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DRIV3R # 88 · #1 (**permalink**) 11-23-2006, 04:11 PM

1st NASCAR Cup Win!
Texas Motor Speedway - April 2nd, 2000

By Karen Eryou
I first met Dale Earnhardt Jr. last year during a practice session at New Hampshire International Speedway. During the question period, the 24-year-old, 6', dyed-blonde hair, racing heartthrob of many young girls, and idol of many young boys, seemed very shy. The well-spoken young man answered questions, with complete sentences, elaborating on the answers. He gave more details than what was actually asked of him. But he kept his head down most of the time, explaining that stardom was something new to him, and he could not yet explain how it felt when someone asks for an autograph.

Since then, he has matured. He had to. He has the media in his face all the time. Now, 25, and competing full-time in the ranks of Winston Cup, he has had the pressure to perform. With great qualifying in each event this season and great finishes, other than the last three races prior to Texas, he has had to compete with this big dark cloud over him. But this past Sunday, April 2, he demonstrated he could break through that big dark cloud of rotten luck. During the running of the DirecTV 500 he proved that with his confidence, his crew, and his driving ability - everything is obtainable, including his first-ever Winston Cup victory, and what a better place for that to happen than at Texas Motor Speedway. The place he won his very first Busch Series race, only two years ago.

"How about our boy yesterday," was the opening statement of an email I received on Monday from one of Jr.'s best friends, Brandon Hinson, drummer for bridge. He goes on to say how Jr. had been feeling a little down about his luck or lack there of in the past couple of weeks. "When we crash out of a race or something, I go to the house, and the phone don't ring," Jr. said. "You sit there and wonder if anybody gives a (darn). Race car drivers go in and out of this series, and I want to be around a long time," he concluded. Then good friend and long-time crew chief and now NASCAR's Winston Cup Director Gary Nelson sat down with Jr. a few days prior to the Texas race to bring Jr.'s spirits up a notch. Nelson basically told him to calm down. Patience is a virtue.

Looking in the past, Texas has always been a turning point in Jr.'s racing season - which could only mean good things for him and the fans alike.

One of the greatest moments after the checkered flag flew, was watching his dad, and car owner Dale Earnhardt lean into the car for a personal chat with his son/driver. Jr. accomplished something quite spectacular on Sunday, he pulled away from the competitors three times after three cautions, and had an awesome pit crew, giving him four tire changes all day long, with the final stop being clocked at 14.7 seconds. That pit stop speed in itself was amazing. Jr. also gave DEI it's first ever victory - another great achievement.

"I felt all along like we had a chance to win races this year," said the 25-year-old pilot of the Budweiser rocket, but who knew it would come so soon. And with the Budweiser sponsorship, Earnhardt Jr. said this was his opportunity to get his messages and views across, especially about underage drinking, and designated drivers, "It's cool, and it's fun to help people out," he said.

FAMILY PRIDE
Driving in the tire tracks of his grandfather and father, the No. 8 on the side of the door carries much family history, as they both drove the No. 8 automobile. Dale Jr. said that the number is very significant to his dad, and he hoped he could give it justice. I think Jr. did just that on Sunday. Dale Earndardt Inc. purchased the number from the Stavola Brothers, who, according to Jr. "Were not too hard pressed to hand it over."

This past weekend, Jr. raced 42 other drivers, veterans and rookies alike at the Texas one-groove track, and came home triumphant. Now, Jr. may have the added tension of performance. He has proven he can win; now he will have to overcome the pressures of the media and the fans to do it all over again.

Interesting Statistics...

Dale Earnhardt Sr's first Cup win.
7th race of the season - Apr. 1, 1979

Dale Earnhardt, Jr's first Cup win.
7th race of the season - Apr. 2, 2000

Dale Earnhardt, Jr's first Busch win.
7th race of the season - Apr. 4, 1998

DRIV3R # 88 · #2 (**permalink**) 11-23-2006, 04:14 PM

2nd NASCAR Cup Win!
Richmond Int'l Raceway - May 6th, 2000

RICHMOND, Va. - Dale Earnhardt Jr. scored his second Winston Cup victory on Saturday night, May 6 in the Pontiac Excitement 400 at Richmond International Raceway.

This track has been good to him in the past series - but could he put what he had previously learned to the test in the Cup car - that was the question. He qualified 5th with a great second lap.

Early in the race - Jr. was riding the groove, passing when he could, and staying out of trouble. The experience he had gained at RIR in the Busch series seemed to be helpful to him and the crew. But at one point in the race, Jr. fell back as far as 13th.

The crucial moment of the race came during the final pit stop on lap 363 of the 400 lap event, Jr. came into the pits in second position, just behind the race leader, Tony Stewart. When they left their pits, contact was made between the two cars. Jr. spoke about the bumping incident he had with Tony Stewart on that final pit stop: "He didn't give us a whole lotta room. The 60 car was sticking out in front of me, and I was as close to his guys as I could be without hitting them. Our car was damaged and it did hurt the nose, but I feel bad that Tony had a flat tire - he had the best car out there."

Then on the final restart - Jr. was right behind his dad - Jr. pulled alongside the #3 Chevrolet, driven by his father, and made the pass for the lead on lap 369. The dented front fender caused some ill handling problems for Jr. - but he managed to stay on top of the situation. If the #3 crew had elected for a 4-tire change, there could have been some pretty interesting racing between father and son.

Tony Eury Sr. and the entire crew gave Jr. what he needed to win his second race of the year - but Jr. had his hands full at the end of the race. He held off a strong charging Terry Labonte in the final laps. Jr. said his car was getting tight and he was having trouble getting off the corners as fast, and the #5 car was reeling him in.

But at the checkers, it was Jr. for the win. And all of the 100,000 in attendance were on their feet. After the cool down lap, Jr. smoked up the start/finish line like a real young gun - then in victory lane - he dove into his crews arms from the roof of the Budweiser rocket - kind of like crowd surfing in the mosh pit of a rock concert. He has got to be one of the coolest drivers in Nascar history.

Dad met Jr. in victory lane - his words to his son - as reported by Jr. - "He told me he loved me, but that he was leaving, so I needed to find my own ride home!"

And to add to his victory - his mom Brenda Jackson, who he mentions in a recent Rolling Stone article, was in attendance, and he invited her to take part in the victory lane celebrations alongside him for the trophy presentation.

Jr.'s closing remarks were that of an elated 25-year-old: "We've got a lot of celebrating to do. We have a weekend off and the Budweiser's going to taste real good this week."

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SIDEBAR NOTES:

- Dale Earnhardt Jr. was victorious for the second time in Winston Cup in this 16th career start, which ties him with the late Davey Allison as the quickest multi-winner in W.C. history.

- He earned $118,850 for the Richmond victory - he has now surpassed the million-dollar mark in his Winston Cup career earnings.

- He is the first driver in the 2000 season to win two races, breaking the string of 10 different winners in the ten races to date.

- Jr. is now only one point behind Kenseth in the ROTY point chase. Kenseth has 133 points - to Jr.'s 132. - This win brought Jr. up to 17th in the points, from 22nd last week.

- Jr.'s comments about the Brew Crew - he said, "they make me look good."

DRIV3R # 88 · #3 (**permalink**) 11-23-2006, 04:15 PM

First Rookie to Win the Winston!
Lowe's Motor Speedway - May 20th, 2000

CONCORD, N.C. - It's been a long and devastating week for all those involved in NASCAR, and for the drivers and crews in preparation for the prestigious bragging rights of appearing in the May 20th running of The Winston - let alone winning the event. "Wow - I mean what are the odds of us even making this race and then winning it our first time out? I've watched this race for years as a fan, and if you asked me, I think this one must've been fun to watch. It was (real) exciting from my seat," said the elated first time competitor.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. qualified 5th for the event on Friday. That in itself was a rookie accomplishment. But what he continues to accomplish in this rookie season is amazing. The record books are changing, and rapidly - and that is a good thing if you are a Dale Earnhardt Jr. fan.

On Saturday Jr. finished both 30-lap segments in third. Then in the final segment he was running third, then the Brew Crew gambled big time, and brought him in for a four-tire change, when Jr. got back in line he was tenth. He had to overcome many obstacles to get back to the front, but he was successful in doing just that, by gaining one or two positions on every lap. Jr. pulled behind the race leader Dale Jarrett with only two laps to go and made the pass and pulled away with one lap to go. That's how he found himself in victory lane, but it was not all that simple.

In the first segment he hit the wall, had a left rear tire come loose on the hub, and despite the problems still came home a winner. "The car was haulin' butt until I hit the wall, and then it slowed down a bit, but we made some changes and it was awesome fast those final laps," Jr. said. "Yeah, it was a hard hit. I really thought I had more room than I did. We weren't pushing it, the car was so good, I was just cruising. It's like driving home in your pickup and you hit the curb pulling into the driveway. I just messed up and hit the wall," Jr. said of the incident.

"Hey, we're racers, we're not just riders… we were gonna go for the gusto - that's what this race is about. No points, no pressure, just drive it as hard as you can," is what Jr. had to say, and that's exactly what he did.

As in the past, his father, who finished in third place, met him in victory lane. "The highlight of my life is seeing the smile on my daddy's face. I mean that's what this is all about; making people happy. It does my heart good to know how happy he is, how happy my team is! This is great for the fans and for all of my sponsors like Budweiser and Remington and so many that have supported me and supported the team to help make this happen," Jr. said.

Jr.'s Thoughts About Adam Petty
In that makeshift victory lane (The usual victory lane was kept silent in Adam's memory), Jr. commented about Adam Petty who died from a practice crash one week ago at New Hampshire International Speedway "I'm missing my buddy Adam. I've just been thinking of him all week, and I just wanted to dedicate this one to him. I know if he's watching us he's happy because it was a great race, but I really do miss him."

"We used to play football in front of the condos at the track. Me and Jason Jarrett and Adam would get together and play here and there, and when Adam started driving in the Busch Series, I got to know him a little better. We weren't best friends, but we were friends," Jr. said remembering Adam.

"You never know when you're going to be here or not. Plus that deal with the bridge outside the track. I'm standing there cheering and raising hell in victory lane and 11 or 12 people are outside the track fighting for their lives. It really shocked me when I heard about it," Jr. said.

Three Days After The Win
Jr. mentioned that getting through the technical inspection on Saturday night was a lengthy process, and it was late when he got home. "I was tired and I think I slept until about noon on Sunday. I didn't have to pinch myself or anything when I woke up. I remembered what happened the way it happened, and we had to come from the back a couple of times, I think it sunk in quicker. It was cool."

"I haven't been doing nothing much since Saturday night," Jr. said Tuesday morning. "I've just been sitting around the house and hanging out at the shop aggravating everybody."

Earnhardt Jr. On Success
"Everything has worked out pretty cool so far this season. I didn't know if I could win in Winston Cup at all as a rookie. To have two wins and a win in The Winston already really takes away a lot of pressure. It's a relief really," he said. "Success can easily spoil you, and I take advantage of the situation some. I'm shopping a little more than I used to in the past. I bought a 25-foot boat to use on Lake Norman, but it ain't nothing special. You see a bunch of boats just like it on the lake. I bought a new truck and paid cash for it. That was cool. I bought it from my dad, and he gave me a pretty good deal on it, I think."

Jr. On His Dad
"He’s real careful what he says to me in a complimentary way. We're getting closer and closer as it goes. We've both got strong teams, and we both want to run good. I guess it's rare for a father and son to be racing each other, but we have the same ideals and same goals and go about our jobs almost identical. I really don't know how it feels for him racing against me. I know he's happy and proud when his son and his car win, but at the same time, if his son and car win, he doesn't, so that's got to be a little tricky."

