Coke 600 Recap

The time for change is now


DALE EARNHARDT JR.
NO. 88 NATIONAL GUARD/AMP ENERGY CHEVROLET
POST-RACE RECAP/LOWE'S MOTOR SPEEDWAY

DATE: May 25, 2009
RACE: Coca-Cola 600
START: 27th
FINISH: 40th
POINTS POSITION: 19th

RECAPPING THE RACE:

Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the No. 88 National Guard/AMP Energy Chevrolet, finished 40th after spending Monday's rain-delayed 600-mile event at Lowe's Motor Speedway dealing with the handling of his blue-and-white Chevy. Rain showers, which halted the action throughout the day, ultimately prevented the team from getting the car dialed in as the race was made official just past the halfway point.

The Kannapolis, N.C., native lined up 27th for Memorial Day's scheduled 400-lap event with rain clouds looming in the region. At the drop of the green flag, Earnhardt notified crew chief Tony Eury Jr. that he was battling a loose-handling Chevy, a circumstance the team continually addressed throughout the event.

Eury called his driver to pit road during the day's third caution on Lap 42 for four tires and a series of chassis adjustments. Earnhardt went back to green-flag racing on Lap 44 running 38th.

With storm cells dotting the radar, the first rain shower drenched the track and halted race action on Lap 70 for a little more than an hour.

Once the track was dry, the field remained under caution for eight laps and the green-flag waved on Lap 79 with Earnhardt running 33rd. Despite a hard hit on the rear bumper from another competitor, Earnhardt maintained his position during the restart but began to lose ground during the following laps.

Earnhardt continued to battle the loose-handling conditions and was running 39th when the caution flag was displayed on Lap 164 for a national moment of silence to honor America's fallen servicemen and women.

Under the caution period, Eury called his driver for pit road for a series of chassis adjustments in an effort to ease the handling on the No. 88 Chevy. Earnhardt was unable to try the changes as rain moved into the area once again and halted the action for just under an hour.

The field went back to green on Lap 179 with Earnhardt running 39th. Still dealing with the handling on his blue-and-white Chevrolet, Earnhardt was running 40th when a steady rain settled in on Lap 227. After consulting the radar, NASCAR officials decided to call the race on Lap 227.