INSIDE LOOK: HEAT, CAR KNOCK FIGHT FROM JUNIOR POINTS-LEADER EARNHARDT JR. FINISHES 19TH, NEARLY LAPPED.Byline: Thomas St. Myer Staff Writer FONTANA - From the second he stepped on the gas pedal of his No. 8 Chevrolet, Dale Earnhardt This article is about the elder Dale Earnhardt. For his son, see Dale Earnhardt, Jr.. For the racing team he founded, see Dale Earnhardt, Inc.. Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. Jr. fought a losing battle. After the race Sunday, he looked like he lost a 12-round fight as the sweltering swel·ter·ing adj. 1. Oppressively hot and humid; sultry. 2. Suffering from oppressive heat. swel 97-degree California heat (140 degrees on the track) did him in. Sweat-drenched and his hair matted, Earnhardt stared at the ground in silence as he walked to his motor home. In the end, Earnhardt lost 71 points off his Nextel Cup The NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series is NASCAR's top racing series. It was formerly known as the Strictly Stock Series (1949), Grand National Series (1950-1971), and the Winston Cup Series (1972-2003). series lead as Rick Hendrick Joseph Riddick Hendrick III (born July 12, 1949 in Warrenton, North Carolina), better known as Rick Hendrick is an owner of several NASCAR stock cars and teams, as well as Hendrick Automotive Group[1], one of the largest automotive chains in the United States. Racing teammates Jimmie Johnson This article is about NASCAR driver. For the football player, see Jimmie Johnson (American football). For people named Jimmy Johnson, see Jimmy Johnson (disambiguation). and Jeff Gordon Jeffery Michael Gordon (born August 4, 1971) is a professional American race car driver. He was born in Vallejo, California, raised in Pittsboro, Indiana, and currently lives in Charlotte, North Carolina. became larger objects in his rear-view mirror rear-view mirror Noun a mirror on a motor vehicle enabling the driver to see the traffic behind rear-view mirror rear n (Aut) → rétroviseur m . Gordon won the Auto Club 500 for his third win in eight years at California Speedway The California Speedway is a two-mile, low-banked, D-shaped oval superspeedway in Fontana, California, similar to that of "sister track" Michigan International Speedway. It is located approximately 40 miles east of Los Angeles on the site of the former Kaiser Steel mill. . Johnson was second and closed within 25 points of Earnhardt (1,453 to 1,428) in the points standings. Gordon cut his deficit from 111 to 27 (1,426). With his car too tight early and too loose late, Earnhardt finished 19th. The Earnhardt faithful sat quietly in their seats as they watched his rival, Gordon, take the checkered flag. After starting 10th, Earnhardt dropped to 26th and came dangerously close to being lapped twice. Only two cautions saved him from falling a lap behind before his first pit stop. ``I felt like I was in a fight,'' said Earnhardt, whose only win at California Speedway came at the 1998 Busch Series event. ``I felt like I was battling the car the whole time.'' Earnhardt said the car turned too tight and put him behind early. In his first pit stop, his crew made adjustments but they loosened the car too much. Earnhardt stayed near the rear of the pack as his car slid up the race track on every turn. ``The front tires were chattering,'' Earnhardt said. ``It felt like the rear wheel was going to fall off.'' By the time the crew corrected the problems, Earnhardt could only manage to crack the top 20. After a quick shower in the motor home, Earnhardt rushed out of the California Speedway, anxious to put Sunday behind him. ``I'm wiped out. I was in a fight all day. It was so hot out there,'' Earnhardt said. ``(The car) never did the same thing twice. It wasn't until about the last hundred laps or so that I could do anything with it.'' Thomas St. Myer (909) 483-9368 thomas.stmyer(at)dailybulletin.com CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Dale Earnhardt Jr. (8) started 10th but dropped to 26th because of car troubles and the heat. He remains the points leader but saw Jimmie Johnson pull within 25 points. Will Lester/Associated Press |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion