Proof is in the pudding: Robby Gordon is a winner

Robby Gordon has been a lightning rod for a mixture of opinions for years -- heck, for decades -- going back to his off-road roots in the 1980s, then through sports cars, Indy cars and into NASCAR; and sometimes back and forth between disciplines.

Gordon at the Dakar

• Stage 1 recap
• Stage 2 recap
• Stage 3 recap
• Stage 4 recap
• Stage 5 recap
• Stage 6 recap

• Stage 7 recap
• Stage 8 recap
• Stage 9 recap
• Stage 10 recap

But if you ask me, the racing community's been better for all that than it would be if you sat here today and said "he did all that?" without even being able to remember any of the highlights.

That's never been the case with Gordon -- and make no mistake about one thing. No matter where he finishes in the Dakar Rally, the grueling 14-stage South American marathon that's in its final third this week -- Gordon's a winner.

You have to believe that for a number of reasons.

Interestingly enough, just shy of a month away from the 51st Daytona 500, the fact that Gordon's own Sprint Cup team has executed its second manufacturer swap in less than two years, and has it mostly funded for 2009 in the face of a daunting economy is only a footnote -- though it probably earns a distinctly bold typeface (read more).

And the fact that Gordon's Robby Gordon Off-Road business in California is a long-standing success is also just a part of the foundation that earns this guy great kudos.

No. 1, last Friday Gordon celebrated his 40th birthday in Buenos Aires, Argentina. To begin with, the images broadcast on his Web site and elsewhere on the Web hardly look like a 40-year-old -- and given the racing miles on Gordon's odometer, that's a victory, for sure.

On the one hand, you gotta love the commonly-held notion of celebrating such personal holidays with family; and that would probably mean doing it a little closer to home. But on the other hand, many would consider the chance to hoist a toast to another year in places such as Spain and Argentina, as Gordon's done the last five or six years, to be just as special.

No. 2, the Dakar is probably beyond the exact comprehension of most people -- though people deeply involved in racing would have a pretty big edge, here. But you could consider Gordon getting the organization in place -- and then getting the entire entourage it takes to successfully compete in the Dakar to Argentina a victory. (Continued)