Dale Earnhardt Jr. hoping to duplicate past success at Atlanta
Hendrick Motorsports driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. has one NASCAR Cup series win at Atlanta Motor Speedway. // David Griffin, NASCAR Scene
Dale Earnhardt Jr. should be pleased to see the Pep Boys Auto 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway on the NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule this weekend.
While he has finished 11th at the track in his last two visits, the Hendrick Motorsports driver has 10 top-10 finishes in his last 16 races at the track, a streak that includes his victory there in 2004, when he was driving for Dale Earnhardt Inc. He has an average finish of 11.6 at Atlanta, which ties for a personal best with his performances at Bristol Motor Speedway.
This weekend’s event will be Atlanta’s first scheduled night Cup race, but Earnhardt Jr. doesn’t expect the race’s starting time will have much impact.
“I don't think it's going to change too much," said Earnhardt Jr., who has finished in the top 10 in the two most recent Cup races this season. "The track is pretty wore down and will slow down over the long runs, but we will be running some pretty fast speeds the first five or 10 laps on new tires under the lights. That place is really, really fast."
Crew chief Lance McGrew agrees. As he prepares for the race weekend, he sees this being more of a driver’s track anyway - no matter when the race is run.
"I've always thought Atlanta is such a driver's race track because it is so wide and races so wide that there's groove after groove after groove," McGrew said. "If your car is not good on the bottom, we'll try the middle. If it's not good in the middle, we'll try two-thirds. If it's not good there, try the top. You'll go from the top of one end to the bottom of the other.
"There's always ability for a driver to hunt a line that helps his car, which I've always liked because, whether you believe it or not, these cars are never perfect. So you always have to be able to hunt and peck and look for every last little hundredth [of a second] that you can find on the race track."
The team will be entering the race with less pressure on it than Earnhardt Jr.'s Hendrick teammates. Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon are already locked into the field for the 12-driver Chase For The Sprint Cup, meaning they'll be looking for a win and the 10 bonus points that offers once that championship-determining segment of the season begins. Mark Martin, meanwhile, will be trying to maintain or improve his 10th spot in the standings as he attempts to lock into the field as well.
Earnhardt Jr. is 21st in the standings and well out of Chase contention after a season in which he and his team have struggled.
So while he's also seeking the win this weekend, his priorities and approach will be a little different than that of his teammates.
"We are mathematically out of the Chase at this point, so we are watching everybody else and seeing how they are going to do," Earnhardt Jr. said. "We are trying to help our teammates the best we can and support them in their efforts. I think Hendrick Motorsports has several opportunities to win the championship. We are going to try to win some races and help our teammates the best we can."
