CART: Robby Gordon Post Race Notes, Miami
22 March 1999
Robby Gordon#22 Menards/Panasonic/Johns Manville/Duracell Toyota-Reynard
Post-Race Notes/Quotes - Sunday, March 21, 1999
MARLBORO GRAND PRIX OF MIAMI PRESENTED BY TOYOTA
Round 1 of 20 in the CART FedEx Championship Series
At Miami-Dade Homestead Motorsports Complex - Homestead, Fla.
Team Gordon's CART FedEx Championship Series debut came to a premature end when the #22 Menards/Panasonic/Johns Manville/Duracell Toyota-powered Reynard of Robby Gordon lost oil pressure on Lap 112 of the 150-lap Marlboro Grand Prix of Miami, Presented by Toyota. Gordon was already five laps down to the leaders when the problem occurred, in part due to extra time required during pit stops after the car's air jack system malfunctioned early in the race, and a drive-through penalty for entering the pit lane from Turn 4 rather than proceeding along the designated pit entrance near Turn 3. He placed 19th overall, after starting from the 18th spot on the grid. Next stop for Team Gordon is the Firestone Firehawk 200 at Twin Ring Motegi, Japan, April 8-10, Round 2 of the 20-event CART FedEx Series Championship.
ROBBY GORDON - "My first reaction is that it can't get much worse than this. But, in general, it was a good weekend. We only didn't get the final result we had hoped for. We learned a lot just getting ourselves here and getting through the weekend. But we learned that there is a lot more to learn, still. We'll go back to California and look at all the things the team has to do yet to gel."
MIKE HELD (Co-Owner) - "Actually, it was a fairly eventful weekend. We learned a lot. Our pit stops weren't bad. Our air jack went out, so the guys had to lift the back end of the car manually. We had a loose condition, which didn't really allow us to race. We started falling back gradually from the start. Unfortunately, it was one of those conditions that really affects the driver's confidence, feeling like he doesn't have all of the car under him. Hey, we weren't last, which is where a lot of people predicted us to be. We're able to pack the car up in one piece and put it on the truck, which is always a blessing. We got the first one under our belts. Now, let's move on to the next one."
DAN MILLER (Team Manager) - "It was a disappointing end to our weekend, sure. But we've got no reason to hang our heads. We sure learned an awful lot. The guts fell out of our air jack system. What a thing to go wrong on race day. Seriously, I'm proud of the guys. They did an excellent job getting us here. And we've got a good foundation to build on, all things considered."