Weekend Preview
Dale Earnhardt Jr. has two wins – and considerable momentum
June 12, 2014
Staff Report
NASCAR Wire Service
DAYTONA
BEACH, FLORIDA – Dale Earnhardt Jr. has been part of the Chase for the
NASCAR Sprint Cup before. Six times to be exact. And he’s had some fine
finishes
in the final championship standings; third in 2003, which was the year
before the Chase was instituted, and fifth-place finishes in ‘04, ’06
and ’13, all under the Chase format.
And now
Earnhardt, who has two race victories, is all but assured on being in
the Chase again. There’s a growing consensus, however, that there is
something different
about this season for the 39-year-old. Considered for so long by so
many as a champion-in-waiting, Earnhardt has the look of a
champion-on-deck. This is a welcomed experience to his millions of fans
who have voted him as the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series’ Most
Popular Driver for the last 11 seasons, all the while waiting for him
to finally win the championship that his legendary father, the late Dale
Earnhardt, won seven times.
Dale Jr., it appears, could be approaching a “Sr.” moment.
Following
his victory this past Sunday at Pocono Raceway, Earnhardt assessed the
long road traveled over the last 14 years. He came to the NASCAR Sprint
Cup Series
in 2000 after winning consecutive NASCAR Nationwide Series titles in
1998-99.
“It’s
elusive, man,” Earnhardt said at Pocono, regarding Sprint Cup success.
“I don't worry about [being criticized] as much anymore. I'm turning 40
this year,
and the ‘over-rated’ talk is way behind me. That used to bother me when
I was younger, but when you get old you don't really care anymore about
those kind of things. … I feel like I'm such a lucky guy to have this
second opportunity almost to be competitive
again, and so I don't really worry about the detractors.”
This
week, Earnhardt is looking for a third victory, at a track where he has
had success in the past – super-fast, two-mile Michigan International
Speedway, site
of Sunday’s Quicken Loans 400. Earnhardt won the event at MIS in 2008
and 2012.
* * * * *
Here’s a
quick reiteration of what still must happen for Earnhardt and other
three 2014 double-winners (Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick and Joey
Logano) to qualify
for the Chase:
•
They must reside in the top 30 of the series standings after the 26th
race of the season, at Richmond International Raceway on Sept. 6;
• They must attempt to qualify for every one of the season’s first 26 races.
Obviously, the tough part of being “locked in” has been taken care of by those three drivers.
* * * * *
Earnhardt’s
JR Motorsports organization (he is co-owner with his sister Kelley
Earnhardt and Rick Hendrick) is trying to win its first NASCAR
Nationwide Series
championship this season. It’s surprising to say the least, that a
championship hasn’t already been won, considering a list of drivers that
has included Brad Keselowski, Aric Almirola, Danica Patrick and Mark
Martin.
This
year, JR Motorsports has a combo that could deliver. The team’s drivers,
Regan Smith and Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidate Chase Elliott have
combined to
lead the standings the entire 2014 season.
Coming into Saturday’s Ollie’s Bargain Outlet 250 at MIS, Smith leads the NNS points while Elliott is third.
* * * * *
The
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series returns to Gateway Motorsports Park
near St. Louis this week, for Saturday night’s Drivin’ For Linemen 200.
Gateway has deep
roots in the series, hosting races from 1998-2010. During those years,
an all-star list of drivers such as Rick Carelli, Greg Biffle, Jack
Sprague, Ted Musgrave and Ron Hornaday Jr. visited Gateway’s Victory
Lane.
Now a
new roster of young stars head to the 1.25-mile track, names like Erik
Jones, Jeb Burton, Darrell Wallace Jr. and Ben Kennedy.
New
names, but the same side-by-side, must-see action that is and always has
been a hallmark of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
Hornaday is the lone competitor scheduled to race Saturday who has won at the track.
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