His Thoughts On The Upcoming 600
"The 600 is a long race and a lot can happen. I guess we're going for two in a row (after points win at Richmond), but I'd like to think of it as three in a row. If our car is as good as it was in The Winston, I'll get it to victory lane somehow. Everybody on the team is confident, and I think we're going to be hard to beat. I know you've got to stay out of trouble and have a little luck, and I know the track is going to change as the race goes on, but Tony and the boys will be ready. I don't know if Humpy has predicted a winner for the 600. Maybe we'll check with him, and see what he thinks," he concluded.

First rookie to win The Winston
Jr. led only two laps in the final segment - the final two
He has won three Winston Cup events in six weeks
His winnings for the event: $516,410 or $7,377 per lap run or $4,918 per mile raced

DRIV3R # 88 · #4 (**permalink**) 11-23-2006, 04:17 PM

3rd NASCAR Cup Win!
Daytona Int'l Speedway - July 7th, 2001

Dale Jr. Dominates Daytona!

Dale Jr. Wins, Leads 116 of 160 Laps for Emotional Victory

Dale Earnhardt Jr. and the Budweiser No. 8 team grabbed an emotional victory Saturday night in the Pepsi 400 at Daytona International Speedway. Dale Jr. dominated nearly the entire race, leading 116 of the 160 laps. Emotions had run high all weekend at the track where his legendary father was tragically killed in February, but Dale Jr. and the team were able to put emotion to the side until after the checkered flag. After the victory, Dale Jr. spun the red-and-white Bud car, a special paint scheme to commemorate the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, through the infield grass, then climbed on top of the car, raising his arms in triumph in front of a crowd of more than 170,000 spectators. He was soon joined there by his Dale Earnhardt Inc. teammate Michael Waltrip, who finished second. It is Earnhardt's first win of the season, and the third Winston Cup victory of his career.

The Key Moment: Even though Dale Jr. was only able to qualify 13th Friday afternoon, he was clearly the fastest and best-handling car during the evening’s final practice session. The team and the driver were quietly confident that they had the car to beat in the race. When the race began, Dale Jr. took it easy for the first ten laps, dropping as far back as 31st position on lap 7. After that, he moved through the field to take the lead on 27. After that, he was clearly the fastest car, but was the victim of a yellow flag that flew on lap 142. When the No. 8 team made their third sparkling pit stop of the night, six cars that did not pit were ahead of the Bud car when the final green flag fell with six laps to go. It took him only two laps to pass the five cars ahead of him, and he led the final laps with his teammate Michael Waltrip on his rear bumper, helping to push him to victory. Dale Jr. had helped Waltrip in almost the exact same manner when they finished first and second in the tragic Daytona 500 in February.

Dale Jr’s Quotes: “I wanna dedicate this one to my dad. This one is for him. I wish I could have seen the look on Teresa’s (Earnhardt’s widow) face. This is for her too. We all stuck together and we’re getting through the rough time together as a team – Tony (Eury) my crew chief, Tony (Eury) Jr., Ty Norris and everybody at DEI... This is great! Unbelieveable! I love coming to Daytona, and to win here it… it just means a lot.”

“Yeah, I thought about my dad, but I tried to keep my mind clear all weekend. I think the first lap or two of practice, it felt different, it felt very strange. That was really tough for me, but after that the car was so good that I was able to concentrate and just do what I am paid to do.”

“We were just faster than everybody else. It was all car – 100% car tonight. I could go anywhere I wanted and it seemed like everybody tried to make a run at us or gang up on us and I could put the car anywhere I needed to go. What an awesome car! I could pull away from the guys behind me, but if you got too far out in the lead, they could really get a run on you in the draft.”

“I was so happy to see Michael (Waltrip) behind me. I knew he was gonna help me. I helped him – I committed to him – at the 500, and I TOLD him that I helped him! (laughs) So,I knew he was right behind me supporting me tonight and he did. He was so happy when we were jumping on the cars. He’s had a rough year, so I was happy for him as well. ”

(Taking a deep breathe after climbing into a van to be taken to the media center after a long and emotional victory lane celebration.) “Whoa. This is HUGE!”

(Looking down from the media center onto the skid marks where he had done donuts in the grass after the win)
“I’m looking at those marks, and they don’t look very good from here. I hope they looked better to you guys when I was doin’ them. When Matt Kenseth won at Charlotte last year, he did some sort of high-speed slide though the grass, so I was kinda going for that, mixed with some donuts. You HAVE to do stuff like that after you win because you’ve got so much energy that you have to let it out. You gotta let it out like that by spinning around and jumping out of the car and letting out some yells! Otherwise, if you don’t, you get to victory lane and you’ll just get outta the car and fall over or lose consciousness.”

“The big tire marks on the right side of the car are from Matt! He came up beside me after the race and bumped me, but we touched wheels and we both were kinda thrown up in the air. That was wild!”

Comment from Dale Jarrett, who came to see Dale Jr. in victory lane: “That reminded me of someone else I used to know…”

Best Team Radio Chatter of the Day

During the pace laps before the race started.
Ty Norris (team spotter) “I can see you clearly down the backstretch but I may be guessing everywhere else.”
Dale Jr: “That’s OK. I’ll be guessing a lot myself.”

Seconds later, as Dale Jr. slowly drove past the Budweiser pit area, one lap before the start of the race:
Dale Jr: “Hey y’all get off that wall there, you guys need to get ready to work tonight. We got some work to do. And tell that (PR guy) to get the hell back… He’s in the way there…”

Dale Jr. requested a slight adjustment of one-quarter pound of air pressure the left rear tire during the first pit stop. After running a few laps at top speed, he radioed the crew to check on what change was made.
Dale Jr: “I’m loose off of turn two for some damn reason. I feel like I’m gonna spin out back there every lap. Tony Jr., what did you change on this?!”
Tony Eury Jr. (car chief) “We added a pound in the left rear.”
Dale Jr: “A pound?! I said a quarter-pound! You won’t listen to me?!”
Tony Jr: “We can’t make that small of an adjustment.”
Dale Jr. “What?! Are you sayin’ I can’t tell the difference in a quarter-pound of pressure, ‘cause I can! I asked for it and you didn’t listen. Damn man, I am more valuable to you than you’ll ever know…”
Tony Eury Sr. (crew chief): “No, he meant our tire gauge won’t read that small of a change.”
Ty Norris: “Hey, you’re all worth a lot to each other, my brothers!”

