Earnhardt Jr. and No. 8 Budweiser Team
finish 30th_6/23
 Rudd Wins When Nadeau Breaks
Ricky Rudd, who had lost several races this season when late-race failures knocked him
out of a likely victory, saw his luck turn around Sunday as Jerry Nadeau suffered a broken
transmission while leading the Save-Mart 350 with three laps to go at the Sears Poi…
uh, um… I mean the (newly re-christened) Infineon Raceway at Sonoma, California. Rudd
took the lead for the first time on lap 108 (of 110 total) to gain his first victory of
2002. The race, the first of two this season on road courses, was a strange, jumbled
affair, with an unlikely top five at the end due to the timing of yellow flags and the
early retirement of many of the season's points leaders. Tony Stewart was second, followed
by Terry Labonte, Kurt Busch and Jeff Green in fifth. Dale Earnhardt Jr. and the No. 8
Budweiser team showed flashes of continued improvement on road courses, as they climbed as
high as 14th before hard contact while racing with Kyle Petty sent the red Bud car off
course and into the wall on lap 43. Dale Jr. was able to re-fire the damaged car, and even
held on to the lead lap until the 59th go-round. Dale Jr. finished 30th, one lap behind
Rudd at the finish. The finish is the fourth of 30th or worse in the six races since the
Bud team won in dominating fashion at Talladega.
The Key Moments: Dale Jr., starting 23rd (his best start in three seasons at the
Sears Point track), was able to run lap times competitive with the leaders as he fought
through traffic during the early stages of the race. A fast pit stop on lap 34 moved him
up several positions until the first yellow flag of the day on lap 38. With the field
bunched-up for the restart, Dale Jr. raced side-by-side with Jimmy Johnson and then Kyle
Petty before contact with Petty knocked the No. 8 car into the wall in the
"esses" portion of the race track. The bent and battered car was still able to
turn relatively quick lap times, but was never able to make-up the significant amount of
ground lost in the crash.
Dale Jr's Quotes: "We were actually pretty good today. I know 30th place
doesn't show it, but we never laid-down or let-up after the crash, which is important. The
car was competitive and I had a better attitude for the race. I used to dread coming here,
but I finally decided to just go out and have fun and the guys were able to give me a car
that was able to run with just about anybody. Early on, I was concentrating so hard that I
almost couldn't tell the guys what the car was doing."
About the crash: "We were all bottled-up after the restart, and Jimmy
(Johnson) and I ran side-by-side. He hit me hard and I was pretty (mad) about it. So, I
was really pushing hard to pass him back when the 45 (Petty) car and I got together and it
just launched me over the curbing and into the dirt. I was inside of him but you go back
and forth in that section, so… Even after that we could run the same pace as the
leaders for a few laps, but the car wasn't in alignment. I was kinda (mad) at the end to
look up front and see the guys who were in the top 10. We coulda' been up there, but one
mistake and that's it."
Best Radio Conversations
After passing the car of Ken Schrader on lap 20, spotter Ty Norris encouraged Dale Jr.
to continue making smooth progress.
Ty Norris (spotter): "Good job man. We know we're faster than the guys in
front of us. You can pull away here. Just hit your marks… stay smooth… you have
no pressure from behind."
Dale Jr. (interrupting and urging Norris to be quiet): "Hey! I'm
concentrating, man!"
The team made their first pit stop on lap 34, so when the first yellow flag fell a few
laps later, they opted to stay on-track without making another pit stop.
Norris: "Alright guys, I assume we're not coming in here, right?
Tony Eury Jr. (car chief): "We're stayin' out. I just didn't want to say it
over the radio…"
Dale Jr: "Tony Jr. - you can rest assured that no other team on that pit lane
gives a (damn) about whether we're coming in or not."
Tony Jr: "10-4…"
Dale Jr.: "What I mean is that we're not the top dogs here yet like we will be
at Daytona. Until then, I don't think any of the 42 other teams give a damn if we pit here
or not."
Tony Jr: "I like that enthusiasm… You said 'yet…'"
Today's Stats
Started: 23rd
Finished: 30th
Points Position: 16th
Money Won: $84,607
Best Pit Stop: Lap 34 / 4 tires and Fuel / 13.88 seconds
See Dale Jr. in New Sheryl Crow Video
Wanna get a head start and see the new Sheryl Crow music video before the rest of the
world sees it on VH1? Link to: Fanscape.com for a preview of "Steve McQueen," the
video that co-stars Dale Jr. It's the second music video that young Junior has appeared in
2002. He previously co-starred in "Anti Pop," a video by the Matthew Good Band.
-Budweiser
 Dale Jr.
qualifies 23rd - Starting Grid
Earnhardt Jr. Budweiser Sears Point
Preview_6/18
Dale Jr. Quotes for Sears Point
"This is a tough place to race… it's a technically difficult track, and I'm not
sure how much I'm looking forward to it. They may have to tie me down on the team plane to
get me out there… (laughs) We've done OK there in the two races - but we're not in
this to do OK… ya know what I mean?! We've been struggling so maybe the change to a
road course will be just what we needed, right? Dad used to tell me that if you can keep
it on the pavement at Sears Point, you're in for a great finish, but I think it has become
much more competitive there in the last few years, and you have to push just as hard as
you would on an oval."
Dale Jr. and the No. 8 Bud Team at Sears Point
Winston Cup Starts: 2
Best Start: 31st (2000)
Best Finish: 19th (2001)
This Race, Last Year: St: 37th
Fin: 19th
Dale Jr. and the Bud boys have never qualified particularly well at Sears Point, but once
the green flag has fallen, they have gained an average of 14 positions during the race,
finishing on the lead lap each time.
What:
Save Mart 350
112 laps, 350 kilometers
2-mile road course
Race #16 of 36
Where:
Sears Point Raceway
Sonoma, California
When:
Sunday, June 23
3 p.m.
Watch:
Fox
Pre-race: 2:30 pm
(All Times: Eastern)
You can also listen to the race live on the Performance
Racing Network (PRN) on a radio station near you.
Bud Pole Qualifying:
Bud Pole qualifying begins Friday afternoon at 5:00 and can be seen live on the Fox Sports
Network.
-Budweiser |
