NEWS & NOTES
PAINT THE 88: Dale Earnhardt Jr.‘s No. 88 Chevrolet will have a different look this weekend at Phoenix International Raceway. The Diet Mountain Dew Paint the 88 contest gave fans the chance to design and submit their own original paint schemes online during a five-week period. Earnhardt chose the winning paint scheme, which was a green-and-white design created by fan Jason Corino, of Colorado Springs, Colo. Earnhardt made the selection from almost 10,000 submissions.
PHOENIX STATS: In 16 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Phoenix International Raceway, Earnhardt has scored two wins, four top-five finishes, seven top-10s and has led 460 laps. He earned his two wins back-to-back, going to Victory Lane in November 2003 and November 2004 when Phoenix had one race a season.
APPROACHING 400: Earnhardt, driver of the No. 88 Diet Mountain Dew Paint the 88/National Guard Chevrolet, will make his 400th Cup start at the 2011 Daytona 500 in February. In 397 starts, Earnhardt has recorded 18 wins, nine pole positions, 91 top-five finishes and 150 top-10s.
CHASSIS CHOICE: Crew chief Lance McGrew and the No. 88 team will unload Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 88-589 for this weekend’s race at Phoenix. Earnhardt last raced this chassis to a fourth-place finish at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in September.
HENDRICK AT PHOENIX: In 28 races (99 starts) at Phoenix International Raceway, Hendrick Motorsports owns eight wins, 28 top-five finishes and 50 top-10s. The team has won six of the last seven events held at the one-mile oval, and its wins, top-10s and poles ranks best all-time among teams there.
QUOTES
DALE EARNHARDT JR., DRIVER, NO. 88 DIET MOUNTAIN DEW PAINT THE 88/NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET (ON NAVIGATING PHOENIX INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY.): “Turns 3 and 4 have been the toughest part for me lately at Phoenix. Both ends can be challenging but 3 and 4 is just a longer corner, and they are just so different from each other. The car will be good at one end of the track, and it changes all the time. Getting around (Turns) 3 and 4, getting in there hard, through the center real fast is going to help your lap a lot more than what can happen in (Turns) 1 and 2.”
LANCE McGREW, CREW CHIEF, NO. 88 DIET MOUNTAIN DEW PAINT THE 88/NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET (ON WHAT IT TAKES TO HAVE A GOOD RACE AT PHOENIX .): “As with any short track, you can’t make any mistakes at Phoenix or you will get yourself behind. Qualifying is important, and you’ve got to have solid pit stops all night because getting through traffic is difficult. It’s hard to pass there. A good handling car is going to be the key to having a good race at Phoenix. There’s only a couple of passing opportunities, so it’s very important to have your car handling as good as it possibly can be.”
JASON CORINO, PAINT SCHEME DESIGNER, NO. 88 DIET MOUNTAIN DEW PAINT THE 88/NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET (ON HIS WINNING PAINT SCHEME.): “I was surprised that out of almost 10,000 people, Dale Jr. had picked my paint scheme to win. There are no words to explain how I feel, other than it was a once-in-a-life time chance, and that I’m excited and can’t wait to see the car on the track. Thank you so much Dale Jr and Diet Mountain Dew.”
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