When teammate Steve Park was in second position, Dale Jr. attempted to help Park fend off the advances of Matt Kenseth, the third place car.
Dale Jr: “Ask Steve what he wants to do. Does he wanna run high or low? Let’s pretend I’m driving the 1 car (Park) right now. You tell me when the 17 car (Kenseth) has a run on the 1 car.”
Ty Norris: “He has to run high to stop the 17 car from passing him on the high side.”
Dale Jr: “Alright, then we’ll see who’s gonna help me, OK?!”

Dale Jr. saw most of the action in his rear-view mirror tonight.
Dale Jr. “They’re racin’ like hell back there!”
Tony Jr: “That looked like a pretty nice save there, driver…”
Dale Jr.: “Well… what can I say?!... (long pause) I got a good car here. I’m just showin’ ‘em my ass…”

As the race neared its conclusion, the team debated whether to change no tires, two tires or four tires on the final pit stop. When the yellow flag flew on lap 142, the team decided to take four tires.
Dale Jr. “If I get four tires, I’d like it… but if I NEED to race these guys with no tires or two tires, I dunno about that. But, I’m pretty comfortable now… No matter what, I’ll drive my ass off…”
Ty Norris: “Everybody else seems to be saying four…”
Tony Eury Sr: “OK, pit this lap.”
Dale Jr.: “Alright now guys, everybody calm down. Let’s do things like there are 100 laps to go, OK? What do y’all think? Two or four tires?”
Tony Eury: (as Dale Jr. rolls down pit lane toward the pit box): “OK, four tires. Four tires.”

As the race approached the final green flag with six laps to go, the Bud car was in sixth place.
Dale Jr: “I wanna win this one pretty bad. If we don’t, we shoulda. I’m sorry…”
Joey Meier (secondary spotter, located along the back stretch) “Jr., you’ve been great. The five cars in front of you haven’t been able to keep up with you all night. If you can believe it, it was that 31 car (Mike Skinner) that started that big crash."
Dale Jr: “Why wouldn’t I believe that?!”
Joey Meier: “I was being facetious…”
Dale Jr: “Yeah, so was I…”
Teammate Michael Waltrip slid into second place with two laps to go, and slotted himself on Dale Jr’s back bumper to the finish.
Ty Norris: “That’s the 15 car right behind you! That man is committed to you, I know it. He is committed to help you… (as the last lap begins) He’s gonna stay with you… just protect the bottom of the race track… just like he did in the 500… protect the bottom. You got it! You got it!”

Race Notes Pepsi 400

Points Points Points
The team gained the maximum points available with the victory and by leading the most laps. The bounty helped boost them to ninth place in Winston Cup points. The win makes the team eligible for a one million dollar bonus if they win the race at Richmond in September as a part of the Winston NO BULL 5…

Pop Stars
It scored him no points toward the Winston Cup, but Dale Jr. did meet Lance from N'Sync before the race. He did not meet grand marshal Brittney Spears, but did autograph items for her family, who are Dale Jr. fans...

DRIV3R # 88 · #5 (**permalink**) 11-23-2006, 04:19 PM

4th NASCAR Cup Win!
Dover Downs Int'l Speedway - September 23, 2001

Dominant Day for Dale at Dover Downs

Dale Jr. and No. 8 Bud Team Win Patriotic MBNA Cal Ripken Jr. 400

Dale Earnhardt Jr. and the No. 8 Budweiser team brewed the competition Sunday, leading 193 of the 400 laps of the MBNA Cal Ripken Jr. 400 at Dover Downs International Speedway and taking an emotional victory. The race was the first Winston Cup event following the Sept. 11 terrorist attack on the United States. A heart-tugging pre-race ceremony included more than 140,000 race fans waving American flags. To commemorate the victims of the attack, Dale Jr. drove a victory lap holding aloft a large American flag, and he also donated $75,000 to the relief effort (see details below). The red Budweiser car had been fast all weekend, qualifying third, and then dominated much of the race.

The Key Moment: Dale Jr. launched into the lead for the first time on lap three and never fell further than eighth place for the remaining laps as the team put together their second dominating win of the 2001 season. Earnhardt Jr. led most of the first half of the race, running easily among the top three positions until a slow pit stop dropped him to eighth place with 140 laps to go. From there, he methodically worked his way into third place on lap 329. He remained there until the leader Ricky Rudd spun out on lap 345. After the team’s final pit stop, they restarted in third place behind Dale Jarrett and Jerry Nadeau, but it took Dale Jr. only 12 laps to take the race lead that he would never again relinquish. His lead of three seconds was wiped out by a yellow flag on lap 388, but he was able to pull away on the final re-start and take the victory by a margin of 1.576 seconds.

Dale Jr’s Quotes: “I knew we were gonna be good, but I didn’t know we’d be THAT good. Before the race, Dale Jarrett and Ricky Rudd told me that if I ran like I did yesterday (in the final practice), I could walk away with it, but I never felt like we had it in our hands until I saw the checkered flag. We were really good early on, but in the middle stages we kind of struggled. I mean, we were still a top-three car, but we were just kind of chillin,’ keeping the leader in sight so we could make a run at the end.

“We had that bad pit stop, and fell to eighth, and I thought ‘well… there goes the race…’ but we fought back and then we had the fastest car the last 100 laps or so. I think Rudd’s spin (on lap 345) cost him the race. We may have been able to catch him, but I don’t think we could have passed him.

