Robbie Gordon of NASCAR Will Not Drive IRL Races Against Danica Patrick, Citing Weight Advantage

National Review Magazine: The Corner ^ | 6/1/05 | KJ Lopez

[gopwinsin04]

Robbie Gordon of NASCAR started the discussion, saying that he wouldn't drive in the Indy Car Racing League series until they do something about Danica Patrick's weight 'advantage.'

'The lighter the car, the faster it goes,' Gordon said. 'Do the math. Put her in the car at her weight, then put me or Tony Stewart in the car at 200 pounds and our cars are at least 100 pounds heavier.'

'I wont race against her until the IRL does something to take that advantage away.'

I glanced at the weight of the weight of the drivers in the Indy Car Series. They are pretty much smallish guys --between 140 and 155 lbs.

He seems to be willing to race against guys who are about 60 pounds less and had no problem with it before.

[cjshapi]

God forbid they say what is on their mind. Everything is very PC these days. Curtis Turner is probably spinning in his grave!

[housewife101]

I'll have enough for which to answer to God.I agree with you...I'd rather not add that to the list!

[colonel mosby]

NASCAR adjusts the weights on their cars according to the size of the driver. Michael Waltrip, who is about 6-5 and 230 lbs., is allowed to drive a lighter car than say, Jeff Gordon, who is a lot shorter and lighter.

IRL cars weigh less than half what NASCAR vehicles weigh. The lighter the driver, the faster the car, and the better the fuel mileage. So a skinny driver in an Indy car has a significant advantage.

Robby Gordon is catching the wrath of those who desperately want a woman to win a race, but he's not doing anything but stating the obvious.

Unless the IRL follows NASCAR's lead, soon all Indy drivers will have to be like horse jockies, thin and short.

[housewife101]

Like post #263. I agree that weight(or lack of it) is a big advantage. Think they will change how they do the "weigh in"?

I do think it a bit extreme for him to state he wouldn't race against her, however.

[gymbeau]

Besides her driving, I was impressed by how she refused to take the feminist bait the media were desperate for her to take. By that, I mean they were prompting her in the post-race interview to talk about what a great blow she'd landed for women, how she'd made history etc. - and she ignored all that and talked about the race, the team, just like any other driver would.

She truly epitomized what equality is supposed to be about. Classy!

[Miss Behave]

DD:

"Darn right, and part of achieving goals in motorsports is getting sponsorships. That is where being 100lbs is an advantage Robbie can't compete with"

Does Robbie have a problem with ALL fellow racers that weigh less than him?

Yes, Danica is a mere 105 pounds, but can you imagine the upper body strength required to literally fly by the seat of your pants (jumpsuit) in heavy, bite-bite traffic at 225 MPH for hours on end, managing a very small steering wheel with which all the while it's life-or-death critical to actuate constant, perfect, nanosecond turns and dodges, whilst wearing a hot, vision-imparing helmet in a very confined and blind-spotted race car?

Danica has a major disadvantage of not having a muscle-massed core, upper body, and ARMS, all of which are VERY helpful in success at her level of racing.

And she's a rookie, to boot!

I know *I* would be wearing my "Oops I Crapped My Pants" adult undergarment. :-)

[Skooz]

I hope she wins every race she ever enters from now until the day she retires. Then, I hope she wins the wheelchair races at the old folks home.

[Dead Dog]

IIRC, women actually tend to have a higher G-Tolerance than men. Some flight physiology thing. The upper body strength is a good point, however.

Personally I could care less if Robbie is competitive or not. Imagine if he wanted to become a Jockey, then whined about all the unfair midgets.

[Miss Behave]

"Besides her driving, I was impressed by how she refused to take the feminist bait the media were desperate for her to take. By that, I mean they were prompting her in the post-race interview to talk about what a great blow she'd landed for women, how she'd made history etc. - and she ignored all that and talked about the race, the team, just like any other driver would.

She truly epitomized what equality is supposed to be about. Classy!"

Yes, gymbeau! And that bait was bigger than Hillary's butt. It was hard to miss, and Danica refused to take it, even though the media slathered their bait with ice cream and chocolate sprinkles.

Classy is right.

[Dead Dog]

In fact, he brings up a good point. His sponsors should be looking for another 105lb girl so they don't have to drag his fat butt around the track.

This is America, competition is about winning. If he doesn't like that, he should take up soccer in France.

[Steve_Seattle]

"IRL cars weigh less than half what NASCAR vehicles weigh. The lighter the driver, the faster the car, and the better the fuel mileage. So a skinny driver in an Indy car has a significant advantage."

Good, I've finally found an excuse why my hero Eddie Cheever didn't win more races. He was 6'-6'1 and probably weighed 20-30 pounds more than a lot of his competitors. :-)

[Miss Behave]

Yes, but Formula Ones are much more confining. Upper body and arm strength make more of a difference in driver ability in a more confined space.

[Miss Behave]

LOLOL, Dead Dog. I'm on the floor. Ranks.

[Diva Betsy Ross]

And so if team owners and sponsors put their money behind a driver who has a wrist injury for example, do all of the drivers need to have one of their hands tied to make everything fair?

That is racing! If the IRL team owners and sponsors want to put their money and efforts behind "thin ,short" people..or tall,heavy people-what difference does it make, especially to NASCAR fans?

This whole conversation is about Danica's weight is silly.

[Steve_Seattle]

Danica has nice dark hair and a decent face and a trim body. But, actually, the body ain't that great - she doesn't have much in the way of curves, and I'm kind of old-fashioned about that. But she does have a better body than A.J. Foyt, I'll admit.

[Steve_Seattle]

To complete my thought, somebody should photoshop one of the Danica pics and put Robby Gordon's or A.J.s face on it.

[pnz1]

Dan Weldon said it did give an advantage and that he thought in due time there would be a rule change about it.

[Steve_Seattle]

As long as the ladies weren't a threat to win, this weight advantage was never brought up.

[USAFJeeper]

Boudreaux's Butt Paste driver. Kim Crosby!

[Toespi]

You are correct, it isn't horse racing or boxing for that matter, and that is because they already have rules in place to compensate for weight discrepancies.