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DALE EARNHARDT JR. NO. 88 NATIONAL GUARD/AMP ENERGY CHEVROLET POST-RACE RECAP/TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY DATE: Nov. 8, 2009 RACE: Dickies 500 START: Ninth FINISH: 25th POINTS POSITION: 23rd RECAPPING THE RACE: Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the No. 88 National Guard/AMP Energy Chevrolet, had a strong showing in Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event at Texas Motor Speedway, but the team gambled with a late-race fuel strategy and finished 25th. The No. 88 team unloaded a fast blue-and-white-Chevy on Friday, and Earnhardt posted the ninth-fastest lap in qualifying. He built even more momentum for Sunday's race after posting the eighth-fastest time in the final Cup practice on Saturday. When the green flag dropped on Sunday, Earnhardt capitalized on the set-up his team utilized during the final practice on Saturday and improved five spots to run fourth by Lap 10. As the long, green-flag run continued, Earnhardt noted the No. 88 Chevy was developing a tight-handling condition through the center of the corners. Green-flag pit stops began on Lap 50, and Earnhardt made his way down pit road two laps later for four fresh tires and fuel. As the field cycled through green-flag stops, Earnhardt was shown fourth on the leaderboard. He maintained his footing inside the top seven during the next 83 laps, stopping on Lap 141 for tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment. Earnhardt rejoined the field in fourth. While running fourth on Lap 155, Earnhardt radioed to his team that he was happy with the adjustments, and he held steady in the top eight for the next 111 laps. Earnhardt was running seventh when his No. 88 team made its third green-flag pit stop of the day. Crew chief Lance McGrew called Earnhardt in on Lap 266 for four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment. McGrew knew that with 102 miles left to run, fuel mileage likely would be an issue without a late-race caution. With 23 laps remaining in the event, Earnhardt was running sixth when competitors started making their way down pit road to top off on fuel. McGrew, hopeful for a late-race caution, opted to keep his driver on the track an additional 17 laps. With six laps left in the 334-lap event, McGrew called Earnhardt down pit road for a quick splash of fuel. Unfortunately, as Earnhardt was making his way down pit road, he radioed to his team that he had run out of fuel. He managed to pull the No. 88 Chevy into his pit stall, but struggled to refire the engine after the fuel stop. Earnhardt finally rejoined the field and was scored 25th.   ***** 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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