“Once we got the lead there with 40-some to go, I just tried to get as far ahead as I could. I was worried when that last yellow flag came out (with 12 laps to go). You don’t know how many times I have lost races on deals like that, but we got a good restart and held ‘em off. I learned some things from Andy Pilgrim and the guys on the Corvette team that I raced with (at the 24 Hours of Daytona in February). They taught me some things on restarts – like how to short-shift without spinning the tires. So, even though I lost a little ground in first gear, by the time we were at top speed I had great momentum and I could get a great first lap on every restart.”

About the emotions and patriotism of the day: “This feels different than any of our other wins. I mean, we love winning, but it felt odd to celebrate. I watched the Formula One guys last week in Europe, and when Juan Montoya won, they didn’t spray the champagne. My dad told me never to do any more burnouts after we won the Winston last year because it hurts the engine, so as I was coming around to head into pit lane, I thought about the big American flag we had in our pit area, and I asked them to bring it to me and I did a lap for the fans.

“It was neat to see the fan’s reaction… I mean we’ve all been sad the past couple of weeks, and it was neat to see the NASCAR fans show their spirit and their patriotism just like the baseball fans or football fans have done. It does make me proud that I’m American, and I feel honored that I was the one to win on a day like today. I mean, it didn’t matter who won, it was healing to be here and it was special to be together and feel like the NASCAR family was together for the country. The fans presented me -- and all of us drivers – with some real inspiration out there.”

About donating to help the children impacted by the recent tragedies: “My sister (Kelley) and I wanted to do something. We talked about it, and we decided we’d donate some money for the children. I mean, you sit on your couch and watch and you feel helpless. We wanted to do what we could to help."

About meeting Cal Ripken Jr: “He is just cool. Just the coolest guy in the place, ya know. Whether he wants to be or not, he’s a great role model. A great athlete to look up to. He does his job and then he goes home to his kids and his family and I think he’s someone we can all appreciate.”

Radio Chatter (the best moments of radio conversation during the race)

Dale Jr’s favorite recent movie is “Cast Away” starring Tom Hanks. In the movie, Hanks is stranded on a deserted island and “befriends” a Wilson-brand volleyball that washes up on the beach. Hanks’ character names the ball “Wilson.” During a recent race at Darlington, Dale Jr. complained to the crew that “y’all just make me feel like Tom Hanks out here, all alone. I should just get a volleyball to keep me company.” A team member purchased a volleyball and painted a face on it much like the one in the movie and surprised Dale Jr. with it before the final practice session Saturday. Dale Jr.enjoyed it so much, the team mounted the volleyball in the cockpit for today’s race…

Dale Jr. (during a yellow flag period early in the race): “I am watching the water temp(erature)… It’s about 220 degrees (Farenheit)… I was worried because I remember back in the days when 210 was all ya wanted to see…”
Jeff Clark (team engine specialist): “Hey man, Wilson says it’s OK…”
Dale Jr: “There ain’t no Wilson here…”
Tony Eury Sr. (crew chief): “Yeah, he’s there, but I’ll bet he’s all swollen up from the heat inside that car…He’s never seen heat like this.”
Dale Jr.: “Seriously? I don’t see him…”
Tony Eury Jr. (car chief): “Yeah, he’s right there – behind your water bottle…”
(dramatic pause)
Dale Jr.: “Hey! There he is! (calling out like Tom Hanks’ character in the movie) WILSONNNNNNNNNN! He’s in here man! I got a buddy…”

Dale Jr’s post race quotes about the movie and the volleyball: “I think Tom Hanks is good in about any movie, but I think that ‘Cast Away’ is awesome. I guess because I felt like I’ve been on a deserted island since my dad died in February. You know, I’m surrounded by people all the time, and thousands of people at the track, but I feel all alone, ya know. I said that to some of the people close to me, and they thought it would be fun to surprise me with it in the car. Now that we’ve won with it, maybe it brought me some luck too, so we may have to have that ball in there from now on.”

Race Notes / MBNA 400

For the Children
Dale Jr. will donate a minimum of $75,000 from today’s win to the Speedway Children’s Charities to benefit children who have been impacted by the terrorist attacks in the United States. JR. Motorsports, the company Dale Jr. owns, had pledged to donate $100 for every lap he completed, for a total of $40,000. He then promised to donate $10,000 for every pit stop completed by the Bud crew in less than 14 seconds during today’s race. The team had two such stops for another $20,000 donation. He also added $5,000 for each pit stop of less than 15 seconds, which added a final $15,000 to the total.

Points Points Points
Dale Jr. moved to sixth in Winston Cup points with the maximum amount of points this afternoon (race win, plus five bonus points for leading the race and another five points for leading the most laps). He has closed to a deficit of 15 points behind Sterling Marlin for fifth, within 78 points of Dale Jarrett for fourth and 87 points behind TonyStewart in third.

Da Numbers
This is the fourth career victory for Dale Jr. and the No. 8 Bud team in 66 Winston Cup starts… this is their second victory of 2001… the team won two races at Dover in the Busch Series, but this is their first Cup win here… they have three top-10 finishes in four Dover starts… this is the team’s second straight top-three finish… it is their 12th top-10 of the season… the team has finished on the lead lap in 12 consecutive events… Dale Jr. led the most laps for the third race this season…. He has led 13 of the 27 races so far in 2001… 193 laps is the most Dale Jr. has ever led in a single Cup race…prior to the race, Dale Jr. met another famous Jr – Cal Ripken, today’s grand marshal. Ripken, who also carries the No. 8, autographed several items for Dale Jr…

DRIV3R # 88 · #6 (**permalink**) 11-23-2006, 04:21 PM

5th NASCAR Cup Win!
Talladega Superspeedway - October 21st, 2001

Million Dollar Bonus for Victorious Bud Team

Dale Jr. Turns in Scintillating Drive to Win at Talladega

Dale Earnhardt Jr. grabbed the victory and a million dollar bonus from series sponsor Winston as the No. 8 Budweiser team won the EA Sports 500 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway Sunday afternoon. It is the third victory of the season for the team and moves Dale Jr. into sixth place in the Winston Cup point standings. Dale Jr. led the most laps for the fourth time this season, heading the field 11 times for 67 laps, as he dueled Tony Stewart to the finish line while a serious, multi-car crash exploded behind them. No drivers were seriously injured in the last lap crash, but 15 or more cars were damaged in the crash. Earnhardt Jr. topped Stewart at the finish line by a margin of .388 of a second. The prize money of $1,165,773 is the richest payday of the team’s career. It is Dale Jr’s fifth career win in 70 starts, and it gives Dale Earnhardt Inc. (DEI) three wins in four restrictor plate races this season.

