NO. 5 NATIONAL GUARD

RACE RECAP: DALE EARNHARDT JR.
NO. 5 DELPHI CHEVROLET

DATE: 4/26/2008
EVENT: NASCAR NATIONWIDE SERIES
RACE: AARON’S 312
TRACK: TALLADEGA SUPERSPEEDWAY
START: 7th
FINISH: 6th

IN THE BEGINNING:

Dale Earnhardt Jr. and the No. 5 Delphi Chevrolet team started the Aaron's 312 in the seventh position. Once the green flag dropped, Earnhardt moved up into the fourth position. But Earnhardt, who was running without drafting help, dropped to 24th by Lap 6 because the tape on the grill was increasing the water temperature of the No. 5 Chevy. Earnhardt radioed to crew chief Chad Walter that he was too hot in the draft as the temperature in the car was roughly 260 degrees.

LIFE IN THE PITS:

The No. 5 team took advantage of a caution on Lap 11 to remove the tape. The crew also fueled up the No. 5 Chevrolet and made a track bar adjustment during the stop. After the restart, the temperatures went back to normal, and Earnhardt started making his way through the field.

By Lap 19, he had moved into the eighth position. Earnhardt opted not to stop during the caution and moved into the second position. On Lap 44, the team pitted for two cans of fuel and two right side tires. By Lap 50, Earnhardt took the lead for the first time in the race, and the crowd stood on their feet. Earnhardt would lead once for 14 laps.

Photo courtesy of Hendrick Motorsports

On Lap 63, Earnhardt stopped during the caution for fuel and a wedge adjustment. He restarted behind of leader Tony Stewart on Lap 66. Four laps later, a 15-car wreck happened in Earnhardt's rear-view mirror, bringing out the red flag for 25 minutes. Once the race resumed, Earnhardt stopped for fuel.

HOW IT ENDED:

The race resumed with 13 cars on the lead lap, and Earnhardt followed Stewart until the final lap. Earnhardt used a push from Greg Biffle to go for the win, but the drafting help for the No. 5 Chevy dissipated, and Stewart stayed in front. Earnhardt was shuffled back into the top-10 for a sixth-place finish -- his fourth top-10 finish this season in the NASCAR Nationwide Series.

QUOTING DALE EARNHARDT JR.:

"We had a great car and went for the lead at the end, but got shuffled back. Tony had a great car, and that's about all you can do is go for it and hope to hang on there at the end. I just didn't have any help, and that's what happens in these races. I'm really proud of the effort by JR Motorsports, and although we would have liked to win it, we still had a good day."

NEXT UP:

On Friday, May 2, rookie Landon Cassill, 18, will pilot the No. 5 National Guard Chevrolet in the NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway, which will air live on ESPN2 at 7 p.m., ET.

The No. 5 Delphi Chevrolet will return on July 4 for the Nationwide Series race at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway with Earnhardt behind the wheel. The race will air live on ESPN2 at 7:30 p.m., ET.

*****

Thanks to Amy Walsh for the race previews and recaps.
Courtesy of Hendrick Motorsports.
National Guard Racing and Dale Earnhardt Jr

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