Robby Gordon Wins GTS Event Once Again

DEL MAR â€”  Robby Gordon owns this place.

For the third consecutive year, the 23-year-old from Orange made his annual trip to the Vons Grand Prix of San Diego and brought home the groceries.

Gordon won his third straight Del Mar Grand Touring Sedans race Sunday, averaging 76.392 m.p.h. over 48 laps on the 10-turn, 1.62-mile layout at the Del Mar Fairgrounds. There was one 12-minute caution flag.

Gordon bagged this race in style, pulling an all-nighter for the second time in three years.

Gordon set a GTS record during Friday’s qualifying, averaging 85.726 m.p.h. in a Ford Mustang.

Then he hopped on a twin-engine private airplane and flew to Las Vegas to make an 8 p.m. engagement. He napped 30 minutes on the plane and got about another hour’s sleep before taking second place in the HDRA Gold Coast 300 in a Ford Ranger pickup. That off-road race began at 7 a.m. and ended at 11:45.

His work done there, he flew into Palomar Airport and got to Del Mar about 1:45 p.m. Two hours later, he was racing into the lead in the first turn and was never headed to win the Supreme Series race. He completed 48 laps in the one-hour race and defeated second-place Paul Gentilozzi (Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme) by 7.761 seconds.

It’s his third GTS race of the season and his second victory; he took fourth in Portland. He won $11,000 for winning his third straight at Del Mar.

“It wasn’t too bad,� Gordon said. “I thrive off of racing. I don’t get tired when I’m behind the wheel.�

He kept a similar schedule when he won at the Long Beach Grand Prix earlier this year, competing in the San Felipe 250. He has yet to win twice in one weekend.

Two years ago at Del Mar, Gordon led the Baja 1000 when he got out of the car and came to the fairgrounds--and won. His off-road vehicle didn’t finish under the controls of another driver.

Steve Millen, 39, who won his first GTS driver’s championship with a sixth-place finish, said Gordon shouldn’t have had a problem with the racing doubleheaders.

“It’s not tough when you’re young,� he said. “It’s a hell of a kick. A real buzz. It’s better than waiting around all day for a one-hour race. I was here at the track at 7:30 a.m. worrying about what’s going to break.�

Millen, driving a Nissan 300ZX, began the race with a 13-point lead over Gentilozzi and finished with a 163-159 edge in the series standings. Jeremy Dale (Nissan) finished third in the race and the standings (142).

“I’ve been with Nissan since Day 1 of their Z program,� Millen said. “The best way I can say thank you to the crew is to win the championship.�

He won it despite some worry. Gentilozzi entered Saturday’s race in second place, blaming Dale for driving recklessly at the previous GTS race in Lime Rock, Conn. On the second lap, Dale spun Gentilozzi--the pole-sitter--from behind. Dale finished first, Gentilozzi fourth, perhaps costing Gentilozzi as many as 10 points in the standings.

Gentilozzi hinted that rough driving would not go unnoticed at Del Mar.

“You do think about it,� Millen said. “But I talked to Paul before the race about it and he assured me we weren’t going to be getting into it, and I honestly believed him. So it made me feel real comfortable. But at the same time, every time I saw a black car behind me, I thought, ‘Why mess with it?’

“They didn’t play any games, they were very clean--no problems. I knew they came into the race very unhappy.�

Nissan took no chances. Instead of their regular numbers on the back of their vehicles--75, 76, 77--each of the three Nissans had 7? on its back to hide Millen.

Dale’s third-place finish helped Nissan win the manufacturer’s title, 195-179, over Oldsmobile.

Racing Notes

Today’s GTP race (2:45 p.m.) will be two hours instead of the usual 1:45. The 30-minute Saab Pro Series begins at 1:15 p.m. The 30-minute Supercar Championship begins at 12:15 p.m. . . . Attendance Saturday was 19,000, down 3,500 from 1991. The two-day total is 34,000, down from 38,500. A record crowd of 76,000 saw last year’s event. . . . Perhaps the best drive of the day belonged to GTS driver Darin Brassfield (Olds Cutlass), who started 29th and finished fourth. . . . Butch Leitzinger (Nissan 240SX) won the GTU race and teammate David Loring the GTU title. Leitzinger’s father, Bob, took third in the race and they became only the second father-son duo to finish in the top three in the season points race. The other was John Paul Sr., and John Paul Jr. . . . Loring, who finished fifth, had 155 points on the season, Leitzinger had 150. . . . Nissan previously captured the GTU manufacturer’s championship and Irv Hoerr won the GTO title. . . . Bruce Nesbitt (Chevy Camaro) won the GTO race, followed by Joe Llauget (Olds Cutlass) and Chuck Kendall (Ford Mustang), the father of GTP driver Tom Kendall.