Busch wins battle, Stewart the
war_11/17
 No. 8 Budweiser team dominates before engine woes.
Kurt Busch continued his late-season success, winning Sunday's season-ending Ford 400 at
Homestead-Miami Speedway. But the biggest winner on the day was Tony Stewart, who clinched
his first NASCAR Winston Cup championship with an 18th-place finish. Busch won his fourth
race of 2002, crossing the finish line ahead of Joe Nemechek and Jeff Burton. In what
looked like a replay of last week's race at Phoenix, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and the No. 8
Budweiser team dominated early portions of the race, leading for 46 laps before a broken
valve spring dropped the red car to only seven cylinders of power. Even with a damaged
powerplant for the final two-thirds of the race, Dale Jr. still had a car that handled
magically in the corners, and was able to hang onto the lead lap to the finish, coming
home 21st. The Key Moments: Dale
Jr. and the Bud team started on the outside of the front row, their best-ever qualifying
effort at the relatively flat 1.5-mile oval. Much like last week at Phoenix with the same
chassis, it took Dale Jr. very little time to climb into first place, passing the eventual
winner Busch to take the lead on lap 11. All seemed well with the Bud car, as Dale Jr. was
able take the lead for a second time on lap 63, and then challenge for the point after the
next set of pit stops on lap 94. While in second place on lap 104, Dale Jr. reported the
first sign of trouble with the engine. "The engine starts to cut out at the end of
the straights, guys," was his first radio transmission about the trouble, and then he
slowly fell back through the field as the problem became worse and worse. For the final
150 laps of the race, Dale Jr. had the slowest car down the straights, but the fastest
through the corners, which managed to add some spice to the struggle to remain on the lead
lap. A quick post-race teardown confirmed what the team had diagnosed earlier: a broken
valve spring had rendered one of the eight cylinders worthless.
Dale Jr's Quotes: "That's about the
coolest 'bad' day we ever had. It's hard to be disappointed. We had such a great car and
that's just so rare for one of the DEI engines to have a problem. It must be some sorta
record for staying on the lead lap with only seven cylinders, even though I hear that my
grandpa Ralph (Earnhardt) once won a big race with only seven good cylinders. The car was
so good that I could haul-ass through the corners and then I'd just try to hang on when we
got to the straights..."
"We were really great early on. I think we were among
the three best cars, easily. It handled great, and we were starting to dial it in when the
engine problem started. At first, it would just misfire at the end of the straightaways,
but it got worse, and then it was pretty clear we had lost a cylinder. Everybody else knew
we were a wounded duck, so I really had to be careful on the re-starts. Those (guys) were
like bees to honey trying to get a run on me. I had to swat 'em away! If I was even close
to someone at the end of the straight, there was no way they could get around me in the
corners. It was an awesome car, and I'm glad we can end the year with that feeling. We
didn't finish well, but we kicked some butt while we were up front. Now, I gotta get outta
here, I'm goin' to Jamaica..."
Best Radio Conversations
Perhaps because of his trip to Jamaica tomorrow, or the fact the season was ending,
but Dale Jr. was extremely chatty on the radio all afternoon. His commentary encompassed a
wide range of topics...
Dale Jr. talking about another driver that crashed his
DEI teammate Michael Waltrip, who happens to be the tallest and most physically imposing
driver.
"Ohhh... that ain't a man I'd wanna be spinning
out!"
Dale Jr. teasing his crew - especially his cousin Tony
Eury Jr., who sits on top of the pit box.
"Hey - ya look good up there... Next year, y'all get
five-gallon buckets to sit on. We'll have some fast-ass stops cuz you won't be sitting on
the couch up there."
Dale Jr. daydreaming about his car owner role next
season in the Busch Series...
"I can't wait for (the race at) Las Vegas next year.
Boy! It's gonna be a blast! I'll be sitting up there all comfy and making all the calls!
Dale Jr. about his unorthodox line through the turns
that sent him across the apron in each corner...
"Ya know, this track is crazy. It may be more
dangerous than New Hampshire. Being down on the apron may not be the fastest way around
but it's safer and it's fun. It's like you're driving along and then 'WHOA! I'm on the
apron!' Ya know, if I could get down there onto the access road (inside the track), I
could shave a few 10ths off my lap times... Just turn hard left, ya know..."
Dale Jr. talking with Tony Eury Jr. about a caution
period that seemed to last forever...
