Earnhardt wants to win Charlotte 600 bad

Despite fond memories of speedway, no Cup Series victory there

Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s first childhood memories of NASCAR Cup Series racing come from Charlotte Motor Speedway.

He remembers watching his father tear up the track. As a boy he ran plastic Richard Petty and Cale Yarborough cars down a nearby dusty hill. He recalls his days as a teenager, breaking into the track with buddies and hot-wiring golf carts until they were chased off by approaching headlights.

It’s the place where he would finish running an Xfinity race and return to the Campus Connection apartment complex across the street and drink beer with his buddies until late into the night.

It’s also the track where he ran his first NASCAR Cup Series race — and won the 2000 All-Star race as a rookie.

But of all of the memories at Charlotte, one is strangely absent — a Cup Series points race victory.

Earnhardt, 42, would like to change that in his final season as a NASCAR driver before retirement. In fact, he wants to win Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 more than any other race remaining on the docket.

“I would love that, to win the 600,” Earnhardt said. “It’s an iconic event.”

There are others who would like to see the sentimental favorite win this one. Seven-time Cup Series champion and Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson has been doing everything he can this week to help Earnhardt reach victory lane.

Earnhardt was a nonfactor at the All-Star race at Charlotte last weekend, but brought a totally different setup this week after consulting with teammate Johnson and No. 48 team crew chief Chad Knaus. That’s not a bad idea since Johnson, a seven-time Cup champion, has won more Cup Series races at Charlotte than any driver.

“We totally eighty-sixed all that stuff we ran last week and we put in Jimmie’s setup just like him,” Earnhardt said. “We are leaning on (the No. 48 team) pretty hard this weekend.”

Earnhardt ran a little better in practice Saturday after qualifying 19th.

Kevin Harvick will start from the pole alongside Kyle Busch in NASCAR’s longest race, a grueling 400-lap run on a 11⁄2-mile oval.

“Jimmie has come by the car a couple of times in practice already looking at notes and printing out our driver traces and trying to figure out whatever we can do to help me,” Earnhardt said. “He comes over with these printouts and says, ‘This is what I’m doing with the gas and this is what you’re doing and this is where the time is getting loose and maybe try this and that and the other.’

“He is a super teammate. I’m lucky to be able to work in the same shop with him.”

Formula One

Ferrari driver Kimi Raikkonen took pole position for the Monaco Grand Prix on Saturday, and title contender Lewis Hamilton failed to make the top 10 in a significant blow for Mercedes.

Ferrari has been quick all weekend and championship leader Sebastian Vettel starts on the front row alongside teammate Raikkonen. Vettel pushed Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas back to third. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen starts fourth.

Raikkonen’s last pole was at the French Grand Prix in 2008. The 37-yearold Finnish driver got a leading time of 1 minute, 12.178 seconds — just ahead of Vettel’s 1:12.221.

“It doesn’t guarantee anything for tomorrow. Nevertheless, I’ll happily take it,” Raikkonen said.

Pole is more valuable at Monaco, the hardest track to overtake on in F1.

Hamilton headed into the weekend six points behind Vettel and aiming to move level with Ayrton Senna’s total of 65 pole positions. Instead, the threetime Formula One champion could only get the 14th best time.

“We have to try and understand what’s happening, how we are going backward over the weekend,” Mercedes head of motor sport Toto Wolff said.