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PREVIEW: DALE EARNHARDT JR. (NO. 88 NATIONAL GUARD "SERVING AMERICA"/AMP ENERGY CHEVROLET) VENUE: DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY (2.5- MILE TRI-OVAL) CIRCUIT: NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES (RACE 18 OF 36) DATE: JULY 4, 2009 (160 LAPS, 400 MILES) ***** DALE AT DAYTONA: In 19 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway, Dale Earnhardt Jr. has recorded two wins, six top-five finishes, 11 top-10s and has led 383 laps. IN THE 400: Earnhardt has scored one win, three top-five finishes and six top-10s during nine appearances in the 400-mile July event at Daytona. Earnhardt, who will drive a No. 88 National Guard "Serving America"/AMP Energy Chevrolet, led 116 laps during his emotional July 7, 2001, victory. He has led a total of 245 laps during the summer classic. WORK OF ART : To honor the National Guard and celebrate Independence Day, the No. 88 Chevrolet will run a special hand-painted camouflage ACU (Army Combat Uniform) scheme this weekend. The Hendrick Motorsports body shop needed two days and 14 coats of DuPont paint to finish the job. Earnhardt will unveil the paint scheme to National Guard soldiers and fans at Daytona's Bandshell on Wednesday. A DAYTONA DOZEN: Earnhardt has 12 wins at Daytona International Speedway. He won the 2004 Daytona 500, the 2001 Pepsi 400, two Budweiser Shootouts (2003 and 2008) and five NASCAR Nationwide Series events. Earnhardt also won his Gatorade Duel qualifying races in 2003, 2004 and 2008. DRIVER RATING: According to NASCAR's loop data statistics, Earnhardt ranks fifth in the driver rating category at Daytona with a score of 91.9. The driver rating is a formula that combines wins, top-15 finishes, average running position while on the lead lap, average speed under green, fastest lap, most laps led and lead-lap finishes. The maximum a driver can earn in each race is 150 points. The driver rating number is used pre-race as a prediction tool and post-race as a performance evaluator. SERVING AMERICA: The No. 88 National Guard "Serving America"/AMP Energy Chevrolet is a special paint scheme to honor National Guard soldiers who dedicate a portion of their time to serving their nation, state and local communities. Since first muster in 1636, National Guard soldiers have brought glory and honor upon themselves and the Guard through quiet and selfless service. Approximately 363,000 soldiers strong, the Army National Guard is the oldest component of the Armed Forces of the United States and celebrated its 372nd birthday in December 2008. To learn more on how you can serve your country with the Guard, visit www.NATIONALGUARD.com. DAYTONA CHASSIS: Crew chief Lance McGrew and the No. 88 engineers will unload Chassis No. 88-475 at Daytona. Earnhardt last raced this chassis to a second-place finish at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway in April. HENDRICK AT DAYTONA: Hendrick Motorsports, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, has tallied 10 wins, 39 top-five finishes, 72 top-10s and led 1,315 laps in 50 Cup events (158 starts) at Daytona International Speedway. DAYTONA DOUBLE: In addition to his duties behind the wheel of the No. 88 National Guard "Serving America"/National Guard Chevy, Earnhardt will pilot JR Motorsports' No. 5 Chevy in the Nationwide Series race on Friday. In 16 Nationwide starts at Daytona, he has five wins, eight top-five finishes and 10 top-10s. This marks Earnhardt's sixth Nationwide Series start this season. GET ON THE NO. 88: At this year's AMP Energy 500 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, thousands of members of JR Nation will see their names on Earnhardt's No. 88 AMP Energy/National Guard Chevrolet as part of the AMP Energy "Get on the 88" promotion. Race fans can enter by simply logging on to www.AMPEnergy.com. The first to sign up will see their names on Earnhardt's car and others will appear on the team's pit wall banner. Participants will be notified before the Nov. 1 race with a confirmation of where their names landed. This marks the second year of the hugely popular program. ***** BATTLE OF THE BANDS: Join Earnhardt and the National Guard on Wednesday for the 2009 Battle of the Bands at the Bandshell, located at 250 N. Atlantic Ave. in Daytona Beach, Fla. Earnhardt will introduce the three band finalists, hold a question-and-answer session from the fans and unveil his Daytona paint scheme. The event begins at 5 p.m. local time and is open to the public. ***** DALE EARNHARDT JR., DRIVER, NO. 88 NATIONAL GUARD "SERVING AMERICA"/AMP ENERGY CHEVROLET (ON THE SPECIAL PAINT SCHEME FOR DAYTONA.): "Working with the military means a lot because they are a big part of our sport overall, and to carry them on my car every weekend makes you pretty proud." EARNHARDT (ON THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN DAYTONA IN FEBRUARY AND JULY.): "It's a little more laid back in July. In February, everybody is nervous because it's the beginning of the season. Everybody is wondering how their year is going to go, how their car is going to drive. Everybody knows by the time July rolls around." EARNHARDT (ON WHY DAYTONA HAS BEEN A GOOD TRACK FOR HIM.): "I bring a lot of confidence there and always enjoyed going there when I was a kid. It's always been one of my favorite tracks." LANCE McGREW, INTERIM CREW CHIEF, NO. 88 NATIONAL GUARD "SERVING AMERICA"/AMP ENERGY CHEVROLET (ON HIS FAVORITE DAYTONA MEMORY.): "February this year, winning the Nationwide Series race with Tony Stewart. It was just cool. Just the prestige with winning the event. It's probably the biggest race of the year even in the Nationwide Series, which I got the chance to do this past year. It was just fun. The best of the best show up at the superspeedway and all the Cup guys were there running the Nationwide race and we managed to win. It was really cool working with Tony. It was just fun." McGREW (ON THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN DAYTONA IN FEBRUARY AND JULY.): "The track is so slick in July. You go down there the first time and it's all about qualifying and then you worry about the race afterwards. Well, this is an impound race. You have to worry about the race first and qualifying second. So, build some more downforce into the cars. They don't qualify as fast but they drive a lot better in traffic. It's not like Daytona is ever easy to get around. It's way more difficult in July because the track is really hard to get a hold of." McGREW (ON JULY'S RACE ATMOSPHERE.): "There's no difference to me. Every race pays the same amount of points so I put the same amount of pressure on myself everywhere we go, whether it's Sonoma or Daytona." McGREW (ON THE CAMOUFLAGE PAINT SCHEME.): "I've seen the car, and it's really cool. All of us have an enormous amount of gratitude for what the armed services do for us. And it's cool that on the Independence Day of our nation we get to carry the National Guard on our car, or I guess a better way of putting it is that they are carrying us around. It definitely makes you reflect on the all the privileges and freedoms that you have living in the United States. The fact that we can represent the armed services in any way definitely brings a sense of pride to me and this race team." ***** 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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