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INTRODUCTION Dale Earnhardt Jr has 21 victories in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. He has a victory in the NASCAR All Star Race and The Budweiser Shootout as well. Here you ll find the details of each and every one of those victories. Dale Earnhardt Jr s first win came quickly. Just 2 months into his rookie season Earnhardt Jr took the checkered flag at Texas Motor Speedway after leading 106 laps. He was driving for his father at Dale Earnhardt, Inc. His biggest victory came in the 2014 Daytona 500 when he became a 2 time winner. You ll find out why it s his biggest victory. But his most emotional win came in 2001. Emotional for all of NASCAR. Fans, teams and NASCAR itself. That was when NASCAR returned to Daytona after the loss of Dale Earnhardt just months earlier. When Junior won we knew all would be right. Earnhardt Jr s biggest winning streak came at Talladega. He won 4 in a row there. This book is a work in progress, as Dale Earnhardt Jr isn t finished winning just yet. But when you purchase this book you ll have free access whenever it is updated. Just visit RacingWin.com/updates whenever a new version is released. 3
FIRST WIN 2000 DirecTV 500 Texas Motor Speedway April 2, 2000 Dale Earnhardt Jr s first win in the Cup series came on April 2, 2000 in the DirecTV 500 held at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas. "I really didn't know what to expect this year," Earnhardt Jr said. "I didn't know if we were going to kick butt right out of the box or whether we were going to be lousy for a year or two." Dale Jr started the race from outside the second row in the 4th qualifying position driving the No. 8 Budweiser Chevrolet owned by Dale Earnhardt, Inc. His margin of victory was an impressive 5.920 seconds over second place finishing Jeff Burton who led 37 laps. The young Earnhardt was dominant in his first win, leading 106 of 334 laps on his way to victory lane. His winnings for that first win were $374,675. 4
This was the 7th race of the 2000 season, which was Dale Earnhardt, Jr s rookie year, and his first full-time season in the Cup series. Junior had made 5 Cup appearances in the 1999 season, so that means he won his first race after only 12 attempts -- a feat accomplished by only a handful of other drivers. When asked if he thought he would get to Victory Lane so soon, Earnhardt Jr replied ''I didn't think it was actually coming this quick. I can't believe it. When you put together a car that good, it's going to get you to victory lane sooner or later.'' "I didn't know how quickly this would come and I'm kind of overwhelmed by it," Earnhardt Jr said. "But I think we're going to see a couple of rookies get into victory lane this year." ''We've got an awesome car,'' Earnhardt Jr said. ''It did whatever I asked it to do. We didn't change nothing all day long. That tells you how good a race car we had.'' "I couldn't believe our car was that good, but it was. I could adjust my driving line and style to each set of tires. I'd point and shoot and that thing ran. That's all there was to it." "After the last three weeks, it was fun to go get out front and show these guys I could use my head and make smart decisions," Dale Earnhardt Jr said "Even when I've got a 5
real fast car and I'm not up front, I can be patient and pick my way through there. "It was fun to prove that to them and prove my status as far as being a driver goes." The time of the race was 3 hours, 49 minutes, 12 seconds, at an average speed of 131.152 MPH. There were 12 caution periods for a total of 62 laps. Car owner and father Dale Earnhardt posted a 7th place finish, parked his # 3 Chevrolet next to Victory Lane and joined his son to congratulate him in Victory Lane. ''He told me he loved me and then he said he just wanted to make sure I took the time to enjoy this and realize what we accomplished today,'' Earnhardt Jr said. ''That was pretty cool on his part to be thinking about that at that particular time. This was a product of his work. He's proud of his son, but he's also proud that he built this team and the team won the race.'' As Dale Earnhardt watched his son celebrate his first Cup win he smiled and quipped ''That s crazy, isn t it. I'll tell you, he's something else,'' The Intimidator said, ''He was talking about coming to Texas and winning his first Winston Cup race. I knew the kid could do it. This kid has worked hard, had a good car and drove a good race.'' 6
This was also the first Cup win for crew chief Tony Eury. ''It's hard to keep him slowed down when the car's good,'' Eury quipped ''He wants to show it. We just keep him toned down all the time. He's like a wild horse.'' He obviously had a good car. Earnhardt Jr continually built up big leads over the competition, only to have them erased by cautions. He took the lead for the final time on lap 289, passing DEI teammate Steve Park. Earnhardt Jr s best finish prior to this race was 10th in Las Vegas earlier in the season. SECOND WIN 2000 Pontiac Excitement 400 May 6, 2000 Richmond International Speedway, Richmond, Virginia Dale Earnhardt Jr captured his 2nd career win on just his 16th attempt at Richmond in the Pontiac Excitement 400 on May 6, 2000. 7
Junior led just 31 of 400 laps that Saturday night under the lights in the Capitol of the Old South at Richmond, Virginia. Hardly anyone gave Junior a chance to win when the caution flag flew for the 9th and final time late in the race. After all, he had yet to lead a lap. During the final caution most of the leaders, except the driver of the No. 3 Goodwrench Chevrolet, Dale Earnhardt, had taken on 4 tires -- putting the elder Earnhardt into the lead when the green flag fell for the final time. However, Junior was inches off his father s rear bumper, and the lead wouldn t last long. Junior had 4 fresh tires. On lap 370, in turn 3, Dale Jr took his No. 8 Chevy low on the racetrack with the grip he found in 4 fresh Goodyears. Junior easily completed the pass on his Father and never looked back -- leading the rest of the way to the checkered flag. Asked about the decision to only take 2 tires, Earnhardt explained "We were going for it, the car was a lot better than that. It was top-five easy and maybe a second or third, maybe a win. Junior did a good job. " "I guess he's going to make a habit of winning." Dale Earnhardt Jr was awarded $118,850 in prize money for the win The official margin of victory was 0.159 seconds. 8
