NASCAR Winston Cup Jiffy Lube 300 Preview -- #3, Dale Earnhardt
10 July 1997
#3 Dale Earnhardt, GM Goodwrench Service Plus Chevrolet Monte Carlo NASCAR Winston Cup Series Jiffy Lube 300 Advance New Hampshire International Speedway DALE EARNHARDT NOTES & QUOTES: JIFFY LUBE 300 LOUDON, NH - Dale Earnhardt hopes to extend the streak of first time winners at New Hampshire International Speedway by capturing his first win this weekend. In the brief four year history at NHIS, no driver has ever won two Winston Cup events. GM Goodwrench Service Plus team leader Larry McReynolds, was the winning crew chief in the 1996 NHIS Winston Cup event. Although the Winston Cup series has only been coming to NHIS for four years, Dale Earnhardt, on the other hand, has been racing there since the first NASCAR Busch Grand National Event in 1990. He has two second place finishes -- one in each division -- to round out his seven races there. In February, Dale Earnhardt and the GM Goodwrench Service Plus team left Daytona 31st in the points race. This past weekend's run at Daytona moved the No. 3 team into a fifth place tie with Jeff Burton. The GM team has made up 26 positions in 15 races. Plus - The word "Plus" has been added to the hood of the famous No. 3. "Plus" stands for GM Goodwrench Service dealers' commitment to set a new standard of quality service for their customers. The Plus program includes competitive up-front pricing, courtesy transportation, convenient service hours and a lifetime service guarantee covering associated labor cost. The "Plus" will remain on the hood for the next couple of weeks. QUOTES "I like the layout of New Hampshire," remarked Earnhardt. "You have close racing and high speeds. It isn't banked that much, so handling is the key to getting around there. If you're able to get into the turns and bring the car out of the turn at a good speed, then you're ahead of the game." "This year hasn't gone how we would have liked," said Richard Childress. "We've made some extensive personnel changes coming into this season. Changes that I feel will be better for RCR in the long run. The problem is everyone expects us to have success right out of the box. It rarely happens that way. It takes time and when that time does come, I feel we'll have one of the strongest teams on the circuit. "I read what everybody is saying 40 something races without a win. What I don't read is 13 with broken bones and 16 with a new crew chief," commented Richard Childress. By Champion Sports Group