The Key Moment: Starting sixth, Dale Jr. took the lead for the first time on lap nine, and then ran among the top three (except for pit stops) until the team’s final pit stop on lap 151 (of 188). Twelve teams did not make a pit stop on that lap, dropping Dale Jr. to 13th position. When the green flag fell, it took the red Bud car only seven laps to move back into second place. In the final 20 laps of the race, Dale Jr. led the race three times, falling as far back as fourth place with three laps to go before he sliced, diced and zoomed his way to first place on the final lap.

Dale Jr’s Quotes: Series sponsor Winston offers the “No Bull Million,” a bonus program that awards a million dollars to a driver and fan at selected races on the circuit. A lucky fan, Carrie Richter of Conneaut, Ohio won a million as well. “A million bucks?!? Wild, isn’t it?!”

“We had such a great car today – Tony (Eury, crew chief) and all the guys tweak and polish and work on this speedway car all the time, just making it better and better. The engine guys too – every man on this team finds a little improvement in their area, and so overall it makes a huge difference. This was the car we won with at Daytona, and we looked forward to coming back here and showing some muscle. The car was so good that I had time to contemplate and really think about how it would end and how I was going to race certain guys. I thought the 55 car (Bobby Hamilton) was going to be the strongest, and the 15 (teammate Michael Waltrip) and maybe the 20 (Tony Stewart). I know Bobby (Hamilton) got a run on me at one point and I was able to pull back in front of him, so I knew we had a good car that could win. I guess 7/8th of that race was probably not that exciting for the fans, but the last bit was sure as hell exciting.”

In four restrictor-plate races this year, Dale Jr. has two wins, a second and a sixth-place finish, giving him the best record of any driver in those races. His late, great father won this race last year, and was considered the king of restrictor plate racing. Dale Jr. was asked after the race about his father’s influence and teaching him about restrictor plate racing: “I paid a lot of attention to my dad for a lot of years, so I think I had some sort of idea what he was doing. Then, racing against him last year, I learned a lot more. He was always teaching me lessons by leaving me behind out there. I think it’s a lot easier to know what he was doing than it is to actually go out and do it. These guys gave me the best car, but I knew that in the last 10 laps, I was the one that was gonna have to wheel it. If we didn’t win, it would have been my fault. No matter how fast the car is, you have to be spiteful or uncaring in those last laps. I ran into Bobby (Labonte) at the line on the white flag lap, and I thought I might have wrecked him, but I had a great run and my momentum was carrying me past him no matter what direction he was going.”

“It’s cool to do things that my father had done. You know, like winning the Winston (NASCAR’s all star race in 2000). I had watched him win that race a few times, so it meant a lot to me when I won it to say ‘I did that too.’ When I was a little kid, I’d look back through the all the books and magazines and it would show the winner of the year before and I’d always look to see where dad had finished. So, now when I win, I feel like it’s a mark for me. I wanna be one of the good drivers.(My dad and grandpa were voted among NASCAR’s top 50 drivers of the first 50 years, and) I wanna be in that book when the next one is written. I want my boy to look in there and see how his daddy did in 2001…”

After a dominating win at Daytona, some cynics suggested that the race had been somehow fixed. Dale Jr. was asked if today’s win was satisfying to quiet the critics. “It feels great. It felt great to win. We were looking forward to it. It feels good that I get credit because I was driving it, but there is a lot of credit to go around, and it feels good to make those people (critics of the Daytona win) sleep in the bed they made.”

Did he see the big crash in his mirror? “Yeah. At first I thought, ‘wow man, I’m gonna win.’ Then, I felt the 20 car (Stewart) get a draft on the side of my car. You can feel that. He was alongside of me, and I knew I had company.”

Radio Chatter (the best moments of radio conversation during the race)

The frantic two- and three-wide action usually produces a non-stop barrage of chatter from spotter Ty Norris. However, because Dale Jr. was nearly always in the lead or in a single-file line in second place, there were long periods of silence on the radio. For 12 laps, as Junior led the race early on, the radio was silent, so Norris decided to check in with Dale Jr.
Norris (spotter): “Everything cool?”
Dale Jr. (after long pause): “Yup.”

Understatement of the day:
Dale Jr.: “Are we really this good, or is everybody else just chillin’?”
Tony Eury Jr. (car chief): “They’re chillin,’ but we’re pretty good.”

As he approached the finish line, Dale Jr. almost couldn’t believe his eyes.
Dale Jr.: “Are we gonna win?… YEAH! I’m gonna win!”
Tony Jr.: “YEAH! This one is for everyone who doubted the Daytona win!”

Race Notes / EA Sports 500

Points Points Points
For the second time in five weeks, the Bud team scored the maximum amount of points, as they won the race and also grabbed the 10 bonus points for leading the race for the most laps.They achieved the same feat at Dover in the first race following the Sept. 11 terrorist attack. The point bounty moved Dale Jr. into sixth place in points with five races left in the season. He is now 73 points behind fifth place and 115 points out of third place.

The Tonight Show
Dale Jr. will appear on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno next Monday (October 29) on NBC. Dale Jr. will appear along with other guests John Travolta and the band Alien Ant Farm. It will be Earnhardt Jr’s first appearance on Leno’s show.