This race was the 11th of 34 Cup Series events held in 2000. The race distance was 400 laps on a 3/4 mile track, for a distance of 300 miles. According to Official NASCAR Timing & Scoring the time of the race was 3 hours, 1 minute, 8 seconds at an average speed of 99.374 MPH. There were 9 caution periods for a total of 59 laps. THIRD WIN 2001 Pepsi 400 Daytona International Speedway Daytona Beach, Florida July 7, 2001 No victory is as emotional as the one Dale Earnhardt Jr scored on July 7, 2001 in the Pepsi 400 at Daytona International Speedway. Not for the winning team, the fans, or the other competitors. 9
When NASCAR had last visited the famed 2.5 mile highbanked speedway the unthinkable had occurred -- Dale Earnhardt was killed in the final turn of the final lap in a headlong crash into the 4th turn wall. The NASCAR family had been in mourning for nearly 5 months. Dale Earnhardt Jr s win at the track that had just claimed his father -- on the first visit back there -- seemed to allow the healing process to begin. It was clear to everyone that Junior had a fast car on this night. After all, he led almost three quarters of the distance. But his car never seemed faster than when the green flag fell for the final time on lap 154 -- just 6 laps short of the checkered flag. A late race pit stop had relegated the 8 car to 7th place on the re-start. 2 laps later Dale Jr completed a pass on Johnny Benson for the lead -- a position he would hold until the checkered flag fell. "We were able to break away and that was something I didn't think we were able to do," Earnhardt Jr said following the race. "I just kind of realized I had to get to the front the last eight laps or so." You could see it on the faces of Dale Jr and teammate Michael Waltrip, who finished 2nd, as they celebrated in the grass just inside the tri-oval immediately after the race. 10
Junior pumped both fists in the air, and then dove from his car into the arms of his pit crew, who by now were at the car. "You can't write a better script," said Junior. "I never would have imagined this happening. I never could have imagined coming here and being so dominant and winning this race. And I never probably will get to enjoy it because I just can't believe it happened." Dale Jr paid tribute to his Father saying "I dedicate this win to him, there ain't nobody else that I can dedicate it to who means more to me." Dale Earnhardt Jr led a race-high 116 laps on his way to victory. While the margin of victory over 2nd place finishing Michael Waltrip was a slim.123 seconds, Waltrip never seemed to be able to challenge for the lead. In fact, he only led 2 laps during the race. This was the 2nd Daytona race in a row where teammates Michael Waltrip and Dale Earnhardt Jr finished 1-2, with Waltrip wining the previous Daytona 500. Junior pumped both fists in the air, and then dove from his car into the arms of his pit crew, who by now were at the car. 11
FOURTH WIN 2001 Cal Ripken Jr 400 Dover Downs International Speedway Dover, DE September 23, 2001 The American flags were hard to miss on the day Dale Earnhardt Jr captured his 4th career win after leading 193 laps at the Dover Monster Mile in the 2001 Cal Ripken Jr 400. The first NASCAR race after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks was a day of prayers, patriotism and healing. "I don't think it would've mattered who would've won this race," an emotional Dale Earnhardt Jr said "The fact that we're here, driving and racing and the fans can witness a good race is healing enough. It could've been Ricky Rudd or Dale Jarrett or anybody. It would've been the same feeling and the same emotion. I'm just really, really fortunate to have been the guy." Junior looked to have the car to beat following Saturday's final practice session. Ricky Rudd and Dale Jarrett told him 12
so during driver introductions on race day as well. Rudd would go on to lead 169 laps, but finish third behind Dale Jr and Jerry Nadeau. Early in the race Earnhardt was dominant. Leading 154 of the 1st 183 laps. During long runs he stretched the lead to 3 seconds. "After about 200 laps, the car just got away from me," Earnhardt said. "We tried to make adjustments, but they didn't help any. We went from a first- to a third-place car in about 75 laps." On lap 183 Earnhardt surrendered the lead to Ricky Rudd, who would hold the top spot for 160 laps -- until Rusty Wallace's bumper sent Rudd spinning down the front stretch. Following a round of pit stops under caution Earnhardt found himself trailing Dale Jarrett, Tony Stewart and Jerry Nadeau. But Tony Eury, Earnhardt's crew chief, had made the right adjustments and the car was starting to come back to Dale Jr. Following contact from Tony Stewart with just 11 laps remaining, Dale Jarrett quickly saw his chance to win evaporate. When the green flag fell with 6 laps to go Earnhardt held off a challenging Jerry Nadeau then pulled away to a 1 second lead. 13
One he would hold to the finish line. "I just didn't have that much for Dale Jr, he was that much better than I was," Jerry Nadeau said of his effort to catch the 8 car. "Where's that big American Flag," Earnhardt radioed to his crew on the cool down lap. Moments later one of the crew members ran out to the track and handed the flag to Dale Jr, and he made a reverse victory lap with the flag flying out his window. ''We're all looking at each other for answers on what to do next, and what's tasteful and not tasteful,'' Earnhardt said ''So today was a good day. Today was a good day for the cause, for the support of America and its future plans, and definitely for NASCAR and for NASCAR's fans.'' The race distance was 400 laps on a 1.00 mile track, for a total of 400 miles. Official NASCAR Timing & Scoring measured the time of the race at 3 hours, 56 minutes, 19 seconds at an average speed of 101.559 MPH. The average speed was 58.320 MPH off the pole speed of 154.919 MPH, due in part to 11 cautions for a total of 71 laps. Dale Earnhardt Jr s official margin of victory over 2nd place Jerry Nadeau was 1.576 seconds. 14
