Preview: Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s final race at New Hampshire

RELATED: Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s complete history at New Hampshire For his final full-time season as a driver, NASCAR.com will offer an analytical preview on Dale Earnhardt Jr. ahead of every remaining Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race. Race: ISM Connect 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway Date: Sunday, Sept. 24, 2 p.m. ET (NBCSN, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) Previous five results at New Hampshire: 18th, 25th, fifth, ninth, 10th RELATED: Junior reflects on missing playoffs Notable: The 'Magic Mile' is a track where Earnhardt has had success, but a Victory Lane celebration has so far been elusive. In 34 career starts, Earnhardt has 15 top-10 finishes at Loudon and eight top-five finishes with the most recent coming in 2015 when he placed fifth after starting 19th. The closest Earnhardt has come to crossing the finish line first here was in Sept. 2004 as he finished third just behind winner Kurt Busch and Matt Kenseth. More recently, Earnhardt was one of just six drivers who led the field (for 10 laps) at New Hampshire this past July. Memorable: Even without a win, Earnhardt has had a handful of strong performances in New Hampshire, including Sept. 2003 when his then No. 8 team led a race-high 120 laps. Unfortunately, Earnhardt fell back to finish fifth, but it ended up being good enough for his first top five at the track. A year later in the same race, Earnhardt improved his New Hampshire career-best by finishing third.  Quotable: “We spent several hours in the simulator on Monday trying to figure something out for this week. We aren’t riding this year out or giving up," Earnhardt said. "We’re going to keep working hard the rest of the season. I’m looking forward to New Hampshire – it’s a fun track. It’s flat and it’s kind of tricky to get around, but it’s fun.”