Dale Earnhardt Jr. Wins Shootout in National Guard Car

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Dale Earnhardt Jr. drove the No. 88 National Guard/AMP Energy Chevrolet to victory in the 30th Budweiser Shootout at the Daytona International Speedway Saturday night, Feb. 9. The 70-lap prelude to the 2008 NASCAR season was Dale Jr.’s first race for the Hendrick Motorsports team and in the new car.

IN THE BEGINNING:

Dale Earnhardt Jr. drew seventh at the draw party for the 30th running of the Budweiser Shootout at Daytona International Speedway. Dale Jr., with a push from the No. 22 car driven by Dave Blaney, took the lead on Lap 6 and closed out the first 20-lap segment in the first position. He said the car was handling well, and it was fast up front.

LIFE IN THE PITS:
The No. 88 National Guard/AMP Energy team made a four-tire pit stop during the 10-minute break between segments. Crew chief Tony Eury Jr. made a slight chassis adjustment to help Dale Jr. with the handling of the No. 88 car.

HOW IT ENDED:
Dale Jr. started the second segment in the first position. On Lap 37, he was passed by the No. 20 car of Tony Stewart. By this time, Hendrick Motorsports teammates Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Casey Mears had made their way to the front of the pack. They all lined up behind the No. 88 National Guard/AMP Energy Chevy and pushed Dale Jr. past Stewart for the lead on Lap 40.

On Lap 43, Gordon crossed over Dale Jr. and took the lead away. But the No. 88 car was too strong, and Dale Jr. was in the lead again by the very next lap. An accident brought out a caution flag on Lap 63, and Dale Jr. radioed to Tony Eury Jr. that he felt a slight vibration in the right front tire – but Dale Jr. wasn’t too concerned. When the green flag flew again on Lap 67, the No. 88 lined up in the second position on the outside of the front row next to Stewart. With one lap to go, Dale Jr. drove around the No. 20 car with a push from the No. 48 of Johnson and took the checkered flag. Dale Jr. won the race in his debut with Hendrick Motorsports.

QUOTING DALE JR., TONY EURY JR. and RICK HENDRICK:
TONY EURY JR: “It was awesome. It felt really good to be back like we was supposed to be, and Dale Jr. kind of showed it like what we were back in 2000. Just to come into Hendrick Motorsports and perform like this, and the teammates that helped us out so much and there towards the end of the race were a big, big help. We knew we weren’t going to be able to beat them alone. Our car was good all night, and Junior just drove his butt off. It was really pleasing.”

DALE JR: “Man, I don’t know where to start. It’s crazy. We had a lot of help at the end from Jimmie (Johnson). That really was half the credit to the win. The other half was the car being capable of being up there in the first place. I had a great handling package. It was really fast. I had great runs up off the corner and had a great motor. The car was just really good. I had good car handling all night. And tried just to stay up in the top three or two, and we did that. And we just got lucky at the end being in the right lane and getting the right help from the right guy. I think whoever wins the race, that’s the situation, and we were able to be that person. I was just really lucky.”

RICK HENDRICK: “It was an awful good race. I think it put on a good show. I don’t know what took him so long to win a race (laughter). It sure takes a lot of pressure off to come down and run good in the first race and get a win early and just have a lot of fun. I think that’s the important thing.”

NOTABLE:
- Dale Jr. led 47 of the 70 laps throughout the event setting a new race record.
- This is Dale Jr.’s second victory in the Budweiser shootout. The last win was in 2003.

Source: National Guard