Earnhardt was awarded $168,858 for his winning performance in this race, the 27th of 36 races held in 2001. FIFTH WIN EA Sports 500 Talladega Superspeedway Talladega, Alabama October 21, 2001 By the time the checkered flag fell on the final restrictor plate race of the year everyone knew that the Dale Earnhardt, Inc. race team knew something none of the other teams did. How to be fastest on the big high banked tracks. After all, the DEI cars of Dale Earnhardt Jr and Michael Waltrip had won 3 of the 4 races at plate tracks in 2001. But this was the final restrictor plate race of the year, so any catching up would have to wait until next year. 15
Dale Earnhardt Jr led 67 laps of the 188 lap event, beating Tony Stewart to the finish line by just 0.388 seconds. Junior consistently had a fast car all day, but on a restart with 32 laps to go he was in heavy traffic and scored in 14th position. By lap 162, with 26 to go, Dale Jr had advanced to 4th. Yet, when the white flag fell indicating the start of the final lap he was trailing Bobby Labonte. Entering turn 1 on the final lap the grandstands erupted as the No. 8 Budweiser Chevrolet moved low to the inside of race leader Labonte and into first place. Tony Stewart would challenge Junior 1 final time going down the backstretch in front of the Allison Grandstands -- but it would be too little, and too late. Stewart could almost catch Earnhardt, but he couldn't pass. But the drama wasn't over behind the leaders. The Big One is always a threat at Talladega, and a 15 car crash claimed several of the front runners. Including Bobby Labonte who was leading just a lap earlier, and Bobby Hamilton, the winner of the previous Talladega race. Labonte's car crashed upside down, but he escaped uninjured, as did the other drivers caught up in the melee. This race was one of the No Bull 5 promotions where series sponsor Winston paired 5 drivers with 5 fans, with the winning driver and fan each winning $1,000,000. 16
The 5 drivers eligible in this race were Dale Earnhardt Jr, Kevin Harvick, Dale Jarrett, Rusty Wallace and Ricky Rudd. Carrie Richter of Ohio, a race fan and contest finalist was paired with Dale Earnhardt Jr for this race. Winning earned Dale Jr and Carrie a $1,000,000 bonus. "I was really glad to win this race," Earnhardt said. "I knew going in about Dad winning this race last year and winning the million dollars. It's always cool to do something your father's done." During a routine post-race inspection the roof Earnhardt s car was discovered to be 1/8 inch too low. NASCAR had mandated a minimum height of 51 inches. Despite the fact that several competing crew chiefs publicly said it would have made no difference NASCAR fined crew chief Tony Eury $25,000 for the infraction. The race distance was 188 laps on a 2.660 mile track, for a total of 500.1 miles. Official NASCAR Timing & Scoring recorded the time of the race at 3 hours, 2 minutes, 45 seconds at an average speed of 164.185 MPH. The pole speed was 185.240 MPH, but the race was slowed by 3 cautions for a total of 16 laps. Official prize money paid to the winner was $165,773., but Junior received a bonus of $1,000,000 for winning. 17
The official margin of victory was 0.388 seconds. SIXTH WIN 2002 Aaron's 499 Talladega Superspeedway Talladega, Alabama April 21, 2002 Setting a blistering pace Dale Earnhardt Jr left no doubt who The Man was at Talladega. Junior led 133 of the race s 188 laps on his way to victory in the Aaron s 499 at Talladega Superspeedway on April 21, 2002, his 2nd straight win at the Talladega Superspeedway. Earnhardt was cool, calm and collected on the track at speeds nearing 200 MPH. It was when NASCAR displayed the red flag on lap 183, just 6 laps from the finish, that he began to feel nervous. "Sitting on the back straightaway, I was real nervous because I've led a lot of races like that and not won," 18
Earnhardt said, referring to the race being halted due to debris and a stalled car. "I knew it wasn't over. It gets really crazy out there at the end because everybody does anything and everything to win." Mark Martin s engine had expired, and the track was oiled down and littered with broken pieces of his engine. Safety crews quickly went to work picking up the twisted pieces of Martin s engine, and towing away his stalled car After a red flag that lasted 15 minutes and 29 seconds NASCAR gave the command for the drivers to re-start their engines. When the green flag waved with 4 laps to go it was Junior out front, and DEI teammate Michael Waltrip on his bumper. Junior s car was obviously faster so Waltrip tried to help his partner by holding off the rest of the field. "Junior wound up being a little stronger than me all day," Waltrip said. "I was having fun running second and I just wanted to see how long I could protect him." "I was proud of him for blocking for me when he needed to, and I did it for him when I could," said runner-up Waltrip who led most of the laps that Dale Jr didn t. This wasn t the first time the pair had finished 1st and 2nd at a restrictor plate race. 19
"To have Michael behind me at these plate races is everything," Junior said. "Me and him helped each other win last year at Daytona. Waltrip crossed the finish line just 1 car length behind the winning Chevrolet of Dale Earnhardt Jr. The race distance was 188 laps on a 2.660 mile track, for a total of 500.1 miles According to official NASCAR Timing and Scoring the time of the race was 3 hours, 8 minutes, 41 seconds. Jimmie Johnson captured the pole at a qualifying speed of 186.532 MPH. The average speed of the race was slowed to 159.022 MPH by 3 cautions for a total of 19 laps. Dale Earnhardt Jr earned $184,830 in prize money for his win. SEVENTH WIN 2002 EA Sports 500 Talladega Superspeedway Talladega, AL 20
