Junior picks up where Waltrip leaves off

By SHAWN A. AKERS
Published February 21, 2005

[Times photo: James Borchuck] Jeff Gordon is waved on to his third career Daytona 500 victory Sunday.
DAYTONA 500
Last man standing John Romano: Tony tames temper - too bad No smoke and mirrors in Fox's HDTV telecast Unlucky 13 and a job left half done for Stewart Duo not ready to say goodbye just yet Junior picks up where Waltrip leaves off
Go to NASCAR 2005

DAYTONA BEACH - One half of the Dale Earnhardt Inc. dynamic duo made the best he could out of a rough afternoon Sunday in the Daytona 500.

The other half of the tandem, which has dominated at Daytona for five years, made a valiant run but fell to circumstances beyond his control.

Then there was the third DEI member, a rookie who made a creditable showing in his first "Great American Race."

Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished third after struggling with an ill-handling car throughout most of the season opener at Daytona International Speedway. Michael Waltrip ran in the top five the first 150 laps, but his engine failed on Lap 161 and he wound up 37th.

Martin Truex, the defending NASCAR Busch Series champion, had a potential Top 10 run before his motor blew on Lap 178. Truex finished 34th.

Earnhardt's day was certainly the most compelling of the three. Running in the middle of the pack for three-fourths of the race, the driver of the No.8 Chevy made his way into the Top 10 by Lap 170. He took the lead twice in the final nine laps, and finished behind Jeff Gordon and Kurt Busch.

"Absolutely, we made the most out of a tough day," said Earnhardt, who won the 2004 Daytona 500. "All day the car was tough to handle. It wouldn't turn and it pushed really badly. We were terrible, and I don't know how we didn't lose the draft and get lapped.

"The last time we came in to put tires on, though, we got the car handling and I drove right up through there. I was able to pass, and I got a lot of help from Greg Biffle to get up into position. With the way we had run all day, I was really surprised to even be in that position at the end."

But there Earnhardt was, poised to do something even his late father couldn't - win consecutive Daytona 500s. He tried to hook up with Tony Stewart in the draft but Gordon's No.24 Chevy was just too strong in the final two laps. The event had a green-white-checkered flag finish.

"Nobody was going to stop him (Gordon), he was just too fast," Earnhardt said.

Gordon said the last thing he wanted to see near the end was Earnhardt out front.

"When the 8 car got up there, I thought it was over," Gordon said. "He was just so strong. I was shocked that I was able to get beside him and pass him."

Waltrip's bid for a third Daytona 500 victory ended abruptly. He led laps 20-61, and at the time he engine went, he was running second.

"It just blew up," Waltrip said. "I broke something pretty big under the hood. Fortunately we were able to get out of the way and not cause a wreck. Man, I just really wanted to run those last 25 laps. We kept it toward the front, and we did everything we needed to do to win the race, except finish it."

A future full-time Nextel Cup driver, Truex certainly caught the attention of his teammate and boss.

"I was surprised that he was able to run up there," Earnhardt said of Truex. "It was a good experience for him. He's a great race car driver, and I expected him to be good. But I was really impressed with him. When he gets up there, he shows some confidence and doesn't look intimidated at all. A lot of rookies would chicken out in those situations, but he didn't do that at all."

It was the first time in four years Earnhardt has been winless during Speedweeks at DIS. He finished second in the first Duel 150 on Thursday, and finished third in the Busch Series race on Saturday.

"I hadn't thought about that, really, but if you want to bring it up, it's disappointing," he said. "I got two third places and a second, so that's not too bad. I know I can't win 'em all, but I'd like to. At least I kept my average up. I'd like to get some credit for that."

[Last modified February 21, 2005, 04:42:59]