Dale Jr. Mounts Comeback to Earn Sixth-Place Finish in Pro Invitational iRacing Run at Texas

JR Motorsports | 3/30/2020

Brandt Dale Earnhardt Jr. Hellmann's iRacing Jeb Burton Justin Allgaier LS Tractor News State Water Heaters Texas

Dale Jr. rebounded after contact with the wall to finish sixth in Sunday's iRacing Pro Invitational Series 125-lapper at Texas Motor Speedway.

Track Specs: 1.5-mile oval / 125 laps
Earnhardt Jr.’s finish: 6th      


MOORESVILLE, N.C. (March 30, 2020) – Dale Earnhardt Jr. faced an uphill battle in Sunday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts 125 eNASCAR Pro Invitational Series event at the virtual Texas Motor Speedway, emerging with a stout sixth-place finish on the day in the No. 8 Hellmann’s Chevrolet.

Earnhardt Jr. was the lone JR Motorsports driver in the event, as both Jeb Burton (No. 08 State Water Heaters/LS Tractor Chevrolet) and Justin Allgaier (No. 7 BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet) failed to transfer from the qualifying race. Burton was first alternate after finishing fifth.

Starting from the outside of the front row next to polesitter William Byron, Earnhardt Jr. fell in behind the former NASCAR Xfinity Series titlist as the race got under way. Since the 1.5-mile oval at Texas is rough on tires, saving them as much as possible was a solid strategy. Over the first 21 laps, Earnhardt Jr. had fallen back to fifth and was running there when the first caution of the race came out.

Pitting for four tires, fuel and a tear-off, the veteran iRacing driver also used the opportunity to adjust his brake bias to help his handle. It seemed to work, as he passed John Hunter Nemechek for fourth within a few laps and went to third place soon after. Following another yellow and subsequent pit stop, Earnhardt Jr. returned to the track for the restart. Soon after, Ty Dillon washed up the track and into the right front of Earnhardt Jr.’s car, popping the hood seam and costing him a bunch of positions.

Regrouping in 17th, he began picking off positions and was running just outside the top 10 on lap 74 when the bad happened. The nose damage meant he had to use his tires more over the run, and while on the gas through Turn 4, the No. 8 Chevrolet slipped out of the groove and hit the outside wall, bouncing off and into the infield grass. That put him 23rd with a damaged Hellmann’s Chevrolet.

Soldiering on and dealing with the damage, Earnhardt Jr. stayed out as the field around him pitted for tires and fuel. Deciding to run the car to the end of the fuel window while hoping for a caution, he kept going and eventually reclaimed the lead as everyone else had hit pit road for green-flag stops.

The yellow did not come out until lap 116, though it looked like it would at one point after a multi-car crash. Pitting for four tires and fuel, plus a full damage fast repair, Earnhardt was the first car one lap down when the yellow did wave. That earned him the free pass back to the lead lap and took the green flag in 22nd spot.

Once the field got going again, the caution waved quickly. Earnhardt Jr. had to dodge a spin off Turn 2 in the process. Staying out, he restarted from 17th position with five laps remaining and gained two spots in short order before more chaos erupted around him.

Kyle Busch turned down into Earnhardt Jr. at the entry to Turn 3 and triggered a multi-car crash that Earnhardt Jr. somehow managed to drive through despite the track being essentially blocked ahead of him. That put him eighth for the final two-lap flurry, and he passed two more cars to finish the race in sixth. He led 14 laps on the day, second only to Byron’s 80.

Timmy Hill won the event, topping Ryan Preece, Garrett Smithley, Landon Cassill and Alex Bowman.


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