1998 Victory Lane moment with Earnhardt fueled Dillons’ drive

Posted on February 15, 2018January 22, 2025 by Staff Report

Dale Earnhardt’s first and only Daytona 500 win came on Feb. 15, 1998.

In one of the Victory Lane photos, Earnhardt — dressed in his iconic Goodyear fire suit and red Daytona 500 hat — smiles broadly, one hand formed into a No. 1 and one hand on the Harley J. Earl Trophy that had eluded him for nearly two decades, two young boys to his right.

Twenty years later, the memories of that win ring strong with them. Those boys were Austin and Ty Dillon, grandsons of Earnhardt’s team owner Richard Childress.

“We were playing at MRO (Motor Racing Outreach) in the driver-owner lot and me and my brother were probably playing with our race cars truthfully and wondering why we were getting pulled away from what we were doing,” Austin Dillon recalled at Daytona 500 Media Day. “Little did we know, that picture in Victory Lane would be used for years to come.”

Austin Dillon was 7 years old at the time. His younger brother Ty was only 5. Earnhardt’s daughter Taylor was also in the frame.

“We had no clue what the importance of that race was, but we knew we were going to Victory Lane and we knew that was good,” Ty Dillon said. “I remember just the excitement and the fun — everybody was just so happy. Everybody in that fenced-in area was excited.”

RELATED: Scenes from the 1998 victory

The experience in Victory Lane with Earnhardt was more than a celebration for Ty. It was something that molded him, something that affects him even today as a driver.

“That hit me pretty deep, I think, at a young age,” he said. “I think from the time I stepped in a race car for the first time and won my first race, that’s when it hit me that this is what I want to do because I want to live that moment that I had when I was 5 years old in Victory Lane.

“Not really knowing the importance of the race, not really knowing anybody there, but that thrill of victory in that moment is what drives me still to this day to be a race car driver.”

Posted on February 14, 2018February 14, 2018 by Holly Cain

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Over it. Motoring on. Looking up.

Kyle Larson conceded that while his shocking and abrupt departure from the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs last Fall stung for a while, he’s over it. Ready to move on. Prepared to one-up the circumstance.

The popular 25-year old Chip Ganassi Racing star offered smiles at the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Daytona 500 Media Day on Wednesday, shaking his head as reporters asked him about the stunning engine failure at Kansas Speedway late in the 2017 playoffs that eliminated him from championship contention. He had been ranked first or second in the standings for 24 weeks – won a career high four times, and added five pole positions, entering the Kansas race with a hefty points cushion that made him a mere footnote in the “elimination” discussion.

And then only 73 laps into the 267- lap cutoff race, Larson’s engine let go. His championship hopes gone.

Or more aptly, postponed.

“I don’t think about it at all,” Larson said. “I’m pretty good at forgetting things, I guess. In a good way. I mean, honestly, I was bummed out after Kansas, still am, if I think about it, but I don’t think about it, so I don’t get too bummed out. I was kind of over it a couple days later and moved on and ready to go win the race the next weekend.

“I mean, there’s nothing you can really do about a blown engine. It wasn’t my fault. It wasn’t anybody on the team’s fault. It just happens, and you move on from it.”

Larson would prefer talking about the preseason championship favorites. He is one of them.

“This is a different media day than normal, just because … this is the first year I’ve been considered a championship favorite from day one,” Larson acknowledged with a smile. “Last year we showed people that we could be a contender, where now this year people are pointing and looking at us that we could potentially be a championship favorite.

“That’s cool, and definitely is somewhere I’ve always wanted to be in my NASCAR career is to be a contender every week. We still have to get the season started, though. You never really know how you’re going to be until you get through Daytona and get through the first month, but it is neat to be considered one of the favorites already.”

One of the sport’s great natural talents, Larson has long reminded fans of “old school” racers like his friend and three-time Cup champ, Tony Stewart. Like Stewart, Larson cut his teeth racing sprints cars and midgets on short tracks around the country.

And as he has each year of Cup competition, Larson has dialed back a bit from his extracurricular schedule, but said he plans to compete approximately 40 times a year in addition to his Cup duties in the No. 42 Credit One Bank Chevrolet Camaro.

During the offseason, he raced midgets — and won — in New Zealand and then came back stateside and competed in the Chili Bowl.

Listening to Larson on Wednesday, it’s easy to see his sights are firmly set on the Cup championship this year.

