Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the No. 88 National Guard NASCAR racecar, finished sixth in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pa. Sunday.
Earnhardt maintains the third position in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship standings, and now sits just 10 points behind leader Carl Edwards and four points behind Jimmie Johnson after 14 races in the 2011 season.
Earnhardt lined up 21st for the 200-lap event and reported early in the race to his team that his National Guard Chevrolet’s handling was slightly tight throughout the corners.
Despite the handling issues, Earnhardt made his way to the 16th position when the caution flag waved on Lap 18.
Crew chief Steve Letarte decided to call Earnhardt in for a pit stop to loosen the No. 88 Chevrolet’s handling. The team opted for right-side tires in an effort to gain valuable track position.
The move gained five positions on pit road, and Earnhardt rejoined the field 11th at the restart on Lap 21.
One lap later, Earnhardt cracked in to the top-10, and by Lap 25, he was running fifth. During the middle stages of the race, Earnhardt worked with Letarte to improve the handling of the blue-and-white No. 88 Chevrolet on the 2.5-mile triangular track.
The final round of green-flag pit stops began on Lap 173 with Earnhardt running ninth and posting fast lap times.
Letarte called his driver to pit road two laps later for four tires and fuel and during the closing 25 laps, Earnhardt picked up three positions to finish sixth.