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2004 Season
2004 Tropicana 400
| Race Information |
| Event: Tropicana 400 |
| Date: July 11, 2004 |
Track: Chicagoland Speedway |
| Started: 25th |
Finished: 22nd |
| Status: Running |
Laps Completed:
267 of 267 |
| Points
Pos. Before/After Race:
2nd/2nd |
Points
Earned: 97 (w/ 0 bonus) |
| Money
Earned: $116,828 |
Summary and Related News |
Tony Stewart wins Tropicana 400,
Bud team finishes 22nd_7/11/04
Dale Jr. remains in second place in point standings
Tony Stewart led 160 of 267 laps and held off Jimmie Johnson to win Sunday’s
Tropicana 400 at Chicagoland Speedway. Dale Jarrett finished third and Jeff Gordon fourth.
Stewart’s victory was his first of the season, but it didn’t come without
incident, as contact with Kasey Kahne midway through the race caused a multi-car crash and
sparked an altercation between the two teams in the pit area. Dale Jr. and the No. 8
Budweiser team was collected in the accident, but used a series of pit stops to repair the
damage and finish the race in 22nd position on the lead lap. Dale Jr. remains in second
place in the NEXTEL Cup championship standings, now 105 points behind leader Johnson.
Key Moments: Starting 25th, it took only 17 laps to climb into the top
15, but the day soured when a series of pit-road mishaps (missing pit road and then
speeding down pit road on the ensuing lap to warrant a pass-through penalty) buried the
Budweiser car deep in the pack. The day turned decisively worse when contact between
Stewart and Kahne on the lap-127 restart started an accident that damaged eight cars, the
No. 8 Chevy being one of them. The Bud crew used four pit stops under that fifth caution
to fix the front-end alignment and repair damage to the nose and right rear-quarter panel.
When the race resumed, Dale Jr. was turning laps as quick as he had all day. The
“beneficiary” award on lap 244 put him back on the lead lap in 23rd position,
and he was able to clip off one spot in the final 15 circuits.
Dale Jr. Quotes: “I can honestly say I’m wore out! I drove my
butt off today. It was a good race, the car was pretty good, but I missed pit road and
then sped down pit road, and it seemed like it all went downhill from there. I was
involved in a crash a little bit. It knocked the tow out, but it really didn’t drive
that bad after we fixed the damage. I wasn’t real confident coming into this race,
because we were so bad yesterday in practice. But the car was pretty good at the start. I
think we moved from 25th to 14th in just a handful of laps. That was pretty good I
thought. We didn’t get outrun here like we used to (the Bud team’s best finish
at Chicagoland Speedway is 10th in 2002), so it at least makes me feel optimistic that we
made a little bit of a gain.
On the incident between Stewart and Kahne that caused the fifth caution:
“I didn’t see what happened. I was pretty upset that I got hit from behind, but
for all I know, the guy that hit me might’ve been punted himself. I’m a
competitor, and Tony and I are real good buddies. I’m not going to criticize or
critique the way a guy drives unless he gets into me. It’s that simple.”
Best Radio Chatter:
A two-tire pit stop on lap 40 was lightning quick… so quick the driver
wasn’t ready to go:
Tony Eury Jr. (car chief): “Go, go, go, go, go. What are you waiting
on?”
Dale Jr. (after pulling away): “Sorry. I don’t like those
two-tire deals. I wasn’t ready to go.”
Tony Jr. (laughing): “The boys said they’re gonna have a talk
with you after the race. You’re killing their average.”
During the fourth caution on lap 117:
Dale Jr.: “Am I one lap down or two?”
Tony Jr.: “Just one right now.”
Dale Jr.: “I don’t know how I sped (down pit road on the
previous stop). I was trying to make sure I didn’t miss (pit road) again. It’s
like they’re kicking a man while he’s down. (Long pause) Go easy on these
changes. Our car is competitive. We’re behind, and we gotta catch back up.”
Still under the fourth caution:
Dale Jr.: “I’ve never missed pit road like that in my life.
I’m soooo sorry y’all. And when we take two tires, you gotta keep reminding me
that we’re taking two tires.”
Tony Jr.: “Yeah, I wasn’t sure if you wanted me to hand you a
sandwich or what.”
Dale Jr. was the beneficiary of the “lap-down” rule when the eighth caution
came out on lap 243:
Dale Jr.: “Am I the lucky dog?”
Tony Jr.: “Yeah, you lucked up!”
Dale Jr.: “What?! I’m not in this by myself. I’m in here
driving my (butt) off.”
Tony Jr.: “Well whatever you just did, you need to open another can
of it.”
Today’s Stats
Started: 25th
Finished: 22nd
Points: 2nd (-105 behind Jimmie Johnson)
Best Pit Stop: Pit stop number 4 of 11 / four tires and fuel / 12.98 seconds
-Budweiser
Budweiser Race Preview: Chicagoland Speedway_7/5/04
Dale Earnhardt Jr. driver, No. 8 Budweiser team:
The stats don't speak much in our favor, but we've made considerable gains at Chicago the
past few years. Two years ago we had a car that could've won. Last year we might've been
just as good but were snake-bitten. We started the day running over a chunk of metal from
someone else's car, and we ended the day crashing by ourselves, it was just one of those
races you try to forget. The biggest challenge at Chicago is track position, because it's
not the easiest place to pass. It seems the further back you are, the more aero-push
(aerodynamic push) becomes a factor. We hurt ourselves with bad pit stops at Daytona.
Actually, it was a rough night all the way around on pit road (earlier in the night Dale
Jr. was forced off pit road upon exit, leaving him to slosh and bog his way through the
rain-soaked grass). We can't do the same thing at Chicago and expect to contend for the
win.
Dale Jr. and the No. 8 Bud Team at Chicago
Previous Nextel Cup Starts: 3
Best Start: 9th (July, 2002)
Best Finish: 10th (July, 2002)
This Race, Last Year: ST: 16h / FIN: 38th
Dale Jr. and the Bud team enter the Chicago race weekend on the heels of a third-place
finish at Daytona, its ninth top-five of the season. Dale Jr. has one top-10 in three
races at Chicagoland Speedway (July, 2002). His best shot at victory came in 2002 when he
led four times for 81 laps.
Dale Jr. is currently second in the NEXTEL Cup point standings, trailing leader Jimmie
Johnson by 27 tallies. In 17 races this year, the Bud team has three wins, nine top fives,
and 12 top-10 finishes. The Bud team has finished sixth or better in five of the last
seven races.
Of the four races on 1.5-mile tracks this year, Dale Jr. has three top-six finishes and
one win (Atlanta). He has led in three of those races for a total of 61 laps.
Race Details:
Tropicana 400
Chicagoland Speedway / Joliet, Ill.
2.5-mile D-shaped oval / 267 laps / 400 miles
Sunday, July 11, 2004
TV: NBC, 3:30 p.m. ET start. (Pre-race begins at 2:30 p.m.)
Radio: Motor Racing Network (MRN), XM Radio.
Bud Pole Qualifying: Friday, July 9 / 4:10 p.m. ET
-Budweiser |
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