And that begins in Sunday’s Daytona 500, a race Larson led at the white-flag last year before heart-breakingly running out of gas on the final lap. He had a pair of top-10s here (seventh in the Daytona 500 and sixth in the July race) in 2016.

“Well, I think my first year for sure, probably some of the second year, I was really aggressive and always trying to like run in the top lane and run in the middle lane just to try and always get runs, where I feel like I’m to the point now where I feel better just running in the bottom lane,” Larson said. “I feel like it’s less stressful down there. You typically miss more wrecks down there, knock on wood. And I feel like since I’ve done that and just not really been that aggressive, I’ve been in contention more at the end of the races. That will be my plan again, just to relax.”

And celebrate later.

“It would be awesome. Any time you can start your year off strong at the first race of the season is a big deal. We were close last year to being the Daytona 500 winner and ran out of fuel and came short.

“If we could put ourselves in position again and win the biggest race of our year, that would be amazing. And to leave here as a point leader would always be a good thing.”

Posted on February 14, 2018 by Reid Spencer

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Gone are Jimmie Johnson’s veteran teammates—Dale Earnhardt Jr. to the TV booth and Kasey Kahne to the next stage of Monster Energy Cup Series life in the No. 95 Leavine Family Racing Chevrolet.

In their places at Hendrick Motorsports are 24-year-old Alex Bowman and 20-year-old Sunoco Rookie of the Year contender William Byron. Add to that mix 22-year-old Chase Elliott, who has two years at NASCAR’s highest level under his belt — and has yet to win a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race.

Elliott and Byron combined have spent about as much time on Planet Earth as has Johnson, who turned 42 last September.

The infusion of new blood isn’t the only change at Hendrick. This year, the crew chiefs for all four teams will work out of the same building, with their offices side by side. That’s a paradigm shift from the previous model, which had the crew chiefs working together in pairs.

This year, too, the Chevrolet teams have a new car to race — the Camaro ZL1, which Johnson expects to be an aerodynamic improvement over last season’s Chevrolet SS.

“Obviously, a lot of change, from rules to the new Camaro, the internal restructuring that’s going on at Hendrick,” the seven-time champion said on Wednesday during Daytona 500 media day at Daytona International Speedway.

“You add that with the driver lineup, this is the most change I’ve ever seen at Hendrick Motorsports in my 16 seasons competing there. It’s a big year for the company.”

It’s also a big year for Johnson, who won his record-tying seventh title in 2016, but floundered in the latter parts of last season after winning three of the first 13 races.

After the 2016 season, Johnson celebrated. After 2017, he went back to work.

“The ‘17 season was so hard on us the second half of the year, I literally came back from the banquet, and it was time to dig in, work on any and all areas. Much more work done this off-season due to the circumstances of where we finished (10th in the final standings).”

In fact, Johnson didn’t wait until he got home. He was on the phone to team owner Rick Hendrick the day after the NASCAR Awards in Las Vegas.

“Yeah, I left there pissed off,” Johnson acknowledged. “That sucked. I knew after we got eliminated from the Round of 8, I knew our championship hopes were closed. To relive the highlight reels, all of that, it’s like, ‘Damn, I want to be that guy. I want to get back and be that guy.’

“That was a huge shot in the arm of adrenaline to get to work. I literally started wearing Rick out on the phone: ‘What do we need to do? Where do we need to start?’”

MORE: Hendrick Motorsports 2018 team preview

Fortunately, there’s a new car and a new system to work with this year, because Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus never did figure out why the No. 48 car lacked speed in 2017.

“I don’t have an answer,” Johnson said. “I still don’t have an answer. Luckily, there’s so much change going on this year, we feel we have a whole new mousetrap, a whole new set of rules to deal with.

“We’ll just forget about last year and move on.”

Posted on February 14, 2018 by NASCAR Wire Service

With the departure of Dale Earnhardt Jr. from the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, the immediate question becomes, “Who will carry the banner of the sport going forward?”

To 2014 series champion Kevin Harvick, the answer is a no-brainer.

“I really think Chase Elliott is our biggest tie to our grassroots NASCAR fan,” Harvick said Wednesday on Daytona 500 media day at Daytona International Speedway. “I’ve said this a number of times, but I feel like he’s one of the most important ingredients in what NASCAR racing does going forward, because of his family name.

“He has the legacy that’s already been built in this sport by his dad (Bill Elliott) and he’s come into this sport with a great name and already proven that he’s going to be competitive. He has those Southeast NASCAR ties to those core fans that none of the rest of us will ever have, and he’s the guy.”

