Dale Earnhardt Jr. spent a lot of time on pit road Sunday at Fontana. Credit: Autostock

Flat tires leave Earnhardt frustrated at Fontana

FONTANA, Calif. (AP) -- A series of unexplained flat tires turned the second half of Sunday's NASCAR Nextel Cup race into little more than an extended test session for Dale Earnhardt Jr.

After starting 40th, his worst qualifying position since the final race of the 2000, Junior climbed into the top 25 before his left flat tire went flat on Lap 36.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished 32nd on Sunday.

He got back out and was getting into a good rhythm when the left front tire went again on Lap 58. Before it was over, Earnhardt had to make four stops for repairs, including replacing the fender braces which were damaged when the first flat tire shredded.

Earnhardt wound up 32nd, 13 laps behind winner Greg Biffle. That dropped Earnhardt to 14th in the Nextel Cup points, the first time he has been out of the top 10 in 71 races.

"I know it's a cliche when you don't run good, but we really did test some things there in the second half of the race," said Junior, running only his second race with new crew chief Pete Rondeau. "I think both Pete and I learned a lot. I think we learned some things that will help us down the race.

"It's a long season and we'll only get better."