Dale Earnhardt Jr: Latest News and 2015 Sprint Cup Ranking Ahead of Atlanta
Thirty-two laps. That's exactly how many Dale Earnhardt Jr. led on Sunday during the 2015 Daytona 500. For 32 laps, the fans were on their feet in Daytona Beach as the No. 88 machine came roaring around the tri-oval at the top of the leaderboard.
However, he couldn't quite turn that into a second straight victory. Even with all of the laps he led, a costly mistake ruined any chance for him to pace the field on the last one.
Even with the critical blunder with 19 laps remaining, Junior still finished third after a late charge to the front and a strong restart. It was his fourth finish of third or better in his last five attempts. That moves him to a top-three result in half of his 16 Daytona 500 starts during his career.
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Here's a look at the latest news, standings and results ahead of the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500.
| Daytona 500 | 3 | 3 |
| 1 | Joey Logano | 47 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | Kevin Harvick | 42 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 3 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 42 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 4 | Denny Hamlin | 41 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 5 | Jimmie Johnson | 40 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 6 | Casey Mears | 39 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 7 | Clint Bowyer | 37 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 8 | Martin Truex Jr. | 37 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 9 | Kasey Kahne | 35 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 10 | Greg Biffle | 35 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Latest News
Speedweeks got off to a bumpy start for Earnhardt, but he finished on a high note during the Budweiser Duels. The No. 88 car went from last after failing a post-qualifying inspection all the way to the front to win the opening Duel and secure a spot on the second row.
That momentum carried into Sunday until Lap 181.
Instead of staying on the low line, Earnhardt decided to move up the track. He didn't find any drafting partners and ultimately dropped down to the middle of the field. Scott Fowler of The Charlotte Observer wrote about the poor decision that led to Junior's demise:
"Suddenly, everyone was racing three-wide, and Earnhardt was getting passed on either side like he was a big rock in the middle of a fast-moving stream. In a single lap, he plummeted from third to 15th.
With one of the best cars on the track and a long-established knack for driving well at restrictor-plate tracks, Earnhardt still worked his way back up to third by the end.
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It was clear all week that the Hendrick Motorsports driver had one of the best cars on the track. He showed that again on Sunday, toying with the rest of the field all day long and staying up near the front.
He reiterated just that on Sunday night on Twitter:
Rather than going on a media tour for a second straight year, he'll have to watch on as Joey Logano does so for the first time in his career. He'll have to deal with being third in the standings rather than having a spot guaranteed after the first race.
Oh, what could have been.
He'll have to put all of that behind him and stick to his Bill Belichick-ish response on Twitter. For the entire Sprint Cup, it's on to Atlanta. That's a welcome sight for Earnhardt and the entire Hendrick team.
Last season, Junior finished 11th in Atlanta, but he has 12 top-10 finishes at the track during his career. Here's a look at his career statistics in Atlanta, via DriverAverages.com:
| 27 | 1 | 8 | 12 | 22 | 92.7 |
| Aug. 31, 2014 | 20 | 11 | 0 | Running | 83.8 |
| Sept. 1, 2013 | 8 | 8 | 0 | Running | 93.2 |
| Sept. 2, 2012 | 35 | 7 | 0 | Running | 80.2 |
Along with Junior, Kasey Kahne and Jimmie Johnson also finished strong at the track last year. Kahne won and Johnson wound up fourth, giving Earnhardt several partners likely at the top of the leaderboard.
Given his recent success at the track—an average finish of 8.7 in the last three races—expect a strong showing from Junior on Sunday. Whether or not he'll remain there, however, will come down to decision-making again.
Prediction: Ninth
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