Dale Earnhardt Jr. crashes twice in Talledega practice

By RALPH N. PAULK
RICHMOND TIMES-DISPATCH
Published: October 3, 2008

TALLADEGA, Ala.—Dale Earnhardt Jr. crashed twice today in practice at Talladega Superspeedway.

Earnhardt’s No. 88 Chevrolet smacked the wall early in the afternoon practice session after his engine blew.

Then he triggered a six-car accident when his left rear tire blew while he was leading a pack of cars. David Gilliland, who was running immediately behind Earnhardt, sideswiped Earnhardt’s Chevy as the accident began.

Apparently no drivers suffered serious injuries in the crash.

Earnhardt, eighth in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup championship, was taken to the infield care center and was evaluated and released. His crew hurriedly prepped his backup car for the rest of the practice session and for tomorrow’s qualifying for Sunday’s Amp Energy 500 at Talladega Superspeedway.

Besides Earnhardt and Gilliland, other drivers involved in the crash were Tony Stewart, Kasey Kahne, David Reutimann and Clint Bowyer. Only Bowyer and Reutimann escaped without significant damage to their cars.

Gilliland said the blown tire was “a big explosion,“ that tore off Earnhardt’s rear bumper. “It was pretty wild and I had nowhere to go.“

Kahne said, “I saw a tire flying and smoke, and I really didn’t have anywhere to go. We definitely have to go to our back-up car.“

Tomorrow’s time trials will set the starting order for the race, the fourth in the 10-race Chase for the Cup, NASCAR’s equivalent of a playoff season.

Contact Ralph N. Paulk at