Earnhardt Jr. wins Chase race at Martinsville
Oct 27, 2014 - 12:46 AM Martinsville, VA (SportsNetwork.com) - One week after being eliminated from the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship, Dale Earnhardt Jr. won at Martinsville Speedway for the first time.Earnhardt, who started 23rd, grabbed the lead from Tony Stewart with four laps remaining and then held off Jeff Gordon, his Hendrick Motorsports teammate and title contender, at the finish by 0.3 seconds for his fourth win of the season and the 23rd of his Sprint Cup Series. Earnhardt won the Daytona 500 in February and scored a season-sweep at Pocono during the summer months.
The 15th and final caution for an accident involving Marcos Ambrose and rookie Kyle Larson with 12 laps to go set up a five-lap shootout to the finish. Stewart opted not to pit during the caution and led the way for the last restart. Earnhardt made a four-tire change and restarted in fifth.
"Oh, man, we've been trying to win here for so many years," said Earnhardt, whose first Martinsville win came in his 30th start here. "This place is so special to me. I've wanted to win here so bad. We brought the good cars. I'm out of breath from celebrating more than driving. It's a real emotional win. This team on pit road was great, and (crew chief) Steve (Letarte) and the guys (No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet team) did a real good job all day. They gave me a great shot at it there with the call at the end to take tires."
Earnhardt's 31st-place finish last week at Talladega -- the third and last race in the Contender Round -- knocked him out of the Chase.
Gordon's second-place finish moved him to the top of the Chase point standings. Martinsville was the first race in the Eliminator Round.
Gordon had to bounce back from a pit-road speeding penalty early in the race, which had dropped him to 30th in the field.
Earnhardt and Gordon gave Hendrick a 1-2 finish on the weekend that marked the 10-year anniversary of the fatal plane crash that occurred near this 0.526- mile short track in Southern Virginia. Team owner Rick Hendrick's son, Ricky, and brother, John, as well as his two nieces, Jennifer and Kimberly, were among the 10 people killed in the crash.
"What an incredible tribute that is, a 1-2 finish," Gordon said. "We know how much the fans love to see Dale Jr. win. They certainly got that today. He did a great job, but for all of those at Hendrick Motorsports that lost friends and family members, people that paid an important in Hendrick Motorsports and in this sport, a 1-2 finish is the best way you can pay tribute to them."
Gordon led the most laps with 130.
Earnhardt Jr. drove for Dale Earnhardt Inc. in '04. He joined Hendrick's team for the start of the 2008 season.
"I just wanted to support Hendrick Motorsports during that time," Earnhardt said of the tragic plane crash a decade ago. "Everybody in the garage at that time was wearing Hendrick hats. This sport came together. I lost my daddy (Dale Earnhardt Sr.) a long time ago (fatal crash in the 2001 Daytona 500), and I know how hard that is. I can't imagine losing the magnitude of people that Rick lost. My heart goes out to him during this weekend.
"I love that his cars are good here to get to victory lane. So this honors them. I'm just real proud to be able to win at Martinsville in a Hendrick car. They always win here."
Hendrick now has a record-extending 22 Cup Series race wins at Martinsville. Gordon won last year's Chase event here.
Ryan Newman, who remains in the Chase, continues to be on a hot streak with a third-place run. He has finished eighth or better in the last five races.
Stewart, who is a non-Chaser, ended up fourth, marking his first top-five finish since March 23 at Fontana, California.
"I don't think it was a gamble by any means," Stewart said of his decision not to pit with less than 10 laps to go. "I think if we were in that position 100 times over, that is the same call we would do. It felt like it was the right thing for this team. I thought we gave ourselves the best shot to race for the win."
Chevrolet sweep the top-four positions in this 500-lap race.
The other drivers still in the Chase and their finishing positions include: Joey Logano (fifth), Matt Kenseth (sixth), Denny Hamlin (eighth), Carl Edwards (20th), Brad Keselowski (31st) and Kevin Harvick (33rd).
Keselowski triggered a five-car crash following a restart late in the race when he experienced a transmission issue and slowed on the track. Casey Mears plowed into the back of him. Kasey Kahne, Danica Patrick and Martin Truex Jr. were also caught up in the incident. Keselowski, who won at Talladega to advance into the next playoff round, spent 28 laps behind the wall for repairs before returning.
"It's not the day we wanted by any means, but the guys (No. 2 Team Penske Ford team) did a great job," Keselowski said. "They put a gear in this car in 28 laps at Martinsville. That's pretty phenomenal, but it was just unfortunate the way the day played out."
Harvick suffered damaged to the front end of his Chevrolet and spent more than 40 laps in the garage after he was involved in an accident with Stewart and Kenseth on lap 228.
"The good thing about this (playoff) format is you have two more weeks and two racetracks that we can win on," Harvick said. "Everybody was so worried about us starting in the back, and we wrecked at the front. Unfortunate."
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