This is the Statt Mann Baby. It's time to Scatt a little bit.

It’s refreshing to see that so many of you out there are paying attention. And it’s just as gratifying to learn that fans still hear what they want to hear whether it’s reality or not.

When fans get frustrated it’s easy to point fingers, find blame and call out names. Makes them feel good I guess.

Robby Gordon has huge fans in The Freaks. That’s been the case for a long time. But I think even Robby Gordon believes that he’s a better off-road racer than a rally driver.  His seven class championships in SCORE prove that. One of those titles includes the overall SCORE championship in 2009.

Gordon’s off-road cred is unmatched. But Dakar is a rally and the skill and mindset is different for success in a rally. Robby’s learning that. He’s learning that driving 15 days of a rally requires a different attitude than 15 or 20 hours in Baja.

It’s hard to find that sweet spot when you only drive one rally a year, though. No one knows that better than Gordon. He’s won stages but that’s a far cry from the press-on-regardless attitude of a rally driver stage after stage after stage.

This business about the legality of a system on Gordon’s car is a smoke screen. The car passed tech inspection so it was legal in the eyes of the inspectors.

Are they cheating Gordon? That’s not beyond belief. But the larger issue is Gordon’s ability to switch reels to become a successful rally driver when he gets to Dakar. Those are lonely, less traveled miles. Let’s hope he finds that path before he decides to run Dakar again.

Peace.