October 6, 2002 Dale Earnhardt Jr captured his 3rd straight win at Talladega in the EA Sports 500 on October 6, 2002. With qualifying rained out, and the starting field set by owner's points Junior started inside row 7 in the 13th position. Junior had lost his usual drafting partner on the high banked superspeedways. Teammate Michael Waltrip finished 8th, too far back to provide any help to the 8 car. Luckily for Junior he found a new drafting partner in Tony Stewart. "I told my spotter to go down there and tell his spotter that I wasn't leaving him," Stewart noted of his on track alliance with Dale Jr "This isn't Top Gun, but I wasn't leaving my wingman." But Earnhardt's spotter didn't relay the massage, afraid Junior might give the 20 too much. It was in Victory Lane when he learned of Stewart's plan. "You can count on him to be there, but I expected him to challenge me a little more," Junior said of Tony Stewart. But don't think that Stewart just handed Dale Jr the victory. He knew that Junior had a faster car, but just as importantly, Tony needed a good finish. 21
By challenging Junior he could have easily lost the draft and been shuffled back. Get too aggressive and he could have wrecked them both. Instead Stewart left Talladega with the Winston Cup points lead -- and he went on to win the championship that year. "Tony had a good enough car to pass me, but the thing was the pack kind of thinned down to four or five cars," Junior explained. "It's hard for just three or four cars to push one guy by the leader. You need a whole pack back there really pushing." It didn't hurt Earnhardt's chances that his nemesis -- and future teammate -- Jeff Gordon had engine problems and fell from the race on lap 125. All the other Hendrick Motorsports entries fell from the race with the same problem. Jimmie Johnson, Joe Nemecheck, Terry Labonte, and Gordon all suffered broken valve springs and fell from competition. 2 drivers who lease Hendrick engines, Ken Shrader and Johnny Benson, had the same problem. In an attempt to break up the large packs of cars that run together and often cause The Big One at Talladega NASCAR mandated that teams use 12.5 gallon fuel cells instead of the usual 22 gallon to force more pit stops. 22
The strategy seemed to break up the packs for a few laps after green flag stops, but within 5 to 6 laps the cars had drafted back bumper to bumper. Maybe that helped, as this race ran caution-free -- 500 miles of flat out green flag racing. "We already had good fuel mileage, but I lifted, especially the last half of the race," said Earnhardt. "I ran out coming down pit road here so it was close." Dale Jr kept the leaders in sight all day, when he wasn't leading himself. He led 56 laps of the 188 lap event. The race consisted of 188 circuits on the high banked 2.660 mile Talladega Superspeedway, for a total of 500.1 miles. NASCAR Timing and Scoring showed an official time of race at 2 hours, 43 minutes, 22 seconds. Average speed was 183.665 MPH. There were no cautions. EIGHTH WIN 2003 Aaron's 499 Talladega Superspeedway 23
Talladega, Alabama April 6, 2003 When he was involved in a 27 car crash on lap 5 it appeared Dale Earnhardt Jr had 2 chances of winning a record breaking 4 straight races at Talladega. Slim and none. Too bad no one told that to crew chief Tony Eury and the gang working on the red No. 8 Budweiser Chevrolet. It would take several pit stops for repairs to put Junior back into contention for the win. Their fast work insured Junior didn't lose a lap, and put him in Victory Lane at the end of the day. Ryan Newman's scrape with the wall due to a flat tire sent the field scrambling and caught 27 cars in a big crash. Earnhardt had qualified 13th for the race, but had to start at the rear of the 43 car field after engine tuners found water in his oil and were forced to change engines. When the crash occurred Junior drove through the infield grass at 180 MPH to avoid hitting cars spinning in front of him. That detour damaged the nose of his car on the left front. Team engineers had spent hours in the wind tunnel massaging the sheet metal on the front of the car to eliminate aerodynamic drag and make the car as fast as possible. 24
Now the team was faced with the need to slap a new nose on the car with the help of 200 MPH tape and pop rivets. During the lengthy caution to clean up the track following the big wreck Earnhardt made a series of pit stops. The team would work on the car until the pace car was coming, then send Earnhardt around again to avoid losing a lap. The car was good enough to maintain the minimum speed when the green flag fell, but definitely not a contender to win, or even finish near the front. Junior was about to go a lap down early on when a debris caution came out and allowed him to pit for more repairs. This was the break he needed. The crew got the car right and Earnhardt was looking for the leaders. Earnhardt would lead 9 times for a total of 34 laps on the way to his 8th career victory. On lap 185, just 3 laps from the finish, Dale Jr was 3rd behind Matt Kenseth and Jimmie Johnson. Junior moved to the inside of Kenseth in turn 1 when Kenseth turned left in what was an obvious attempt to block the 8. Junior moved lower on the racetrack to avoid Kenseth and briefly crossed the yellow line. Earnhardt fans held their breath while NASCAR reviewed the pass. It's a violation to go below the yellow line in order to advance your position. NASCAR determined that the pass was legal. "He did not go below the yellow line to improve his position," explained 25
Jim Hunter, NASCAR vice-president of communication. "He had already passed before he went under the yellow line." Junior himself offered the simplest explanation, "I think it was just one hell of a move, more than anything." Elliott Sadler was right behind Earnhardt and saw what happened. "I was the one pushing and they ran him down" Sadler said. "He had to do that or cause a big wreck, so it was a smart move. He's just like his dad driving that car." "He kept giving me the come on, push sign and I pushed him all I could. We almost had a 1-2 finish, but we'll take third right now." But Matt Kenseth wasn't finished yet. He took the lead from Dale Jr on lap 186, but was only able to hold it for 1 lap when Junior pulled back ahead. A lead he would hold until the end. The race consisted of 188 laps on the high banked 2.660 mile Talladega Superspeedway, for a total of 500.1 miles. NASCAR Timing and Scoring showed an official time of race at 3 hours, 27 minutes, 28 seconds. Average speed was slowed to144.625 MPH due to 6 cautions for a total of 32 laps. The pole speed was 186.489 posted by Jeremy Mayfield in a Dodge. 26
