| While most racers started racing because their | | | | Gordon when he was driving for Foyt in 1993 as |
| fathers were racers or because they were | | | | AJ Foyt is his racing hero. The same year, |
| interested in the sport, Robby Gordon picked up | | | | Gordon drove for Roberts Yates Racing in the |
| racing to keep himself out of trouble as he | | | | Diehard 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. |
| cheekily claims. Born on January 2nd in 1969, this | | | | Although he started at the 14th position, he was |
| Californian's dream job as a child was to be a race | | | | soon in the top five before he got into an |
| car driver. Nicknamed "Flash" by close comrades, | | | | accident that caused him to come in at the 42nd |
| Gordon was racing motorbikes at the age of 8 | | | | position. In 1994 to 1996, Gordon raced for |
| and by the time he was 16, he had his hands | | | | Derrick Walker. He managed to pull in two career |
| firmly on the steering wheel. Gordon credits his | | | | wins during that period of time. During the years |
| father, Bob Gordon, as the most influential person | | | | 1998 to 1999, he fielded his own team and raced |
| in his life is passionate about life. He believes in | | | | 10 times in the Indy 500. While his open-wheel |
| getting the best out of life and he does it with | | | | years, he was highly regarded as a tough racer |
| zeal. Because of that philosophy, Gordon has | | | | and when he left the open wheel, he cited safety |
| driven possibly nearly every type of racing vehicle | | | | concerns as a reason. |
| imaginable. | | | | In 2001, Gordon announced publicly that he would |
| The first off-road he entered, the Nevada 400, | | | | be donating the money he receives from racing |
| was a victory for the Gordon clan in 1985. In | | | | to the victims of the 9/11 attacks. He went on to |
| 1987, Bob Gordon and Robby Gordon teamed up | | | | excite the crowd at the Race of Champions in |
| to win three races in route to capturing the | | | | Spain and replaced Mike Skinner in the #31 Lowe's |
| championship and Rookie of the Year honor using | | | | Chevrolet for the remainder of the season when |
| his own Mickey Thompson car. It was when he | | | | Skinner had to be wheeled in for a knee surgery. |
| was in the Baja, Mexico that he was approached | | | | Gordon would go on to achieve plenty career |
| by Ford Racing executives during which he was | | | | highlights which also include staring his own |
| already running off five off-road championships | | | | NASCAR Busch Team that completed 25 events |
| back-to-back. Still a teenager then, he was | | | | in 2005, getting his second career (first |
| brought along to meet the bigwigs of racing like | | | | road-course) NASCAR win at Sonoma when he |
| Jack Roush. | | | | beat Jeff Gordon in the final lap and he also |
| While Gordon claims that the craziest vehicle he | | | | became the first American to win a stage in the |
| has ever raced was a Wells Coyote that weighed | | | | Dakar Rally (a 16-day 5,700-mile race from |
| 900lbs with 1200hp at Pikes Peak, he moved into | | | | Barcelona, Spain to Dakar, Senegal). He enjoyed |
| sports cars in 1990 and won five GTO races in | | | | the experience so much that he planned to return |
| 1991. His enormous talent would then lead him to | | | | to Dakar on his own. |
| driving for a great many important and famed | | | | When he isn't on the track, Gordon is still on full |
| owners like Richard Childress, Foyt, Walker in the | | | | throttle. He goes boating, mountain biking and |
| list. He would race in Indy cars, NASCAR, off-road | | | | motorcycle riding between his residence in |
| trucks and sports cars. It was an honor for | | | | California and North Carolina. |