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Dale Jr. makes most of his best Michigan car
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"It handled good on Saturday," Earnhardt Jr. said before the race. "A little bit different temperature and track conditions (Sunday), but hopefully everything's just about the same. We were real pleased with the times we were running (during practice). We were one of the best cars.
Early in the race, Dale Jr. was pretty happy with the No. 8 car. He said it was good getting into the corners, a little snug in the center and then sliding the right rear off of Turn 2. On a scale of 1 to 10, he said the slide wasn't even a 1. He liked the racecar.
Caution 3 / Lap 23
The car was a little bit free, but Dale Jr. liked it. He said the only place that he needed help was from the center off of Turn 2.
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Programs of the week
Sunday, 3/22 on FOX 1:30 pm: Food City 500 This week on SPEED Friday, 3/20 Noon: Cup practice 1:30 pm: N'wide practice 3:00 pm: NASCAR LIVE 3:30 pm: Cup qualifying 4:30 pm: N'wide practice 7:00 pm: Trackside Saturday, 3/21 11:00 am: Cup practice 12:20 pm: Cup practice Sunday, 3/22 11:00 am: NASCAR in a hurry 11:30 am: NASCAR Raceday 8:00 pm: Victory Lane All times ET | ||
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Caution 6 / Lap 54
Dale Jr. still liked the No. 8 car and reiterated that it was good in and off and just a little bit snug in the center.
One lap past halfway, races are official, and crew chief Tony Eury Jr. talked to him about the weather under caution.
- Eury Jr.: "Just so you know Dale Jr, the big storm is about an hour and a half out, and we've run an hour and a half. We're looking at about 55 laps here, so you've got a heads-up on what that is. When that weather gets here, we'll probably be down for quite awhile."
Dale Jr: "What's the laps on this race?"
Eury Jr.: "200... so we've got to get to lap 100 to make it an official race. Just trying to give you a heads-up on what's around the corner or what might happen. I'll letcha know later on, if the weather changes drastically or anything."
Dale Jr: "Alrighty."
Lap 65
Dale Jr. told Eury Jr. he was rolling over on the right front, and he didn't like it. As DW explained, a driver feels like he's using up his right front tire, and he really doesn't want to do that at 200 mph. In the matter of only one turn, a car can go bad.
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The No. 8 car took just right-side tires with half a pound up in the right rear tire.
Caution 7 / Laps 81-84
After taking right-side tires on the last stop, the Budweiser Chevy took four tires because Junior said the car had gotten a little bit tight with just two tires.
Last stop: Caution 8 / Laps 112-115
Saying he just wanted to rotate or turn better through the center of the corner, Earnhardt Jr.'s crew made an air pressure adjustment. They put half a pound in the right front and took a round of bite out of the right rear.
NASCAR on FOX and SPEED host and reporter Steve Byrnes has covered racing for more than 20 years, and he gives kids a close look at a real stock car and its driver with Ryan's Racecar, a 30-minute video/DVD. For more information, go to RyansRacecar.com
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