NINTH WIN 2003 Checker Auto Parts 500 Phoenix International Raceway Phoenix, Arizona November 2, 2003 Before his win on the 1 mile flat track that is Phoenix International Raceway Dale Earnhardt Jr had made a name as a restrictor plate ace with 4 of his 8 wins coming on the high banks of Daytona and Talladega. With a victory at Phoenix he silenced his critics by winning on a flat, downforce track. "We wanted to show that we're not just a restrictor plate team," Dale Earnhardt Jr said. "These guys gave me such a good car. My car just drove so good I could pass and race with whoever I wanted to. We had one heck of a race today. It proves we're not just a restrictor-plate driver and team." Dale Jr led 87 of the races 312 laps, including the final 50after passing Jimmie Johnson the lead on lap 262. Johnson would finish 2nd, 0.735 seconds behind Dale Earnhardt Jr. 27
"I was just sitting there and waited behind Jimmie," Earnhardt Jr said. "I patiently waited and waited and he got easier and easier to catch. I didn't want to burn myself up trying to keep up with him. And it finally came to me. Ryan Newman, Kurt Busch and Michael Waltrip finished out the top 5. Rusty Wallace, Kevin Harvick, Tony Stewart and Bobby Labonte were all involved in a big crash on lap 228 when Wallace's No. 2 Dodge Charger nudged the rear of Tony Stewarts No. 20 Chevrolet. Stewart and Wallace were able to continue, but the cars of both Harvick and Labonte were retired from the event with heavy damage. Dale Jr was able to maintain a comfortable lead until a spin by the No. 19 Dodge of Mike Wallace brought out the race's final caution. A single-file restart with 9 laps to go gave Jimmie Johnson his best chance to pass Earnhardt Jr, but Junior would have none of that. He held the lead to the finish with Johnson on his bumper. This was Earnhardt's 2nd victory of the season, with his only other victory coming at the spring Talladega race. "We've wanted to win one of these for a long time," Earnhardt Jr said. "We've come so close a bunch of times and we've finished in the top five a lot." 28
"They gave me a great car today and I could just pass and do whatever. It feels so good to be in victory lane. We've wanted to be in victory lane so bad this year." At 312 laps on a 1.00 mile track the race distance was 312 miles. NASCAR Timing & Scoring showed an official tile of race at 3 hours, 19 minutes, 11 seconds, for an average speed of 93.984 MPH. The race was slowed from Ryan Newman's pole qualifying speed of 133.675 MPH by 10 cautions for a total of 66 laps. Dale Earnhardt Jr received $203,017 in prize money for the win. TENTH WIN 2004 Daytona 500 Daytona International Speedway Daytona Beach, FL February 15, 2004 29
In his 5th attempt in The Great American Race Dale Earnhardt Jr captured the checkered flag for the 2004 Daytona 500 after starting from the No. 3 position on the inside of the 2nd row. An accomplishment that took his father 20 years of trying before he finally scored a Daytona 500 victory. "You see Dad run second, blow tires out, flip over on the back straightaway, this, that and the other, year after year after year after year," Earnhardt Jr said. "And there was not many things, if nothing at all, that ate that man's insides out but losing this race over and over; you could see that on his face. That's one of the things I think anybody could tell bothered him. He didn't show too much of that." For much of the race Tony Stewart seemed to have the car to beat, leading 97 of the 200 laps. But Stewart s hopes for winning would fade at the end as Dale Earnhardt, Jr s Chevy would lead a total of 59 laps, including lap 200 -- the last one! Tony Stewart was leading on lap 181 when Earnhardt Jr made his final pass of the race. Earnhardt Jr crossed the finish line first with Stewart hanging on in the draft. The margin of victory was.273 seconds. 30
It's nice to see him get his victory here, too," said Stewart "I think his father's really proud today. You know, I'd love to have won the race, trust me. I did everything I could to still win the race. If I could have held him off, had him finish second, I would have done in it a heartbeat. But there was no holding that kid back today. Today was his day." Dale Jr s share of the purse for winning the race was $1,495,070. The official time of the race was 3 hours, 11 minutes, 53 seconds, at an average speed of 156.345 MPH. There were 4 caution periods for a total of 23 laps. Climbing from the car on the front stretch after the race Dale Jr saluted the fans with a clinched fist and a broad smile before making his way to Victory Lane. This win was special for car owner Teresa Earnhardt as well. She made a rare Victory Lane appearance to congratulate Dale Jr. President George W. Bush was on hand for the start of the race. Although he exited Daytona on board Air Force 1 about halfway through the race. He certainly missed an exciting finish. He did call Earnhardt later to congratulate the winning driver. It was the most exciting race of my life, Junior said to President Bush. Thank you very much. Take it easy, said Earnhardt in true Junior style. 31
Earnhardt Jr and his father, Dale Earnhardt, joined Richard and Lee Petty, along with Davey and Bobby Allison, to become the third father-son combination to win the Daytona 500. The win came in the wake of the team losing some key personnel. Team executive Ty Norris left DEI just before Earnhardt left for Daytona. Norris also served as Junior s spotter on race day. Former driver Stevie Reeves replaced Norris as spotter. Earnhardt had to remind Reeves several times during the race to provide more information and updates. Dale Jr was able to avoid The Big One: a lap 72 crash that claimed 12 cars, including teammate Michael Waltrip. Waltrip s car landed upside down on the backstretch grass, and he was trapped in the car for about 10 minutes, unable to get out. "I'd already flipped 10 times or five times or two times, I don't know how many times," said Waltrip, "All they had to do was flip it back over and I could get out. They were cutting bars. The whole car was on top of me. I don't know what bar they thought they were going to cut that would have alleviated the hole I was in." "I couldn't see where they were doing a whole lot of good to get me out," Waltrip said "I was trying my best to explain to them what needed to happen. And what did 32