DRIV3R # 88 · #7 (**permalink**) 11-23-2006, 04:24 PM

6th NASCAR Cup Win!
Talladega Superspeedway - April 21st, 2002

Earnhardt Jr. Dominates Again at Talladega Superspeedway

No. 8 Budweiser Team Leads 133 Laps, Takes Second Straight Win at Talladega

Dale Earnhardt Jr. added to his already impressive resume at the largest and fastest NASCAR superspeedways with a win Sunday in the Aaron's 499 at Talladega (Al.) Superspeedway. The Budweiser team grabbed their second straight win at the 2.66-mile track with a dominating performance, leading the race 10 different times for 133 (of 188 total) laps. Dale Earnhardt Inc. teammate Michael Waltrip finished second, which is the third time in the last five superspeedway races that the teammates have finished in the top two positions. Kurt Busch was third. The victory - coupled with the bonus points for leading the most laps - launches Dale Jr. into fifth position in Winston Cup points. It is their highest points position since the first race of the 2001 season. The victory is the team's sixth in 84 races, and it marks the first time that the team has won a second time at a particular track. Today's win also marks the first victory of the season for Chevrolet.

The Key Moment: Dale Jr., starting fourth, was caught in the outside line on the first lap and was shuffled back to eighth place. From that point on, Dale Jr. went forward and stayed there for the remainder of the race. He first took the lead on lap nine, with drafting help from his teammate Michael Waltrip. The two DEI drivers led a combined total of 147 laps. The duo ran at or near the front with the help of blazing pits stops, especially from the Budweiser team. In four stops, the Bud pit crew never failed to send Dale Jr. back into action ahead of the field. Dale Jr. was ahead of the field when a huge multi-car accident slowed the field on lap 165, and he stayed in the lead until a late-race red flag on lap 181 stopped the action completely for more than 15 minutes to clean the track of debris and fluids. The red flag did nothing to stop the momentum, as Dale Jr. kept the red Bud car ahead of the pack for the remaining laps, crossing the finish line .060 of a second ahead of Waltrip.

Dale Jr's Quotes: "I wanna thank all of the guys who worked on this car. This is the same car that we won with at Daytona and here last year, but we banged it up a bit at Daytona in February. We put a new body on it but we didn't get to take it to the wind tunnel, so it was kind of an unknown. But - it worked great. The guys who do the engines and the fabricating on these things did their job - and all I had to do today was to keep it ahead of the pack. And I owe so much to my teammate Michael. As excited as I was when I crossed the finish line, I was disappointed for him because I know the feeling of running second when you really want and need a win. Michael and I work well together at these restrictor-plate tracks, and when we work together, we're hard to beat."

"I led a lot - and sometimes it seemed almost effortless. I always had somebody good behind me - pushing me and holding off the rest of the guys. I really worried when the red flag came out. You sit there and you have a lot of time to thing and worry. It seemed like no one else wanted to lead the race early on - so I worried that maybe they were holding back until the last few laps. The leader is the most vulnerable out there - everyone else can gang up on ya, and I was worried it was gonna get crazy."

"I put a lot of emphasis on Daytona and Talladega. They are my favorite tracks, and I love racing at 'em. I learned a lot watching my dad. When I first got to Daytona, I thought I was gonna pull out all his moves and be better than everyone else, but I found out I was wasn't any better than the rest of them. Daddy and I never talked about it, but I began to learn a lot of things that he did, and I feel like that helps me. But, I will say, you can't learn to run up front until you have a car that can do it. I know that if I was out there today in just about any other car, I wouldn't be sitting here right now talking about a win."

"I ran a really high line in the middle section of the race just because I enjoy it up there. There's not as much grip and you can really drive the car. It's just fun. I wanted to go up there and see who would follow me - and the whole field did. I wanted to dictate where they were running and spread the field out a bit. I was watching close to see who would try to run on the bottom - and they'd pull out and just drop back. Finally Michael and a few guys got together to run the low line, and I was kinda forced to move down to block their momentum. Then I knew I had a teammate behind me at the end - and that's the best hand to be holding at the end."

"Right now, I'm having a blast. I want to be a part of this sport for a long time, so it's important to me to get wins and good, consistent finishes. I mean, I want to be known as one of the greatest drivers in the sport when I'm done. I think we're in position now to challenge for a championship."

Best Radio Conversations
Leading for much of the day, Dale Jr. would often talk to the team while (in his words) "chillin'" at 185 mph.
Dale Jr: "I'm getting nervous here. I mean, when you're up front ridin,' you have time to worry about what can go wrong…"
Ty Norris (spotter): "Michael (Waltrip) wants to know how the view is up there in the catbird seat while he's right behind you fighting off the field."
Dale Jr: "It's good. I've been havin' some fun watching him battle. Tell him if he wants to pass me, go ahead!"
Within seconds, Waltrip made a bold move and took the lead…
Dale Jr: (laughing while in a three-wide scramble for second place) "Damn, it got busy pretty fast there…"
Ty Norris: "Yeah, Michael said he thought you were yawning…"

Later in the race, Dale Jr. decided to move from the bottom of the track to a much higher line through the turns. In response, almost the entire field of cars moved up to the higher line to follow.
Dale Jr: "Whhhoooooooooooo! That's bad-ass right there. Look at 'em!"
Ty Norris: "Yeah! You're playing with 'em man. They'll follow you. They'll go wherever you want them to go… Kenny (Wallace, who was running in second behind Jr) says he's not as comfortable behind ya in the high line."
Dale Jr: "Tell Kenny I'm gonna keep running high cuz' you can really drive the car. The car slides around up here. I can see Sterling (Marlin) and Rusty (Wallace) really wanna run at the bottom."

