Dale Earnhardt Jr. found out what can happen with a competitive car during Saturday’s Sprint Showdown at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
A year after showing up at All-Star weekend with a Chevy he wasn’t comfortable with, Earnhardt won this year’s Showdown in convincing fashion over pole-winner and runner-up A.J. Allmendinger, a Hollister product. The victory earned Earnhardt and Allmendinger spots in the Sprint All-Star Race later Saturday, along with fans-vote winner Bobby Labonte.
Earnhardt – who hasn’t won a Sprint Cup points race since 2008 – finished sixth in the 2011 Showdown and made the All-Star field only by winning the fans’ vote. Earnhardt said the car his Hendrick Motorsports team brought wasn’t as strong as it could have been. But since Earnhardt and crew chief Steve Letarte were in their first year together and concentrating more on the next week’s Coca-Cola 600, Earnhardt understood why.
“We didn’t bring our best bullet to the fight,” said Earnhardt. “In defense of Steve, we were a young team. This year we put a little more emphasis on this event.”
Allmendinger fell behind Earnhardt before the race even began when one of his tires went flat. He went to pit road before the green flag waved, but was didn’t lose a lap. He fought back and passed Jamie McMurray late in the 40-lap race to join Earnhardt and Labonte in Saturday’s big race.
“The car was just fast,” said Allmendinger. “I was going to do everything I could to get in there or I was going to wreck trying.”