they eventually do? They flipped it over and I got out. I hope that was a lesson learned." While Junior had actually qualified third for the race, NASCAR moved him up to the pole position for the start of the race. Playing favorites? Not exactly. Pole-sitter Greg Biffle had to change engines prior to the start of the race, and according to the NASCAR rulebook he was forced to start at the rear of the field because of it. Since Junior was the next car in line behind Biffle he moved up and assumed the No. 1 position for the start of the race. The next day the winning car was placed on display next door at Daytona USA, where it would sit for the next 12 months. Earnhardt would go on to post 6 victories in the 2004 season, with 16 top 5 s, and 21 top 10 s. He would finish 5th in the Championship Standings on the year. Dale Jr followed up his win on Sunday with another Daytona win on Monday. The Busch Series race had been postponed from Saturday due to rain in Daytona. Jr won that race, too. That was actually his third victory in less than a week. Earnhardt Jr also won the first Gatorade 125 qualifying race the previous Thursday. "There are days when I feel I'm as good as my dad was. I'll say to myself, 'He couldn't have done it any better than 33
that.' It's not long before I realize I was wrong. You know, he was pretty tough." Dale Jr was heard to say following his impressive win. ELEVENTH WIN 2004 Golden Corral 500 Atlanta Motor Speedway Hampton, GA March 14, 2004 Dale Earnhardt Jr returned to Victory Lane exactly 1 week after posting an unimpressive 35th place finish in the previous race in Las Vegas. There handling problems forced Earnhardt out of the race after only 196 laps. In Atlanta Earnhardt easily cruised to victory 4 seconds ahead of 2nd place Jeremy Mayfield. Junior led 56 laps on his way to the win, including the final 15 after passing Jeremy Mayfield on lap 311 and never looking back. Dale Jr had led earlier in the race. With 60 laps remaining Earnhardt had also taken the lead from Jeremy Mayfield, 34
but after a round of green flag pit stops Junior found himself running 3rd behind Mayfield and Jimmie Johnson. 20 laps from the finish Earnhardt moved into 2nd place by passing Johnson. Looking for speed Earnhardt moved his line to the high groove and found it. The 8 car rolled through the corners and had a full head of steam when he finally caught Mayfield and roared past. There would be no stopping Junior's momentum now. Apparently the team s hard work paid off. Junior and his crew had spent the previous Wednesday and Thursday testing in Kentucky and Tennessee hoping to avoid another potential disaster like the last race in Las Vegas. Late Thursday the team found a setup that Junior liked, and that was fast. This is not a reference as to what we are as a team for the rest of the season," Earnhardt said. "We've got a lot of things we've got to work on. We could just as easily start again next week and have a disaster." "We're going to test at Texas Tuesday and Wednesday. I wish and hope that we can test as much as we can, because I don't want any more failures like we had. It's too hard mentally. It's too much of a bummer. We're going to test and run and practice and do whatever it takes to make sure that doesn't happen again." 35
Based on those test results crew chief Tony Eury called for changes to the car in Atlanta that proved to work. Dale Jr led 56 laps after qualifying 7th for the event. He earned $180,078 in prize money for the first place finish. The race consisted of 325 laps on a 1.540 mile speedway, for a total of 500.5 miles. According to NASCAR Timing and Scoring the official time of the race was 3 hours, 9 minutes, 15 seconds at an average speed of 158.679 MPH. The race was slowed from the pole qualifying speed of 193.575 MPH posted by Ryan Newman by 3 cautions for a total of 17 laps. Dale Earnhardt Jr s official margin of victory was 4.584 seconds. TWELVTH WIN 2004 Chevy American Revolution 400 Richmond International Raceway Richmond, VA 36
May 15, 2004 It was Saturday night, under the lights, short track racing and Dale Earnhardt Jr was ready to roll. Earnhardt Jr scored win No. 12 of his Nextel Cup career Saturday night under the lights at Richmond International Raceway. "Junior just took off, he flat out was on it and drove away from us." Said Jimmie Johnson, driver of the No. 48 Chevrolet, after losing to Earnhardt" When the caution flag flew due to oil on the track with 56 laps to go Tony Stewart, along with most of the other front-runners, pitted for tires. Dale Earnhardt Jr, Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson stayed out opting for track position instead. The call to stay on the track was made by Junior himself -- in apparent defiance of crew chief Tony Eury Jr, who had the pit crew standing by to put 4 fresh tires on the No. 8 Chevy. Earnhardt would later innocently claim that he simply didn't hear Eury's instructions to come to pit road. Tony "actually told me to pit, but I didn't hear him," Earnhardt said. "I thought I would have Jimmie Johnson on the inside of me the rest of the race trying to pass me. We just drove away." 37
"It was a great race car," Earnhardt Jr. said. "It had a great long run set-up on it. I was real loose on new tires, so pitting wasn't an option. Staying out was the thing to do." A move that would pay off for Junior as he passed Johnson on the outside to take the lead. Dale Jr came into this race leading the pack in the Nextel Cup championship standings. A lead he was able to build on by winning. He left Richmond with a 40 point lead over 2nd place Jimmie Johnson. This was the first event at the 3/4 mile short track since new asphalt was put down, and the repaving produced some exciting racing. The bottom groove had always been the fast way around Richmond, but since repaving drivers were able to find speed and grip in the outside lane. "I was really worried that they were going to catch a lot of hell for paving the track," Earnhardt said. This was Dale Jr s 2nd Cup victory at Richmond. His first win here came in 2000 during his rookie season. It was his 5th top 5 finish on this short track that he counts as one of his favorites. The race marked Junior's 3rd win in the 2004 season after just 11 races. He would go on to win a total of 6 races in 2004 and make a strong charge for the Nextel Cup Championship. 38
