Earnhardt back in top 10 after strong run at Vegas

LAS VEGAS -- Las Vegas Motor Speedway has been the scene of some of Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s greatest professional frustrations. In 2004, weeks after winning the Daytona 500, his team never found the setup and he finished 71 laps back with handling problems. The next year he finished next to last, getting caught up in a crash after just 11 circuits around the 1.5-mile facility.

But Sunday, the same speedway brought a very different result. The Hendrick Motorsports driver finished second in the UAW-Dodge 400 behind eventual winner Carl Edwards, and climbed to 10th in Sprint Cup points. It's the highest that NASCAR's most popular driver has been in the standings since he placed fifth at the end the 2006 season, and the first time he's been above the Chase cutoff line since he stood 12th after the race at Indianapolis last July.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.

UAW-Dodge 400

Official Results

Pos.	Driver	Make
1.	Carl Edwards	Ford
2.	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	Chevrolet
3.	Greg Biffle	Ford
4.	Kevin Harvick	Chevrolet
5.	Jeff Burton	Chevrolet
6.	David Ragan	Ford
7.	Kasey Kahne	Dodge
8.	Travis Kvapil	Ford
9.	Denny Hamlin	Toyota
10.	Mark Martin	Chevrolet

• Results | Laps | Videos | Photos

Of course, Earnhardt went on to miss that playoff, partially because he dug himself such a hole to start the season. Which is why now, his focus is on making the Chase from the very beginning.

"I'm going to run hard and try to win races, but I'm really watching that top 12 hard," said Earnhardt, who recorded his highest finish since placing second at Pocono last August, but fell short of ending his now 65-race winless streak. "I've waited and been lackadaisical: We'll get around to it, we'll put some runs together to get in there. I'm not going to do that this year. Concentrate on every lap."

He did just that Sunday, when he recorded the highest finish for a Hendrick Motorsports team that won 18 of 36 races last season, but has taken some hits to start this year. Jeff Gordon crashed out at Las Vegas and finished 35th, and is 22nd in points after his second result below 30th to start this season. Reigning series champion Jimmie Johnson had a day in the desert much like Earnhardt had four years ago, never finding the handle on his No. 48 car and finishing two laps down in 29th. He's now 14th in points.

And then there's Earnhardt, who if not for a weeper-induced crash with teammate Casey Mears at Auto Club Speedway last Monday might have three consecutive top-10s to start the season. Crew chief Tony Eury Jr. said that even though his No. 88 car was wrecked last week at California, the repaired vehicle ran with the leaders, a sign of the quality of the equipment Earnhardt has underneath him.

"We were laps down, but we were just trying to compare ourselves to the competition," he said. "With a tore-up racecar and being able to do that, we knew we had a car that was capable of being in the top five there. I'm pretty ecstatic. The pit crew was awesome [Sunday]. We've just got to keep it rolling."

Eury is also watching numbers, but not necessarily the same ones his driver is. The crew chief believes he'll have a pretty good feel for how his team stands after the first 10 events of the season.

"My concern is the first 10 races," he said. "I want to do the best I can do and get momentum set up. Where you are in the 10th race is about where you're going to be in the mid-part of the season. So that's my main goal. I want to get as many top-fives as I can in the first 10 races."

Sunday was a step toward that goal. This young season, Earnhardt has surprisingly been the class of a Hendrick stable that features two teammates with six Cup championships between them. Sunday at Las Vegas brought a second consecutive victory for Roush Fenway Racing, and more questions about what are perceived as struggles at Hendrick.

"I feel like it's perception," Earnhardt said. "I've got to give credit where credit is due. The Roush guys are really doing a great job right now of getting the speed out of their cars. But I feel pretty confident in our program. I think it's just perception. This is only the third race, man. I don't think you can get a gauge by that. We got to go to Bristol and Atlanta, a couple real racetracks, and we have some finishes there. We'll see how we do."