CHARLOTTE _ His last top 10 came seven weeks ago at Bristol; it was only his fifth of the year – the fewest since his first full year in the Cup Series in 2000. To say Dale Earnhardt Jr. is frustrated is an understatement. In his second season with Hendrick Motorsports, Earnhardt Jr. has struggled mightily, failed to show improvement and has been subject to a crew chief change that clearly shook his confidence.
With teammates Jimmie Johnson and Mark Martin smoking the competition this year, not to mention a stout showing by Jeff Gordon, Junior has been left wondering what went wrong and if it can be fixed. Those frustrations came to a head Thursday night after the No. 88 made its qualifying run. After running a lap of 189.913 mph in the evening’s practice session (good enough for 13th), Earnhardt Jr. looked for a top-10 starting spot in front of his hometown crowd. Instead, Junior’s pace fell off nearly three miles an hour, leaving him a dismal 39th, and even more frustrated.
Speaking with the media after a sponsorship announcement on Friday afternoon at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, the aggravation and disappointment were visible on his face.
“Last night we go out, we were top-15 in practice, and we went out to try and qualify and we were one of the worst cars here,” Junior said while looking at the ground. “We don’t know why and don’t have an explanation for it. All the other (Hendrick) cars qualified well, gripped well, backed their times up from practice and we didn’t even get close. We looked ridiculous last night. It’s really encouraging one day and the next day it’s equally discouraging and that gets really old. I’m about to the end of my rope on it.”
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