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NO. 88 AMP ENERGY / NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET
DALE EARNHARDT JR. - POST RACE RECAP
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POST-RACE RECAP / BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY
DATE: Aug. 23, 2008
RACE: Sharpie 500
START:40th
FINISH: 18th
POINTS POSITION: 3rd
RECAPPING THE RACE:
Dale Earnhardt Jr. and the No. 88 AMP Energy/National Guard encountered a trying weekend at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway. The night started off with two initial blows -- a deep qualifying position and an early penalty --- that made bouncing back a difficult task. But Earnhardt held on for an 18th-place finish, two laps shy of the leader, and jumped one spot in the driver standings.
Earnhardt experienced a loose race car during Friday's qualifying so he lined up 40th in Saturday's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event. The team's night got even more challenging on Lap 1, when the drivers in front of Earnhardt hit their brakes, forcing the No. 88 to pass the field on the outside during the restart. NASCAR has a rule that drivers cannot pass on the outside during restarts, and as a result Earnhardt was black-flagged. He had to serve a drive-through penalty, and the team lost a lap to the leaders by Lap 9.
From there, the car was loose and the team took the time during pit stops to make track bar and air pressure adjustments. It took until Lap 364 to get the No. 88 Chevy turning the way Earnhardt was comfortable. Later in the night, the car once again got very loose. Earnhardt drove up to 18th to finish the 500- lap event.
Earnhardt moved up to third in the driver standings after 24 races. There are two races remaining before the Chase to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship begins at New Hampshire International Speedway on Sept. 14.
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Photo courtesy of Hendrick Motorsports
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NEXT UP: The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will head to Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif., next weekend. The race will air on ESPN at 7 p.m. ET on Sunday night.
QUOTING DALE EARNHARDT JR.:
"We struggled all night; I don't know what the deal was. The car handling pretty bad all night. We worked on it. It was a good race to watch. This is a good track man; they really did a good job reconfiguring it. We have to get a little better, man. That wasn,t too good of a run there."
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Thanks to Amy Walsh for the race recap.
Courtesy of Hendrick Motorsports.
Media Relations | No. 88 AMP Energy / National Guard Racing
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