Elliott, on the other hand would rather have fans relate to him for his own personality and performance.

“I think I just need to be me,” Elliott said. “It’s not really relevant to what I need to be focused on, right? I’ve encouraged people to pull for whoever they find value in pulling for, whatever they find a connection with. Whether that’s me or someone else, that’s their decision, right?”

Nor does Elliott, now in his third full year in NASCAR’s foremost series, feel the weight of his father’s legacy, founded in a career that saw him earn the nickname “Awesome Bill from Dawsonville.”

“I don’t really think there is that hanging over me, to be honest with you,” Chase Elliott said. “I think, at this point, I’ve been maybe not in the NASCAR world too terribly long, but I’ve been racing long enough that people know who I am. Not ‘know who I am’ from that standpoint, but know the personality I have. They’ve kind of gotten to know me a little better.

“I think by this point, if people are still following along, they’re following along because of the person I am, I hope. I think that’s all you can ask for. I’ve been very clear and honest about me being me, wanting people to follow along for the right reasons, finding a true connection with someone.”

Jimmie Johnson, Elliott’s teammate at Hendrick Motorsports, is convinced that connection has already happened.

“I think he’s already won the 2018 Most Popular Driver Award,” Johnson quipped.

Posted on February 14, 2018 by Reid Spencer

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – As the start of a new Monster Energy NASCAR Cup season arrives, life is quite a bit better for Martin Truex Jr. — not to mention noticeably different.

Now that he’s returning to Daytona as the series champion, Truex feels that difference.

“I do a little bit, honestly,” Truex told the NASCAR Wire Service on Wednesday at Daytona 500 Media Day at Daytona International Speedway. “I feel like less pressure, more relaxed, more confident than I’ve ever been. Excited to start the season—absolutely. It’s been a crazy, busy off season. Been a lot going on. Haven’t had much time off.

“I think now that the season starts, it’s kind of set in even more what we did last year, how incredible it was, how much it means to us all. Just getting to talk about it in the questions, the congrats, I mean, it’s all just still coming. It’s been pretty amazing.”

Indeed, Truex can be forgiven for wanting to relive a remarkable year. He dominated NASCAR’s new stage racing format, won a series-best eight races, led a series-best 2,253 laps and capped off the season by winning at Homestead-Miami Speedway to secure the title.

The rest of the garage remembers clearly how dominant he was.

“I feel like the same person, but when I come to the track, I get a little more respect,” said Truex during the day-long media event in advance of Sunday’s Daytona 500 (2:30 p.m. ET on FOX). “I definitely feel that. That’s always a good thing.”

Barely a week ago, Truex’s long-time girlfriend, Sherry Pollex, completed her second round of chemotherapy for ovarian cancer.

“She’s doing good,” Truex said. “Feeling great. Happy for her she can start getting back to normal life. She’s starting to feel pretty good again already. It was Tuesday, so usually by Friday or Saturday she’s feeling a little under the weather.

“Feeling pretty good yesterday and last night. Just nice to see her get back to normal life, not having to think about in three weeks she’s going to have to take drugs again, feel like crap.”

Pollex was first diagnosed with cancer in 2014, Truex’s first season with Denver, Colorado-based Furniture Row Racing. Not until the end of the 2015 season, when he was paired with crew chief Cole Pearn, did Truex begin to realize the team’s potential — or his own.

In 2016, Truex led more than 100 laps in eight different races, including a record 392 of 400 laps in a dominating victory in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte, but hard luck kept him out of Victory Lane more often than he would have liked. Yes, Truex won four times, then a career-best, but he failed to duplicate his 2015 advancement to the Championship 4 race at Homestead.

Still, Truex isn’t sure he needed the disappointments of 2016 to help prepare him for his title run a year later.

“I think any time you have to deal with disappointment — things don’t go the way you expected them to or thought they would or should — it’s a tough deal,” Truex said. “I don’t think it’s a bad thing to have to go through those things, figure out how to come out on the other side of them stronger.

“I don’t know. I felt like we were a great team in ’16. Things didn’t go our way. I would say we were a better team in ’17. That’s probably the reason why.”

Though the 2017 championship is the pinnacle of Truex’s career so far, he feels his No. 78 Toyota team is capable of more — even with the stats he accumulated last year.

