 |
DALE EARNHARDT JR. NO. 88 NATIONAL GUARD – DRIVE THE GUARD/ AMP ENERGY CHEVROLET POST-RACE RECAP/RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY DATE: May 2, 2009 RACE: Crown Royal 400 START: 25th FINISH: 27th POINTS POSITION: 18th RECAPPING THE RACE: Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the No. 88 National Guard – Drive the Guard/AMP Energy Chevrolet, worked with a loose-handling car en route to finishing 27th in Saturday night's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway. Earnhardt raced inside the top 30 all evening and cracked the top 10 on Lap 206. But handling issues prevailed, and by the time the checkered flag waved, Earnhardt was running 27th. He now sits 18th in the championship standings, a mere 87 points behind 12th-place Matt Kenseth. After a brief rain shower on Saturday in the Richmond area, officials started the 400-lap race under caution while the track continued to dry. The field took the green flag on Lap 6, and Earnhardt began his forward march from his 25th starting position. The 34-year-old driver radioed crew chief Tony Eury Jr. only a few laps in to report that his No. 88 Chevy was encountering a loose-handling condition. Green-flag pit stops began on Lap 89, and Eury called his driver down pit road six laps later. The crew went to work bolting on four fresh Goodyear tires and refueling the Chevy. After making a chassis adjustment, the crew sent its driver back to green-flag racing in the 21st position. While the adjustments didn't seem to improve the handling on the No. 88 Chevrolet, Earnhardt continued to run inside the top 25. Earnhardt was running 23rd when the caution flag waved on Lap 169. Eury called his driver to pit road and the over-the-wall crew members supplied fuel, fresh Goodyear tires and a chassis adjustment. Quick work netted their driver three positions on pit road. The field went back to green-flag racing on Lap 174, and Earnhardt's Chevy came to life. He was running 15th six laps later and cracked the top 10 on Lap 206. Unfortunately, contact with another competitor dampened the strong run and brought out the evening's seventh caution. Earnhardt made his way down pit road, and the crew spent added time on pit road to repair the damaged right-front fender from the contact. After making all the necessary adjustments, Earnhardt went back to green on Lap 217 running 22nd. During the second half of the race, the No. 88 crew continued to make adjustments to improve the Chevy's handling, but never could get the car dialed in. Earnhardt held on for the 27th-place finish. QUOTING DALE EARNHARDT JR.: EARNHARDT (ON SATURDAY'S RUN.): "I liked getting in the middle of it and mixing it up like that; that was pretty fun. But I was just frustrated at how the car ran."  ***** Courtesy of Hendrick Motorsports. Media Relations | No. 88 AMP Energy / National Guard Racing ***** Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s Official Site - www.dalejr.com |
|