.jpg)
News & Notes
DALE’S DESIGN: Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s No. 88 Chevrolet will have a different look for the NASCAR Sprint All-Star weekend. His partners AMP Energy and the National Guard donated this weekend’s paint scheme to The Dale Jr. Foundation. Earnhardt’s Chevrolet will feature bright red, orange and yellow coloring with music notes accentuating the side panels.
SPRINT ALL-STAR SHOWDOWN: Earnhardt will make his first career appearance in the May 21st Sprint Showdown, and either a win or the fan vote on NASCAR.com will ensure the driver of the No. 88 The Dale Jr. Foundation/VH1 Save the Music/AMP Energy/National Guard Chevrolet will participate in the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race.
ALL-STAR VICTORY: Earnhardt made history on May 20, 2000, when he became the first rookie to win the Sprint All-Star Race at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway. Earnhardt led two laps and beat veteran Dale Jarrett to the finish line by 1.295 seconds.
ALL-STAR STATS: In 11 appearances in the non-points all-star event, Earnhardt has scored one win, three top-five finishes and nine top-10s. His average finish in the exhibition race is 8.18. Last year, Earnhardt started 18th and crossed the finish line 12th.
ALL-STAR PIT CREW: The seventh annual NASCAR Sprint Pit Crew Challenge kicks off the all-star weekend on Thursday by providing crew members with a chance to test their skills in head-to-head competition. Earnhardt’s No. 88 team qualifies for this event because he is ranked fourth in the driver standings, highest among the teams not already entered in this year’s competition. The No. 88 pit crew includes front-tire changer Clay Robinson (Sun Valley, Calif.), front-tire carrier Mike Houston (Richmond, Va.), rear-tire changer Joe Slingerland (Inverness, Fla.), rear-tire carrier Matt Ver Meer (Montezuma, Iowa), gasman Caleb Hurd (Pulaski, Va.) and jackman Jeff Cook (Mallard Creek, N.C.). Hendrick Motorsports’ Lisa Smokstad will be driving the car for the No. 88 team. The event begins at 7 p.m. on Thursday at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte. The finishing order will determine teams’ pit selection for Saturday’s NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race.
CHASSIS CHOICE: This weekend, crew chief Steve Letarte will unload Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 88-603. Jeff Gordon most recently raced this chassis to an eighth-place finish at Indianapolis Motor Speedway last July.
HENDRICK IN THE ALL-STAR: In 75 all-star entries, Hendrick Motorsports has scored six wins, 28 top-five finishes, 41 top-10s and led 565 laps. The team has started from the front row a combined nine times, with three of those times from the pole position. Each of Hendrick’s four current drivers have at least one career all-star victory.
Quotes
DALE EARNHARDT JR., DRIVER, NO. 88 THE DALE JR. FOUNDATION/VH1 SAVE THE MUSIC/AMP ENERGY/NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET (ON HIS FAVORITE SPRINT ALL STAR MEMORY.):
“Aside from winning it myself, being there for the 1987 All-Star race. I see videos of that race all the time and feel fortunate to have been there. That was the year that daddy (Dale Earnhardt Sr.) and Bill Elliott were beating on each other and daddy ended up winning the race. Back then, the race paid $200,000, and that was like winning one million dollars. They ran over each other, and did whatever it took to win the money because it paid so much. I just remember being there, and when it was all over with I thought it was a big deal. I got a lot more appreciation for it now because it’s an event that defines our sport. As I get older, I realize how important that race was and how lucky I am to have been there.”
EARNHARDT (ON HIS PAINT SCHEME AND THE VH1 SAVE THE MUSIC FOUNDATION.):
“My sponsors, AMP Energy and the National Guard, let me use the All-Star weekend to promote a charity through my Foundation. I asked my sister to contact VH1 and see if we could do something with the Save the Music Foundation. It’s been really successful over the past several years, and I wanted to bring awareness to it and in our sport. They were excited about us contacting them, and hopefully we’ll go out on the racetrack and try to get in the All-Star race and win it. This is going to be fun for the All-Star race, and it’s a great looking race car.”
| 
|