“It’s pretty crazy to look at the numbers, honestly,” Truex said. “It’s pretty ridiculous. It’s going to be tough to beat. It’s going to be tough to match that, for sure. I think we can do it. We’re up for that challenge. Really feel like we could have won 10 or 12 races if things would have gone a little different.

“I think our focus is starting the season off here, figure out where we’re at, go from there. I’ve got a lot of confidence in my team that we can still continue to do some great things. Certainly won’t be happy unless we do.”

Posted on February 14, 2018 by Holly Cain

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – William Byron’s face brightened and he laughed a bit talking about his new high-definition reality as a member of the championship Hendrick Motorsports team in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.

The 20-year old rookie got his first taste of stardom earlier this week and said he was a little taken aback when he unexpectedly got “recognized” having dinner at an Outback Steakhouse near Daytona International Speedway.

“That part has been different,’” Byron said, smiling. “I went out to eat last night and I got stopped by four or five people in the restaurant, and that was so different knowing that people were knowing what we were doing.

“That’s a cool feeling and makes you realize that there are people knowing what we’re doing. It was cool to have that fan interaction.”

It’s something Byron really should get used to. The driver of the famed No. 24 AXALTA Chevrolet is following in the footsteps of retired driver Jeff Gordon who earned four championships in Hendrick’s No. 24 and more recently, the 2016 Rookie of the Year Chase Elliott who switched to the No. 9 for this season.

Byron comes into his big opportunity well-versed in success. He won seven races and had 16 top 10s in 23 races as an 18-year old rookie in the Camping World Truck Series. Last year he won four races and had 22 top-10 finishes in 33 starts en route to the Xfinity Series championship.

The spotlight is bright, the expectations substantial. And he handled his first Daytona 500 Media Day well, offering well-thought out answers to the large contingent of reporters – also showing both a good sense of humor and perspective.

“The fan support and the drivers who came before us at Hendrick Motorsports is something that we can build on,” said Byron, during the day-long media event in advance of Sunday’s Daytona 500 (2:30 p.m. ET on FOX). “It’s a golden opportunity to go out and show what we can do. We have great race cars and great fan support. We’re already way ahead of what most rookies have to go through, and I feel like that’s an advantage for me and the fans will be eager to see what we can do on the race track in the 24 car.

“The bond that I have with my crew chief [Darian Grubb] will be the strongest thing that I can lean on, and as we continue to progress through the 500 and through the season we’re hopefully going to do just like we did at the Vegas test and use those first couple of races to feel the temperature, and then click off on all cylinders.”

Posted on February 14, 2018 by Staff Report

The list of celebrities scheduled to appear at Sunday’s Daytona 500 has grown by one notable name:

NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

Al Bello | Getty Images

That’s Rodgers, Super Bowl champion and two-time NFL MVP for the Green Bay Packers.

Oh, and the same Rodgers who happens to be dating driver Danica Patrick.

“He’s going to be here to support me and he’s excited,” Patrick told The Associated Press this week. “I’m excited to show him what I do.”

Patrick confirmed last month that she was dating Rodgers, who broke up with actress Olivia Munn last year.

Patrick and Rodgers have been low-key about their relationship, although TMZ has snapped a few photos of them together at dinner in Arizona and at last week’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

Patrick and Monster Energy Series driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr. ended their relationship in late 2017 after dating for nearly five years.

Stenhouse, for his part, said last month that he won’t race Patrick any differently than any other driver in Daytona.

“Heck, when we first started racing we got in crashes anyway,” Stenhouse said in January. “So it is what it is. I’ll just go compete as hard as I can. I plan on putting myself in position to win the race.”

Posted on February 14, 2018 by Track Release

Former Atlanta Braves great and new Baseball Hall of Fame member Chipper Jones will serve as an Honorary Race Official for the 60th annual DAYTONA 500 on Sunday, Feb. 18 (FOX, FOX Deportes, MRN Radio and SiriusXM Radio), the opening race of the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season.

Jones, a native of nearby Pierson, Florida, was voted into the Hall on Jan. 24, in his first year of eligibility. Considering his credentials, that was not surprising. During his 19-year career (1993-2012) – all with Atlanta – he posted a .303 career batting average, 468 home runs and 1,623 RBI. He was an eight-time All-Star and the National League’s Most Valuable Player in 1999. He led the Braves to three World Series appearances, winning in 1995. Jones rejoined the Braves’ organization in 2015 as special assistant to baseball operations.