"We're still in the hunt," Earnhardt said. "We're still capable. I'm real proud of my team." The 400 lap race on a.750 mile track equaled a race distance of 300 miles. NASCAR marked the official time of the race at 3 hours, 3 minutes, 12 seconds at an average speed of 98.253 MPH. The race was slowed from Brian Vickers' pole speed of 129.983 MPH by 9 cautions for a total of 66 laps. Dale Earnhardt Jr earned $285,053 in prize money for his winning performance in front of 115,000 screaming NASCAR fans. THIRTEENTH WIN 2004 Sharpie 500 Bristol Motor Speedway Bristol, Tennessee August 28, 2004 39
For most of the 500 laps under the lights on Saturday night everyone chased Dale Earnhardt Jr. He led 295 laps while cruising to victory in the 2004 Sharpie 500 at Bristol. This was Junior's first win since suffering burns to his legs following a crash during an American LeMans road course event at Sonoma in July. Following that crash Dale Jr relied on relief driver Martin Truex Jr to take over the No. 8 Chevrolet for 2 races. Earnhardt started both races, but climbed from the car during the first caution. "We might not bounce back to full consistency right away, but we're gaining on it," Earnhardt said. "I count on my team. When everybody thinks we're down and out we get it back. We figure it out. We keep going. That's what makes us tough." The strong run put Earnhardt back into contention for the Nextel Cup Championship. He had led the standings earlier in the season, and the victory at Bristol would put him in 3rd place, just 75 points behind leader Jeff Gordon. "We can win the championship," Earnhardt said following his win. "But when I said championship team, I'm talking about the guys who are a factor in the win every week. We've got tracks that we run good at. We've got to keep testing. We're not as good as I want to be, but I don't know if that will ever happen. We just have to keep working and do what we can." 40
By the end of the year Junior would finish 5th in the championship standings. Junior obviously had Bristol figured out this weekend. He also won the Busch Series race there the day before, completing a summer Bristol sweep. This team is tough as nails, Earnhardt shouted Man, we needed this. This is one of the biggest wins of my career." When the race started it seemed Earnhardt didn't have much of a chance. After qualifying 30th the No. 8 car was deep in the field on a short track where track position is everything. But Earnhardt quickly drove to the front, where he stayed most of the night. He would lead the race for 157 miles or 295 laps. The official distance of the race is 500 laps on a.533 mile track, for a total of 266.5 miles. Official time of the race according to NASCAR was 3 hours, 0 minutes, 36 seconds. The pole qualifying speed of 128.520 MPH posted by Jeff Gordon was slowed by 9 cautions for a total of 63 laps. An estimated crowd of 160,000 people saw Dale Jr beat Ryan Newman to the finish line by an official margin of victory of 4.390 seconds. Dale Jr was paid $322,443 in prize money for the win. 41
FOURTEENTH WIN 2004 EA Sports 500 Talladega Superspeedway Talladega, Alabama October 3, 2004 When the caution flag fell just 8 laps from the finish Dale Earnhardt Jr was on pit road for what was to be a gas and go stop. Thinking fast, crew chief Tony Eury Jr called for 2 tires in addition to the fuel. While some drivers stayed out for track position during this final caution, others opted to pit for fuel only. This left Earnhardt in 11th position with only 5 laps remaining when racing resumed. It made no difference. With 2 fresh right-side tires and a very fast race car Earnhardt went straight to the front. He easily weaved his way through the field, passing cars on the inside and outside. It didn't seem to matter much to him. 42
Earnhardt Jr s red No. 8 Chevy pulled alongside the No. 29 of Kevin Harvick, who was leading, on lap 186, and quickly drove past. "Those brand new rights just drove around the corners so much better than those other guys with old tires out there," Earnhardt said. "I wasn't worried. They make the calls in the pits and I just drive the car." Dale Earnhardt Jr would beat Harvick to the finish line by 2 car lengths. "I knew they were coming," said Harvick, "There wasn't anybody else in the field that was going to get by me. They can just do it when they want to at this place." The win would vault Dale Jr back to the lead in the Nextel Cup championship standings by 13 points over Kurt Busch. A lead that would last only 2 days. During a post race TV interview in victory lane Dale Jr was asked what it meant to win his 5th race at Talladega. "It don't mean shit right now. Daddy's won here 10 times," a euphoric Earnhardt exclaimed, proudly honoring his father. Dale Earnhardt Jr hadn't meant to let the word slip, and he didn't mean to offend anyone. He was merely celebrating his win. But NASCAR didn't care what the reason was. On Tuesday NASCAR fined Junior $10,000, and docked him 25 43
championship points - costing him the lead in the point standings. Fans of Driver 8 were irate, but the precedent had already been set. Johnny Sauter had received a $10,000 fine, and was docked 25 points, for a similar slip earlier in the year at a Busch race in Las Vegas. "If anybody was offended by that, I can't imagine why they'd tune in to a race in the first place," Earnhardt said. When NASCAR issued the penalty Jim Hunter, their VP of Communication, explained it this way: "It was really a no-brainer,'' Hunter said. "Are we getting angry e-mails from fans? Of course. But when we announced the Chase for the Championship, everyone asked us how we were going to police it. The answer was 'The same way we police everything else.' " "Just because he was the points leader, just because it changed his position in the standings, changed nothing. The rules are the rules and he broke them.'' Dale Jr was near the front for most of the race. He led the most laps, 78 of 188, taking the lead on 9 different times. "I'm just glad to get back on top at Talladega," Earnhardt said. "This is my place." The race was made up of 188 laps on the 2.660 mile Talladega Superspeedway for a total of 500.1 miles. 44
Official time of the race was 3 hours, 11 minutes, 12 seconds, according to NASCAR Timing & Scoring. The pole speed of 190.749 was set by Joe Nemecheck driving the No. 01 Chevrolet. The race was slowed by 5 cautions for 22 laps to an average speed of 156.929 MPH. Dale Earnhardt Jr won $305,968 in prize money for the win. FIFTEENTH WIN 2004 Checker Auto Parts 500 Phoenix International Raceway Phoenix, Arizona November 7, 2004 With only 5 laps remaining no one seemed to have the horsepower to catch race leader Dale Earnhardt Jr. That's when the trouble began. The last thing Dale Jr wanted to see was another yellow flag, but when Casey Mears slammed the wall due to a flat 45
tire the caution was out. About the same time Robby Gordon's engine exploded oiling down the track. The flag quickly went from yellow to red on lap 310 as NASCAR stopped the cars on the track while safety workers collected the debris and cleaned up the track. With only 2 laps remaining when racing was ready to resume NASCAR sent the race into overtime with only the 2nd green - white - checkered finish in its history. When the green flag was displayed for the final time Earnhardt easily pulled away, and would beat Ryan Newman to the checkered flag by 1.431 seconds. Dale Jr led 118 laps of the race, but was running 3rd on lap 282 when a NASCAR placed the race under caution due to oil on the race track. Junior desperately wanted to pit for 4 fresh tires, but crew chief Tony Eury Jr insisted he stay out and keep their position near the front. Later Junior knew that Eury had made the right call. "Yeah, I was just getting worried, man," Earnhardt said. "I cannot control myself inside a race car. I want tires, this that and the other. I didn't want to lose. The No. 8 Chevrolet of Dale Earnhardt Jr moved past Casey Mears on lap 298 to take 2nd position. He had set his sights on race leader Jeff Gordon when the No.42 car of Jamie McMurray crashed bringing out yet another caution. 46
The green flag flew once again on lap 303 and this time Earnhardt rocketed past Jeff Gordon to take the lead he would hold until the finish line. "Gordon was a sitting duck there at the end," Earnhardt said. "His car was terrible. He was lucky just to get what he got." "I don't think there's anybody else I'd rather beat." This was Dale Jr s 6th win of the season. He left Phoenix 3rd in the championship standings, just 1 point ahead of Jimmie Johnson, and trailing points leader Kurt Busch by 47. The race was originally scheduled for 312 laps, but after a green - white - checkered finish the race ran 315 laps on a 1.000 mile track, for a total of 315 miles. Official time of the race was 3 hours, 19 minutes, 16 seconds at an average speed of 135.584 MPH. The race was slowed from Ryan Newman's pole winning speed of 135.854 MPH by 11 cautions for 63 laps. Dale Earnhardt Jr s winning share of the purse was $274,503. SIXTEENTH WIN 47
2005 USG Sheetrock 500 Chicagoland Speedway Joliet, IL July 10, 2005 Dale Earnhardt Jr didn't have the fastest car. It was Matt Kenseth who dominated the race, leading 176 of 267 laps. Junior led only 11 in his victory at Chicagoland Speedway. "My guys won the race for me," Earnhardt said. "We obviously didn't have the best car today. Matt Kenseth did. I still thought he'd catch me and we'd get beat." Steve Hmiel, crew chief of Earnhardt's No. 8 Chevrolet, made the winning call. With 20 laps to go it was clear that everyone in contention for the win would need 1 more pit stop. Hmiel called for 2 tires, while Kenseth's team opted for 4. Once the final round of stops cycled through Junior was running 2nd, while Kenseth was fighting his way through heavy traffic. After 3 laps Dale Jr quickly passed Scott Wimmer for the lead. Wimmer was on old tires, and hadn't stopped on the final round. Kenseth finally moved into 2nd with 5 laps to go, but it was too late for him to catch Junior. 48
Kenseth's No. 17 Ford finished about 5 car lengths behind Earnhardt's Chevy. "You try to be a gracious loser," said Kenseth, "but it's tough when you lead all day. You always hate to lose to somebody you never had to race with all day." This was Dale Earnhardt Jr s 1st win of the season, and the 16th of his Cup career. It would be his only win of 2005. The race distance was 267 laps on a 1.500 mile speedway, for a total distance of 400.5 miles. NACAR officially timed the race at 3 hours, 8 minutes, 16 seconds, at an average speed of 127.638 MPH. The race was slowed from Jimmie Johnson's pole winning speed of 188.147 MPH by 10 cautions for 47 laps. Dale Earnhardt Jr won $325,033 for the victory in front of 80,000 fans. SEVENTEENTH WIN 2006 Crown Royal 400 Richmond International Raceway 49
Richmond, VA May 6, 2006 After 356 laps of 400 Dale Earnhardt Jr had led only 3 laps. Kevin Harvick had been the man to beat all night long, but in the end that's just what Junior did. Earnhardt never relinquished the lead over the final 44 laps. The race had been uneventful for Earnhardt up to that point. He had stayed near the front, but was never a serious threat to Harvick until the final pit stop. That's when crew chief Tony Eury Jr called for an air pressure adjustment and the No. 8 Chevy came to life. At the same time Harvick's car began to fade. His team decided not to pit during a caution on lap 347. He was no match for Dale Jr s fresh tires. For 80 percent of that race, Kevin Harvick had the best car, Earnhardt said. I made a charge on him, but I sort of conceded the win to him and was just going to race for second. Earnhardt was challenged only once by rookie and Virginia native Denny Hamlin who considers Richmond his home track. Hamlin was able to pull alongside Earnhardt with 6 to go, but he couldn't complete the pass. 50