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DALE EARNHARDT JR. NO. 88 AMP ENERGY/ NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET POST-RACE RECAP / LOWE'S MOTOR SPEEDWAY DATE: Oct.17, 2009 RACE: NASCAR Banking 500 START: 39th FINISH: 38th POINTS POSITION: 22nd RECAPPING THE RACE: Saturday night's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event was a tough one for Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the No. 88 AMP Energy/National Guard Chevrolet. Transmission issues translated into a mid-race garage stop for the No. 88 team, which battled all night and left Lowe's Motor Speedway with a 38th-place finish. Earnhardt lined up his green-and-white Chevy 39th for the 500-mile event. At the drop of the green flag, he radioed interim crew chief Lance McGrew that his right-rear tire was chattering from the center of the turn through the exit. Earnhardt improved seven spots while working through the handling issue and finally made his way down pit road after the caution flag was waved on Lap 10. McGrew called for four fresh tires, fuel and air pressure and chassis adjustments to improve the handling of the No. 88 Chevrolet. Earnhardt restarted in the 36th spot after much of the field chose not to stop during the second caution of the race. When the green flag was waved again, Earnhardt started his climb through the field. He improved seven spots to 29th before handling issues arose again on Lap 74. Despite difficulty turning the No. 88 Chevy, Earnhardt held onto the 29th spot, even when the transmission jumped out of gear on Lap 102. The transmission seemed to return to normal on Lap 120, when the No. 88 team took advantage of a caution flag to give Earnhardt's Chevy four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment. But on the Lap 123 restart, Earnhardt radioed to McGrew that the car would not stay in fourth gear, and after a brief stop on pit road, McGrew called Earnhardt into the garage for a transmission change. After making the necessary repairs, Earnhardt made his way back on track on Lap 153 running in the 41st position. He picked up three spots to finish 38th.   ***** Courtesy of Hendrick Motorsports. Media Relations | No. 88 AMP Energy / National Guard Racing ***** Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s Official Site - www.dalejr.com |
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