As the race neared an end, Dale Jr. continued to lead, but worried that his pursuers were saving their best for the end of the day.
Dale Jr: "Hey guys (talking to the team) I just want the points today. I mean, I wanna win. But, don't y'all want the points too? I want to win here - but I don't wanna end up on my roof, ya know? This car means too much to me. We're in this for a good finish OK - so y'all can get relaxed. Be happy with what we got here so far. I mean - y'all could be somewhere else right now - you could be a plumber or something. (laughs) A great car and great pit stops today. But we're having fun here. Hang on, and we'll see what happens."

DRIV3R # 88 · #8 (**permalink**) 11-23-2006, 04:26 PM

7th NASCAR Cup Win!
Talladega Superspeedway - October 6th, 2002

Victory: Third in a Row for Dale Jr. at Talladega!

No. 8 Budweiser Team Wins Again, Grabs Million Dollar Bonus

For the third consecutive Winston Cup race at the Talladega Superspeedway, a red and black Chevrolet pulled into victory circle, as Dale Earnhardt Jr. and the No. 8 Budweiser team won the EA Sports 500 Sunday afternoon. It is the second victory at the 2.66-mile oval this season for the team, and the second consecutive year that they have secured a million-dollar bonus from Winston at the EA Sports 500. Dale Jr. led six different times for 56 laps, including the final 39 laps of the race that was caution-free for the entire 188-lap distance. Earnhardt Jr. finished ahead of the new Winston Cup point leader Tony Stewart, who was second, and Ricky Rudd, who finished third. It is the first time since Buddy Baker in 1976 that a driver has won three consecutive races at Talladega, and gives Dale Jr. the most wins among all active drivers at the Alabama track in only three seasons of competition. It is the first time a driver has won both Talladega races in the same year since his late father, the seven-time Winston Cup champion Dale Earnhardt, won both races in 1999. His third victory here is Dale Jr's seventh career Winston Cup victory in his 105th start.

The Key Moments: Starting thirteenth (based on points, as Bud Pole qualifying was rained out Friday afternoon), Dale Jr. streaked into second place by lap four, and took the lead for the first time on lap 18. For much of the afternoon, superior fuel mileage rather than sheer speed was the factor most in favor of the Bud bunch. While most teams were able to make only 32-35 laps per tank of fuel (due to a smaller fuel cell mandated by NASCAR for this event) the Bud team and the other cars from the Dale Earnhardt Inc. stable were able to stretch a tank of fuel at least 38 laps. The fuel economy, combined with a lack of caution periods, allowed Dale Jr. to dominate the late stages of the race while his DEI teammates Steve Park and Michael Waltrip finished sixth and eighth respectively. The ten bonus points for leading the most laps gives the Bud boys a league-leading 105 bonus points this season. The team has led the most laps at three different events in 2002.

Dale Jr's Quotes: "It was a great car. A great car. This is the same car that we've won all of these restrictor-plate races with, and it just does what I want it to do. (Crew chief) Tony Eury and Tony (Eury) Jr. just prepared a beautiful piece of a race car. We weren't as dominant here as we had been, because I think everyone else is a lot more competitive. They're catching up to us on these superspeedways, but we knew we had a good car and a great engine from (DEI chief engine builder) Richie Gilmore, so we hung tight with our plan and it worked out. To be that fast and to get that great of fuel mileage is unbelievable."

"Tony (Stewart) and those guys had a good enough car to pass me, but the pack kind of thinned out to four or five cars (at the end of the race). It's hard for just three or four cars to push one guy by the leader. You kind of need a whole pack back there really pushing... ya know, 35 or 40 other cars. My hat's off to Tony Stewart for being a friend there and helping me out, sticking behind me. He's a great race car driver, true competitor. Tony and I race real well together. We had our disagreements in the Busch Series, but we've become friends off the track. We can buddy-up on the track as well. There are people on the track that you know you can run with and guys that you know you can't run anywhere near. Michael (Waltrip) and I usually are great together, but for some reason today our cars just didn't run very quick when we were nose-to-tail. The 12 car (Ryan Newman) was fast and so was the 20 (Stewart) and when I hooked up with either of them, we could shoot to the front.

"Good job for the Bud team for the car they put together. I'm just holding the wheel back there, man. I ain't really doing much, just turning left every once in awhile. But, you don't luck into a win like this. No matter what you do as a driver, if the car won't do it, you're not going anywhere."

"I had so much fun out there racing with guys in the back of the top 10 or so. The most fun was leading the race early on and just taking that high line around the track. It feels like we're out there on old bias-ply tires, just kind of sliding sideways up near the wall. Damn, that's fun! You slide around and let it hang out there like they used to do. I just take the high line, and the whole pack of cars just kind of follows me up there. I watched my dad win a lot of races here and I always liked watching him do that. It's good to feel what he felt here - the confidence of knowing you're gonna run well and winning. It's a good boost for the team and a notch in the belt for us. We've had some big wins at places like Daytona and Talladega where it means a lot and the sponsors get their money's worth."

Best Radio Conversations
While racing three- and four-wide early in the race…
Dale Jr: "MAN! We're racin' like heck out here, huh guys?!? Whoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!"

Once Dale Jr. took the lead, he immediately moved up to take a high line near the wall all the way around the track.
Dale Jr: (having fun, with a hint of bragging) The top is where it's at! Ol' Junior'll show 'em the top! Look out! I'll have 'em all out here runnin' around like the ol' boys! Tell Michael (Waltrip) I'm havin' a ball!"

Later in the race, Dale Jr. scolded his spotter, Ty Norris.
Dale Jr: "C'mon Ty! I can't hear ya buddy! You're real faint! (pause… then returns to the mic, somewhat chagrined) OK, try it again. I think I'll hear ya better now that my earplug's in right. It was undone there for a bit…"

As Dale Jr. pulled into victory lane, he immediately looked for Debra Polzun of Manchester, Conn., who was paired with him in the Winston No Bull promotion. In addition to $1 million for the team, Winston also presented $1 million to Polzun.
Dale Jr: "Where's the millionaire lady?! Where's she at?!"