Dale Earnhardt Jr. – driver, No. 8 Budweiser team:
“I’ve never won at Martinsville, but it seems we’re getting closer and closer (to a win) every time we go there. Last year was pretty awesome. We led a bunch of laps and finished in the top-five in both races. It’s fun to drive at that ol’ place. It’s a tough track, and you really have to be ‘on’ for 500 laps to avoid getting the car beat up. You can come in with all the confidence in the world, but it takes almost no time to be taken out of the race.
“One of my best memories of Martinsville is when we got our first top-five there (in April, 2002). That was a huge accomplishment for the team, because it was a place we had struggled. The first three or four times we raced there wasn’t pretty. But we worked hard and found a set-up we could race with at smaller tracks. When we got that first top-five, it was a turning point for this team. I’ve even got the body of that car sitting out in my front yard. It’s one of my yard ornaments.”
Dale Jr. and the No. 8 Bud Team at Martinsville
Previous Nextel Cup Starts: 8
Best Start: 2nd (Oct. 15, 2001 and April 13, 2003)
Best Finish: 3rd (April 13, 2003)
This Race, Last Year: ST: 2nd / FIN: 3rd / LED: 195 laps
-- Dale Jr. has a series-best four consecutive top-five finishes at Martinsville and has started in the top 10 in each of the last six races there. In his last four races at Martinsville, Dale Jr.’s average starting position is 4.5 and average finishing position is fourth. In this race last year, Dale Jr. and the brew crew started second and finished third, leading 195 laps.
-- Dale Jr. enters this weekend’s race third in the Nextel Cup points standings, just 35 points behind point leader Kurt Busch. Dale Jr. has more top-five finishes (four) in 2004 than any other driver.
-- At tracks less than one mile in length, Dale Jr. and the No. 8 Budweiser team have eight top-fives in the last 14 Nextel Cup races … Last year Dale Jr. scored more points on short tracks than any other driver (880 points) …
Some Real Horsepower: Dale Jr. was selected No. 1 by Racer Magazine's 2004 Power and Influence List, ranked ahead of the France family, Roger Penske, Tony George and others. From Racer (May, 2004): "(Dale Jr. is) the most influential presence in the American racing scene today... There's almost no limit to how far he can go now. He's already crossed the chasm from athlete to pop culture icon in a way no other driver - not even Mario (Andretti) - has before... Earnhardt Jr. is sure to solidify and enhance that role to a level once reserved for stick-and-ball sportsmen like Mantle, Montana and Michael Jordan."
Race Details:
Advance Auto Parts 500 / Race No. 8 of 36 in the Nextel Cup Series
Martinsville Speedway / Martinsville, Va.
.526-mile oval, 500 laps, 263 miles
Sunday, April 18, 2004
TV: Fox-TV, 12:30 p.m. ET (pre-race) / 1 p.m. ET race start.
Radio: Motor Racing Network (MRN), XM Radio.
Bud Pole Qualifying: Speed Channel / Friday, 3 p.m. ET.
Anheuser-Busch’s 12 U.S.-based breweries and network of more than 700 wholesalers reduce delivery time and ensure that fresh beer is in retail accounts shortly after packaging. As it reads on every beer package, Anheuser-Busch beers including Budweiser are at their peak of freshness and taste within 110 days from their “Born On” date.
Thanks to Jade Gurss and Mike Davis from fingerprint inc. for sending the race reports and updates.
fingerprint inc.
-- Anheuser-Busch NASCAR Publicity
-- Dale Earnhardt Jr. / No. 8 Budweiser team
www.Budweiser.com |
