Earnhardt Jr. Budweiser Race Preview
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Dale Earnhardt Jr.
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Dale Jr. Quotes for Las Vegas
“Is there any way we could just ‘write-off’ these first two (races)? You know – like just take the loss on the ol’ profit sheet and start the season with a fresh sheet of paper? No? OK… well, this is not a 38th-place team, and I think everyone knows that. But, we need to start putting together some finishes to get closer to the front of the points. I guess that goes without saying, but we struggled in the first two races last year (29th and 26th place finishes in 2002), and we were back up to sixth in points after we won at Talladega a few weeks later. There’s some heartache and some frustration about how we’ve finished, but no one is panicked and we’re getting ready to go at it again.”
“Vegas is one of those tracks that I like, and we always run really well there. We have led the race there every year we’ve been there in the Bud car, so we’re planning to continue that streak Sunday.”
Dale Jr. and the No. 8 Bud Team at Las Vegas
Previous Winston Cup Starts: 3
Best Start: 3rd (2000)
Best Finish: 10th (2000)
This Race, Last Year: ST: 35th
FIN: 16th
Dale Jr. and the team started 35th, but climbed into the top 10 by lap 123 (of 267 laps). A gamble with a two-tire pit stop late in the race cost the team a few positions, dropping them to a 16th place finish… When Dale Jr. led 42 laps in the rain-shortened Las Vegas race in 2000, it marked the first time that the Budweiser No. 8 team had led a Winston Cup race for a significant distance. (The team had led the 1999 Atlanta race for a single lap.)
What:
Las Vegas 400
267 laps / 400 miles / Race #3 of 36 in the Winston Cup Series
Where:
Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas, NV
1.5-mile speedway
When:
Sunday, March 2 / 3 p.m. / Fox-TV (pre-race: 2:30 pm)
Watch:
Fox-TV will carry the first half of the 2003 season… You can also tune-in to hear qualifying and race action from all of the Bruton Smith-owned tracks (Charlotte, Texas, Sears Point, Atlanta, Bristol, Las Vegas) on the Performance Racing Network (PRN) on a radio station or computer near you.
Bud Pole Qualifying:
Bud Pole qualifying can be seen live Friday at 6:00 p.m. on Fox Sports Network and heard on PRN affiliates across the nation.
(All Times: Eastern)
