vegas Preview

No. 7 Jim Beam Dodge driver Robby Gordon will race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway this weekend after posting an 18^th-place finish Monday at California Speedway. That finish combined with an eighth-place finish at Daytona is an impressive start to the 2008 season.

DRIVER ROBBY GORDON QUOTES:

LAS VEGAS – “I love Las Vegas. How could anyone not like racing out there? They have done a good job with the track, and I think the fans will see some good racing this weekend. I really hope some day this place gets two races. I think the fans deserve it, and it is a great place to entertain sponsors. Plus a lot of these fans support our desert racing program. In fact, we tested the Hummer H3 on Tuesday in preparation for the make-up Dakar Rally taking place in April.”

SEASON SO FAR – ”This has been an adjustment period for our team. Our switch to Dodge a few weeks ago has meant a lot of work for a lot of people, and they’ve done a good job. Our goal is to have a good first five races, be good in points, and then go racing. I see this deal only getting better as the year goes on. “

NEW CARS – “I like them. I like sliding and manhandling the car. I think the racing has been pretty good, and I think the fans will enjoy the races for the rest of the year.”

POINTS – “We’re are in the process of appealing the penalty accessed by NASCAR, and I hope that we are going to our points back – I think that’s the most important thing. It brings us to 32nd right now, but that’s still not a representation of where our car is running. Our car is a top-15 car.  With the 100 points we would probably be sitting here around 12th, so I’m looking at that more than anything.”

SUPPORT – “I want to thank all of my sponsors for standing by me and their continued dedication to our racing program. I also want to thank the fans for their outcry of support during the past week. It means a lot to me and my race team to know that people are supporting us and our position.”

APPEARANCES - 

·         Gordon will be at Albertsons, located at 201 S. Stephanie Street in Henderson, NV from 6pm to 8pm, on Wednesday, February 27.

·         Gordon will appear at The Lounge in the Palms Casino from 6:30pm to 8:30pm for a Jim Beam autograph session open to the public on Thursday, February 28.

·         Gordon will be at his souvenir trailer from 9:45am to 10:30 am on Sunday, March 2. 

NOTES

Las Vegas Motor Speedway

·         In 8 starts, Gordon has completed 1,788 of 2,020 laps. He owns an average finish of 25.6 and an average start of 25.5. He has led 8 laps. His best finish of 13^th came in 2000.

·         Gordon finished 14th in 1996 in an Indy Racing League race at LVMS.

2008 Season

·         Gordon recorded his second highest career best finish of eighth in the Daytona 500.

·         Gordon has a marketing, manufacturing and technical services agreement with Gillett Evernham Motorsports.

·         Gordon switched to Dodge days before the Daytona 500.

Career

Gordon owns three NASCAR Sprint Cup victories:

• Loudon on Nov. 23, 2001
• Infineon on June 22, 2003
• Watkins Glen Aug. 10, 2003
• Gordon’s NASCAR only pole came at Atlanta on March 7, 1997.
• Gordon owns one Nationwide Series victory at Richmond on Sept. 10, 2004
• In the CART Series, Gordon made 106 starts posting wins at Phoenix and Detroit plus four poles.
• In his ten starts in the Indianapolis 500, Gordon owns five top-10 finishes.
• In 2005, Gordon became first American to win a stage in the Dakar Rally. Gordon also scored his second victory during the 16 day event.
• In 272 starts, Gordon has posted 14 top-5 finishes and 35 top-10 finishes. Gordon has led 464 laps and driven 71,379 laps in his Sprint Cup career covering over 96,170 miles. He has finished on the lead lap 85 times. He owns a career average start of 26.1 and an average finish of 24.8.