Team HUMMER: The Official Start of the Dakar Rally

by Dave Chess

Stage 1: Victoria - Cordoba

Cordoba, Argentina (January 2, 2011) – Today marked the official start of the 2011 Dakar Rally. From this point forward, it is serious business for the competitors vying for the coveted Dakar title. Stage 1, the first of 13 timed stages in this year’s rally race, included a 566-km road section and a 222-km special that began in Victoria and ended in Cordoba.

Heavy rain created an unforeseen obstacle for Team HUMMER. According to the TV choppers flying over the route, the participants in the car category suffered from skidding and sliding. Robby Gordon, driver of the No. 303 SPEED Energy / Toyo Tires HUMMER, started today’s special in fourth place. He was scored 9th as he crossed the CP1 marker located at km 137 together while last year’s winner, Carlos Sainz, led the field.

Disadvantaged by the slippery race conditions, Gordon finished 11 minutes, 4 seconds behind Carlos Sainz in the first stage of the Rally with a total time of 2 hours, 29 minutes and 36 seconds. This time puts Gordon eighth overall heading into tomorrow’s stage from Cordoba to San Miguel de Tucuman, which will be a 324-km race through the mountains.

“We started today’s special in fourth place, and unfortunately we finished eighth. We knew that the HUMMER team would not be as strong as we would like in the Argentina portion of this race, but we struggled a little bit more today than I would have liked due to the weather conditions and technical rally-style section. Sainz and Peterhansel led today’s stage, but they also started the race before the weather began and were virtually unaffected by it. That’s why you see the gap in time from the rest of the competitors,” commented Robby Gordon, driver of the No. 303 SPEED Energy / Toyo Tires HUMMER.

“We started out the special good, but we had a couple of challenges along the way. Kellon [Walch] and I had to change helmets during the middle of the stage because his microphone quit working. I ran off the road at one point. We also ran out of windshield wiper fluid due to the mud. These mistakes probably cost us about 1 minute of total speed. I expected to give up 5 minutes in today’s stage not 11 minutes, which disappoints me. It is still early in the race, but we have some ground to make up tomorrow. Some of the guys are already starting to have issues this early. Hopefully, we will recover quickly from today’s issues before we enter Chile because it is our best opportunity to make up time. By this point, I want to be less than 10 minutes behind,” furthered Gordon.

“Tomorrow’s stage is supposed to go through the mountains, which are not good for us for two reasons. First, the HUMMERs are not turbo-charged then the course is a little narrow. They did say that we should encounter some bumps, which could be good for us.”

Eliseo Salazar, driver of the No. 327 SPEED Energy / Cristal CERO HUMMER finished today’s stage 28th, 34 minutes, 25 seconds behind.

About SPEED Energy – SPEED Energy is available in three flavors: Unleaded, Fuel, and Octane, which provides the human machine with the fuel it needs to keep up with the SPEED of life. Each drink contains a potent energy blend of B-vitamins, caffeine, taurine and ginseng. SPEED is packaged in 12 ounce sleek cans that have a stylish black top and sexy body and are available in singles, four-packs, and cases. SPEED Energy is available in the United States in major retailers, convenience stores, grocery stores, bars and nightclubs. For more information, please visit speedenergy.com.

Race Coverage – For fans tracking the Dakar Rally at home, please visit speedenergy.com, planetrobby.com, dakar.com along with Facebook and Twitter for daily updates on the team’s performance including a daily recap, photos and videos. The team will also be doing a preview daily leading up to the Rally that details their Dakar program and what it takes to get the team ready to participate in the 14-stage event. The Versus Channel will provide coverage throughout the United States. A 30-minute daily program featuring highlights from that day’s racing will be aired on Versus daily at 3:30 p.m. with a replay airing later in the day. Check your local listing for exact show times.

NEW for 2011 – The SPEED Energy APP featuring exclusive updates of Robby Gordon and his SPEED Energy / Toyo Tires HUMMER during the 2011 Dakar Rally. Follow Robby as he competes in the world's toughest race through Argentina and Chile. Be the first to hear updates from the driver himself and get exclusive videos and photos during the team's quest to win the coveted Dakar Rally. You'll be able to keep up with Robby during the rally from your iPhone or iPad!

Robby Gordon and Team HUMMER Dakar Statistics

2005

· First American to win a stage in Dakar Rally while driving for the VW Touareg Factory team

· Two stage victories

· Overall 12th place in a field of more than 460 competitors

2006

· Gordon began his own Dakar effort with the creation of Team HUMMER

· Campaigned a purpose built HUMMER H3 in conjunction with General Motors

· Ran as high as fifth in a field of more than 500 competitors before a hole in the radiator led to mechanical failure

2007

· Returned to Dakar with new sponsor and greater factory engineering support from General Motors

· Won one stage (longest stage overall)

· Overall 8th place finish

2008

· The Dakar Rally was cancelled due to security threats in Mauritana, but Gordon ran in the replacement Rally, the Central European Rally, which took place through Hungary, Romania and Budapest

· Campaigned as a two-race vehicle team and both vehicles finished in overall top-10 (7th and 10th)

2009

· The Dakar Rally was moved to South American and took place in Argentina and Chile

· Campaigned again as a two-race vehicle team

· Robby Gordon finished 3rd overall and the second team HUMMER finished 13th overall

2010

· Campaigned as a three-race vehicle team throughout Argentina and Chile

· Robby Gordon finished 8th overall, the Vanguard HUMMER finished 20th and the Chile HUMMER ended on Stage 3 after the transmission expired