<DJC> 2002 Race Report

Race Information
Event: Funai 250
Date: September 6, 2002	Track: Richmond Int'l Raceway
Qualified: 1st	Finished: 1st
Status: Running	Laps Completed: 250 of 250
Points Pos. Before/After Race: --/--	Points Earned: -- (w/ -- bonus)
Money Earned: $--
Summary and Related News
Earnhardt Jr. Dominates Busch Race_9/6 By HANK KURZ Jr., AP Sports Writer RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Dale Earnhardt Jr. returned to the series he once dominated and did it more convincingly than ever Friday night, leading 190 laps and easily winning the FUNAI 250 NASCAR Busch Grand National race. So dominant was the 1998 and 1999 series champion that he built a lead of more than 13 seconds in a span of 60 green-flag laps, and three times pulled away on restarts in the final 30 laps of the crash-filled event. The victory came in a Chevrolet Earnhardt co-owns with stepmother Teresa Earnhardt, and was his second in three Busch starts this year. The race had 11 caution flags that slowed the pace for 83 laps, and 11 of the 43 cars that started weren't around to see the checkered flag. Among them was Jimmy Spencer, who swept the Busch races at Richmond last year and seemed the most likely to challenge Earnhardt. But Spencer's engine blew after 168 laps, leaving Earnhardt virtually unchallenged. Earnhardt had built a lead of more than 13 seconds when Tim Fedewa hit the wall on lap 205, bringing out a caution that erased the lead. Earnhardt headed for pit road for tires and fuel, and series points leader Greg Biffle, who had been running second, stayed out. Earnhardt emerged from pit road in second place, on Biffle's bumper, when it went back to green on lap 220. It took Earnhardt half-a-lap to pass Biffle, and the Winston Cup star quickly resumed his domination, using clean air to make a clean break from the pack. The scene was repeated three more times, with Earnhardt finally building another big lead over the final six green-flag laps to win by 1.250 seconds. It was his 15th career victory in the Busch series. Dale Jr. gets Busch pole with record lap_9/5 9/5/02 - Earnhardt Jr., making his third NASCAR Busch Series start of the season, debuted his self-owned Chevrolet in record fashion, shattering the track record and earning the Bud Pole for Friday's Funai 250. More. Funai 250 Lineup. The Funai 250 starts Friday at 8 p.m. ET on TNT.