As part of his Honorary Race Official duties, Jones will be introduced at the drivers’ meeting, participate in pre-race ceremonies, ride in one of the parade cars and take part in question-and-answer sessions in fan hospitality areas and the UNOH Fanzone.

“We’re going to have one of the legendary stars of the ‘National Pastime’ join us for ‘The Great American Race,’ ” said Daytona International Speedway President Chip Wile. “Chipper Jones was an obvious choice for the Hall of Fame this year. He’s also a local hero. We’re thrilled to welcome him back home for the DAYTONA 500.”

Tickets for the 60th annual DAYTONA 500 and other Speedweeks events can be purchased online at www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com or by calling 1-800-PITSHOP. Fans can stay connected with Daytona International Speedway on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube and Snapchat, and by downloading Daytona International Speedway’s mobile app, for the latest Speedway news throughout the season.

Posted on February 14, 2018 by Staff Report

For the fourth year in a row, Real Racing 3, one of Electronic Art’s most popular mobile games, is releasing its NASCAR update.

Since partnering with NASCAR in 2015, more than 600 million NASCAR races have been completed to date by people around the world.

The premise is simple: you are the new “young gun” driver breaking into the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. The game starts with a tutorial race and NASCAR Academy (driving school). Once learning the basics of stock car racing, like drafting and reading lines, players will graduate and move on to compete in a full pre-season. Here, drivers can earn currency and complete events to unlock the “hero car” of the game and the most prestigious event in motorsports: the Daytona 500.

Kyle Larson’s No. 42 CreditOne Bank Chevrolet Camaro is this year’s featured car.

“It’s cool to have our Credit One Bank Chevy Camaro ZL1 be featured as the ‘hero car’ in the latest update to the game,” Larson said. “I know the game has a really big following, especially outside of the United States, so it’s a neat opportunity for me to hopefully gain some new fans. Hopefully showcasing me and some of the other drivers to a different audience is also an opportunity to get more people who aren’t that aware of NASCAR interested in the sport, and introduce a younger audience to the sport.”

The update gives players the chance to race at Daytona International Speedway with the same drivers and cars that will be competing there on Sunday, Feb. 18.

“As Real Racing 3 returns to the Daytona 500 for an incredible fourth year, we could not be more excited to be part of the rich history of NASCAR,” said Louis Gigliotti, RR3’s senior producer. “Four years into this partnership, we feel Real Racing 3 and has brought an experience that truly captures the thrill and authenticity of NASCAR at the Daytona International Speedway that fans and players demand.”

Real Racing 3 prides itself on giving players a premier racing experience. Powered by the “remarkable Mint™ 3 Engine,” the game features detailed car damage, fully functioning rear view mirrors and dynamic reflections for truly HD racing. You can swap paint and nudge other cars off the road, but since the game has the best mechanics, you can always keep driving after an incident.

Fans will access to the latest cars and paint schemes of some of the most popular drivers in NASCAR. As players progress through the game, they’ll be able to unlock the following drivers: Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott, Jimmie Johnson, William Byron, Austin Dillon, Darrell “Bubba” Wallace Jr., Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney, Aric Almirola, Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr., Daniel Suarez, Denny Hamlin, Erik Jones and Kyle Busch.

Play versus friends as well as strangers synchronously in races lasting anywhere from one to 10 minutes. The more you win, the more you earn. As players progress through the game and earn currency, they can upgrade their car to give it an edge over the competition. This includes: engine tuning, drivetrain overhauls and brake upgrades.

Real Racing 3’s 2018 NASCAR update hit app stores on Feb. 13. It’s compatible with Apple and Android devices, but it can also be played on tablets and Android TV with the use of a controller. An added bonus, it’s free to download and free to play.

The NASCAR update is available on Real Racing 3 for a limited time, so download and play before it’s too late.

Posted on February 14, 2018 by Staff Report

“Those who live up to their names, make one for themselves.”

That is the premise of Goodyear’s new commercial for 2018, which features Dale Earnhardt Jr. as he makes the move from the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver’s seat to the NBC Sports television booth.

In the one-minute video, released Feb. 14, the tribute tells the story of Earnhardt’s rise up the NASCAR ranks with a mixture of clips dating back to his younger years through his triumphs in the sport.

From watching his father’s dominance in NASCAR to 20-plus years of success on his own path, Earnhardt has made a name for himself — both on and off the race track.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MkFzZtSz3A&feature=youtu.be