Dale Jr: "Hey - could somebody get me
a pepperoni pizza?"
Tony Eury Jr: "Nah... sorry. I don't
see any here..."
Dale Jr: "Awwwwww man! I'd get one
for you!"
Tony Jr: "Nope, I really don't see
one around, and we done checked!"
Dale Jr.: "Well, ya better hurry and
get me one before the stores close..."
Tony Jr: "Hey man, you're doin'
really good. We're still 15th..."
Dale Jr: "Hell yeah. You don't
understand how great this thing is in the corners... (getting wistful) We had a good run
while it lasted. We can't blame (head engine builder Richie) Gilmore...we twisted the heck
outta the engine. We were really quick today guys, they knew we were here...Great job all
weekend..."
Today's Stats
Started: 2nd
Finished: 21st
Points Position: 11th (no change)
Money Won: $80,825
Laps Led: Twice for 46 laps
Best Pit Stop: Lap 55 / Stop #1 of 10 / 4 tires, Fuel / 13.29 seconds
Special "King of Beers" Bonus Coverage
A full 2002 season recap and statistical review for the No. 8 Budweiser team will follow
in several days.
Celebrity of the Week / Bud Pit Area: A brief walk-by by Brittney Spears
(and entourage), plus an extended appearance by acclaimed music video director Wayne Isham
(who was shooting a new Budweiser commercial all weekend at the track) and Playboy
Playmate Loren Anderson. Dale Jr. also recorded a short segment for this week's VH-1
"Top 10 Videos" show.
The Celebrities that don't get enough credit or attention: The DEI
Budweiser crew (in no particular order): Tony Eury, Tony Eury Jr., Danny Earnhardt, Kevin
Pennell, Ira-Jo Hussey, Bill Snyder, Jeff Clark, David Lippard, "B" Hoover, Ty
Norris, Sonny McCurdy, Tracy Manion, Dan Stillman, Shawn Nettleton, Brandon Blake, Jon
Neumeyer, Scott Daniels, Dean Middlemiss, Tom Ryan and Brian Cram. Great job guys. Have a
Bud. You deserve it.
Don't forget the King of Beers on the internet at: www.Budweiser.com
-Budweiser
Earnhardt Jr. Budweiser Homestead
Preview_11/12
Dale Jr. Quotes for Homestead-Miami
"We made a habit this year of doing really well at tracks where we haven't done very
well in the past, especially at tracks that are not high-banked like Phoenix and
Martinsville… Homestead is pretty flat, so I'm going into this weekend thinking we'll
do the same thing here. It's a relief that this is the last race. I'm ready to go
somewhere warm and just chill for awhile with a few cold Buds, but I hate to break the
momentum we've had since August. We've got a shot at moving up into 10th place in points
if we can do well on Sunday. I guess that means I'd be happy to have to sit on the beach
and write my speech for the banquet. We'll go out strong - and do what we can to convince
all of those people who picked us as championship contenders this year that we're gonna be
the ones to beat next year.
Dale Jr. and the No. 8 Bud Team at Homestead
Previous Winston Cup Starts: 2
Best Start: 12th (2000)
Best Finish: 13th (2000)
This Race, Last Year: ST: 17th FIN: 15th
Numbers Don't Lie (Which, despite the rumors, is NOT the title of the next Bond
movie...)
After 35 of 36 races, here are some of the highlights of the 2002 statistics for the No. 8
Budweiser team. Items with asterisks are career bests for the team.
Wins: 2 Talladega (April and October)
Bud Poles: 2* Michigan (August), Kansas
Top Five Finishes: 11*
Top Ten Finishes: 16*
Races Led: 21*
Laps Led: 1022*
Consecutive Top-10s: 5* Kansas through Atlanta
Consecutive Top-5s: 3* Atlanta, Darlington, Bristol (March)
What:
Ford 400
1.5-mile oval / 267 laps / 400.5 miles / Race #36 of 36
Where:
Homestead-Miami Speedway, Homestead, FL
When:
Sunday, November 17 / 1:00 p.m.
Watch:
NBC / Pre-race 12:30 pm
You can also tune in on the Motor Racing Network (MRN) on a radio or computer near
you… you know the drill by now…
Bud Pole Qualifying:
Bud Pole qualifying can be seen live Friday at 1:00 pm on the Speed Channel and heard on
MRN affiliates across the nation.
(All Times: Eastern)
-Budweiser |
