Dale Earnhardt Jr. has had a love-hate relationship with Chicagoland Speedway. He won there in 2005, but lost an engine last year and finished 35th. In the seven races between the two he has two top fives and a top ten, but three finishes outside the top 15 and a 15th.
The weekend didn’t start out good for Earnhardt. He struggled in the two practices on Friday and when rain washed out qualifying he was forced to start 13th. The Hendrick Motorsports crew tried to find speed in the No. 88 Chevy on Saturday but left wondering just what needed to be done. Sunday morning prior to the NASCAR Sprint Cup MyAFibStory.com 400 crew chief Steve Letarte told Earnhardt that wholesale changes had been made to the car.
When the green flag fell Earnhardt was able move inside the top ten, but late in the race he began to fade. At the end of the day he was left with an 11th place finish. Although respectable , Earnhardt seemed a bit disappointed.
“This has been a tough weekend,” Earnhardt said.MORE>>>
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.
- NASCAR to debut new short track package at Phoenix - February 28, 2023
- The Wrench Who Stole Racing - December 16, 2022
- Matt DiBenedetto’s excellent run comes to abrupt, violent end - February 17, 2019
