---

NASCAR Winston Cup Series DieHard 500 Preview: #3 Dale Earnhardt

7 October 1997

 #3 Dale Earnhardt, GM Goodwrench Service Plus Chevrolet
 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
 DieHard 500 Advance
 Talladega Superspeedway
 
               THE INTIMIDATOR RULES THE SUPERSPEEDWAYS


 
TALLADEGA, AL - On NASCAR's two superspeedways Daytona and Talladega,
Dale Earnhardt has posted an amazing record of 39 victories on the
highbanks.  Those wins include Winston Cup, Busch Grand National, IROC
and qualifying races.

 - The GM Goodwrench Service Plus team won back-to-back races at
Talladega twice. The first time was in 1990 winning both the Winston
500 and DieHard 500. They did it again winning the 1994 DieHard 500
and the Winston 500.

 - Dale Earnhardt holds the record for most wins at Talladega
Superspeedway with seven Winston Cup victories. Five of those wins
came in the DieHard 500.  His last trip to victory lane was in the
1994 DieHard 500.

 - Richard Childress Racing holds the record for most wins by a car
owner with six trips to victory lane.

 - This year, Earnhardt had dominated the field for most of the day
leading for 76 laps, only to fall short to Mark Martin and finish in
the runner up position at the Winston 500.

 - After a slow start by the Earnhardt/Childress team, things appear
to be going in the right direction. They have finished with
back-to-back second place finishes at Dover and Martinsville and a
third-place at Charlotte.

QUOTES

"We're headed in the right direction," said Earnhardt. "We struggled
at the beginning, but have been able to turn that around. The guys are
working hard to get these cars right. Larry has been pretty intense
and we keep fine-tuning and adjusting. It won't be long until we're
back in the winner's circle.

"Richard Childress' speedway program has always been considered one of
the best," remarked Earnhardt. "We've had good runs on the
superspeedways this year, but the results haven't been in our
favor. We have another chance this weekend to show what we can do.

"Coming back to Talladega is exciting for me. We've won a lot of races
here.  It would be hard for me to pick a favorite win, but I can tell
you which race was my least favorite," stated Dale Earnhardt.

(On a caution free race in the spring) "Everyone on that race track
that day showed why they are Winston Cup drivers. They drove a smart
race and didn't try any stupid moves," said Richard Childress. "They
showed that it can be done. I think it can be done again. I'd like to
see it and I'm sure everyone out there would like to see it again."

Dale Earnhardt and the GM Goodwrench Service Plus Talladega Record Book

      Races     Wins     Top-5     Top-10     Poles       Money
        37        7        19        20         3      $1,456,760 

By Champion Sports Group