Dale Earnhardt Jr. physically exhausted, frustrated after New Hampshire

LOUDON, NH - JULY 13: Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the #88 National Guard Chevrolet, makes a pit stop during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Camping World RV Sales 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on July 13, 2014 in Loudon, New Hampshire. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images)
LOUDON, NH - JULY 13:  Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the #88 National Guard Chevrolet, makes a pit stop during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Camping World RV Sales 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on July 13, 2014 in Loudon, New Hampshire.  (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images)
LOUDON, NH – JULY 13: Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the #88 National Guard Chevrolet, makes a pit stop during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Camping World RV Sales 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on July 13, 2014 in Loudon, New Hampshire. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images)

The exhaustion Dale Earnhardt Jr. was suffering was visible Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Shortly after climbing from his Hendrick Motorsports Chevy., Earnhardt Jr. sat on the pit wall and talked about his day.

After starting 28th, Earnhardt tried to fight his way forward, but seemed to get nowhere on the one mile oval in Loudon New Hampshire. The key came when crew chief Steve Letarte began calling for two tire pits stops. The move allowed Earnhardt to move into the top five.

He wasn’t able to stay there near the end however. Earnhardt tried to hold on but could only manage a 10th place finish when the checkered flag dropped. MORE>>>

Greg Engle
About Greg Engle 7421 Articles
Greg is a published award winning sportswriter who spent 23 years combined active and active reserve military service, much of that in and around the Special Operations community. Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.