Dale Jr. took big gamble

Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the Life Lock 400! So what’s the big deal?
Ever since Dale Earnhardt Jr. signed on with Hendrick Motorsports, writers have been counting not only the years and number of races since Dale’s last points win, (2 years, 76 races) but some have even been so comical as to point out the hours and minutes since his last win. Well that can all be forgotten as of Sunday.
I can only believe that the Earnhardt Jr. team felt they were under a lot of pressure to secure a victory. They have been one of the best teams so far this year, always battling for the win and finishing in the top 5. You knew that a win was coming, but taking such a huge gamble as they did in Michigan was not the way to go. I myself think Dale and his crew chief made a bonehead play in going for the victory instead of looking at the big picture.
I wish every race was raced as if the victory was the only thing that mattered, but NASCAR has set up the Championship in such a way that winning is not as important as consistently finishing in the top 10. To win the Championship, you must finish in the top 12 positions after the first 26 races. Only those 12 drivers compete for the Championship. Getting the most points you can out of a race is more important than winning the race.
You can get almost as many points for finishing in the top 5 as you can for winning, but a 20th place finish or worse can be devastating to a contender.
Earnhardt Jr. and his crew chief, Tony Eury Jr., took a big gamble by staying out on the track when they knew they were two laps short on fuel.
Junior managed to save just enough fuel both while racing Jamie McMurray and turning his engine off under caution to win the LifeLock 400 at Michigan International Speedway. Junior was on board with his crew chief’s decision to keep gambling on fuel, despite the fact the team hadn’t pitted in over 100 miles — and the race was headed for a green/white/checkered finish in overtime. ‘Once he explained it to me, I was like, ‘alright man, cool, let’s go for it!’ Junior beamed. ‘I don’t know how to explain it. I knew it was a gamble, but I just felt real calm about it, like everything was going to be alright.’ Eury, Jr. figured he’d have about half a gallon of gas left for a normal 400-mile race; however, he didn’t take into account the plans for a green/white/checkered finish.
A normal 400 mile race is not what happened though. Sam Hornish spun out on lap 197, extending the race by six miles. Mark Martin also gambled by not pitting for a splash of gas but the big difference here was the fact that Martin is only running a parttime schedule and is not competing for the Championship. Restarting 4th and looking at a possible 165 points, Martin ran out of gas and finished 25th, garnishing only 88 points. This could have easily happened to Earnhardt Jr. and probably would have if he had to race the last lap under green. As luck would have it, a crash occurred between Patrick Carpentier and Michael Waltrip bringing out the yellow. All Junior had to do was maintain caution speed and cross the finish line. He ran out of gas right after finishing.
There was some controversy during those final laps over Junior passing the pace car under caution. Kenseth and Vickers complained about the situation insinuating that Jr. was receiving special treatment from NASCAR.
For whatever reason, attendance at the tracks is lacking this year and with Jr. being as popular as he is, I’m quite sure NASCAR was anxious for a Dale Earnhardt Jr. victory.
When Jr. joined Hendrick Motorsports he said it was because he wanted to compete for a Championship. First things first Dale, finish in the top 12 and make the chase. Then you can gamble in those final 10 races.