Coca-Cola 600 qualifying just as important as the race to Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Hendrick Motorsports' Dale Earnhardt Jr. has never won a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Lowe's Motor Speedway.
// David Griffin, NASCAR Scene
Even though Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 is the longest race on the NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule, Hendrick Motorsports driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. believes qualifying is still important.
The natural line of thought might be that since the race is so long – 600 miles and 400 laps – a driver who qualifies poorly would have plenty of time to make his way toward the front, but Earnhardt Jr. says qualifying is crucial because of its impact on pit selection.
"Qualifying is pretty important,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “Having a pit stall that you like can be an advantage the whole race. It's a long race, with a lot of stops, and leading the race and being in clean air is real important.
“It really doesn't matter if you had a bad qualifying effort because you have plenty of time to get to the front, but pit selection is probably the most important part about it."
Earnhardt Jr. should know. This will be the Kannapolis, N.C., native’s 11th start in the 600, a race in which he made his Cup debut in 1999 with Dale Earnhardt Inc. when he ran five races before going full-time for DEI the following season.
Earnhardt Jr., of course, left the company founded by his late father, Dale Earnhardt, at the end of 2007 and now competes for Hendrick Motorsports, an organization that has probably had as much success in the 600 as any team in the Cup series.
The driver of the No. 88 Chevrolet would like to share in that success on Sunday when he’ll be looking to make up ground after a rough start to the season.
Eleven races in, Earnhardt Jr. has just three top-10s and is 18th in the driver standings.
But he led 76 laps in last May's event at Charlotte and finished fifth despite a crash that damaged his car.
“We run 500 miles [normally], and your body gets used to it,” he said. “You think you wouldn't notice another 100 miles added, but mentally you do. That last 100 miles is really tough mentally, trying to stay focused and trying to stay devoted to what you're doing because it's so easy just to kind of go, 'I'm tired.' Physically it's not a problem, but mentally your brain is just worked after it's over with.
“I like it. I love this race track. I love this area. I'm glad to be home these two weeks. I think it's awesome we run a 600-mile race at Charlotte."
Of course, Earnhardt Jr. and his Tony Eury Jr.-led team might grow ever fonder of Charlotte if they are the ones celebrating on Sunday night.
Despite winning the all-star race at LMS in Earnhardt Jr.’s rookie season of 2000, he has never won a points-paying race at the 1.5-mile track.
"It's a long race,” Eury Jr. said. “It's really difficult because when you start the track is really hot, really greasy. As night comes, it really cools down, and the car tightens up quite a bit. You've really got to have a car that is crutched to get through that first leg of the 600.
“The first 150 laps, you want to make sure you don't tear up the car and aren't too loose, and you can adjust from there. The key is to get through those first 150 laps without any problems, and then you can have a good night."
