Masters of the game: Dale Earnhardt
In this series by Philip Pegler, he will highlight drivers who had an almost uncanny ability that allowed them to triumph over all those who challenged them. This is Part One.

Even though an incredible 15 years has passed, at times it still seems as though it was only yesterday that I was driving along I-20 following the 1999 DieHard 500. Like many that day, I had just witnessed Dale Earnhardt earn his eighth Sprint Cup (then Winston Cup) victory at Talladega and I was basking in the sense of post-race euphoria.
Over the years we have heard many stories of Earnhardt's supreme performances at Daytona and Talladega. There is no denying the fact that, even when Earnhardt and his iconic RCR team appeared to have lost their long-envied competitive advantage in the late 1990s, he always remained a key player in each season's four restrictor-plate races.

Photo by: Dale Earnhardt Jr.
We often hear drivers talk about finding the rhythm in a racetrack I, especially at places like North Carolina Motor Speedway "The Rock" {no longer on the Sprint Cup Series Calendar} or at Bristol Motor Speedway. However, as the tracks become larger, that sense of rhythm becomes somewhat diluted; laps at tracks like California and Michigan are in the 35-40 second range compared to 15 seconds at Bristol. However, at the plate tracks, no two laps are alike, and even when a driver is out front, leading the race, the circumstances are constantly evolving are are rarely repeated. There is no physical rhythm, but perhaps there is a psychological one.
Because of the nature of restrictor-plate racing, it is generally impossible for the leading driver to pull away from the competition. Instead, he or she must utilize their understanding the airflow from their own car together with that of the competing cars to maintain their position. Dale Earnhardt was a master of this particular skill and was able to position his car wherever necessary in order to advance, maintain or defend his position. While most drivers had a genuine understanding of the obvious spoiler slipstream {draft} of the car in front, Earnhardt was busy discovering and working the air off the side of cars {side draft}, and it was particularly noticeable in the corners.
If you go back and look at the Talladega Winston Cup races from 1999, this can be clearly seen. Earnhardt, often seen leading the outside line down into turn one, runs a very low line through the corner, almost appearing to squash against the car on the inside line. In a way, that was exactly what he was doing, but rather than squashing the actual car, he was leaning down on the air coming off the side of the car. Like compressing a spring, he would time the 'release' just right and vault ahead as he emerged from the corner.
While an academic understanding of this practice is relatively straightforward, executing it is something that requires incredible skill and anticipation. Earnhardt had an extraordinary peripheral awareness, undeniable skills and perhaps unparalleled levels of anticipation in these circumstances and, regardless of which NASCAR rules package was being utilized, Earnhardt remained unfazed and always in contention.
If one looks at his Talladega races from 1996 to 2000, one cannot dispute the level at which he performed. Although he did not win there in 1996, '97 or '98, in each of the six races he was a contender. Following a 3rd in the spring race, July 1996 saw his infamous trioval accident with Ernie Irvan and Sterling Marlin (Earnhardt was leading at the time) where he finished 28th. In 1997 he recorded 2nd place to Mark Martin in the spring and another wrecked race car in the fall. 1998 showed, yet again, two excellent performances, but a wreck with Bill Elliott courtesy of Ward Burton in the spring race and a multi-car wreck in the fall took away potential race victories, the latter a chance at the 'Winston No Bull 5' Million Dollar Sweepstakes.
However, it is Earnhardt's final four Talladega performances of 1st, 1st, 3rd and 1st that perhaps demonstrate his undeniable skills. Each race with a different set of circumstances and three of the four with different rules packages. Spring 1999 saw him lead a race-high 70 laps and hold off Dale Jarrett for the victory. However, it was his performance in the Winston 500 later that year that left many people wondering just how he did what he did and why no one else could.
After his car failed Friday's technical inspection, Earnhardt's team were made to change the bodywork on the back of the car; a task which involved cutting off the entire rear fascia and modifying the bodywork. Earnhardt took Sunday's green flag in 27th place but in less than 10 laps was running 4th. The 1999 Winston 500 was a bit of a strange race because it's generally understood that drivers need to avoid finding themselves alone in the middle lane yet it was precisely through that avenue that Earnhardt had advanced. In a race that changed lead several times in the closing stages, Earnhardt again held Dale Jarrett at bay to take his ninth Talladega victory.
If 1999 was a year to remember, it will be the 2000 Winston 500 that will stand as perhaps one of the greatest superspeedway performances of all time. With five laps remaining, having pitted at the previous caution and finding himself back in the field, Earnhardt was seemingly stuck in 23rd place. But just as many we're resigning themselves to the fact that another victory was all but out of reach, Earnhardt began advancing and in the final five laps moved from 17th to 1st. He passed his teammate, Mike Skinner, coming to the white flag and held on for his 76th and final career win; his 10th at Talladega.
We are now 15 years removed from these legendary drives, but coupled with his performances at Daytona, not only in the Cup Series, but also in the Busch Grand National Series and TrueValue IROC Series, there can be no denying that today's drivers have all learned from Earnhardt's series of restrictor plate masterclasses.
He once described racing at Talladega like playing a game of chess, as much a mental game as a physical one. There was no greater chess player at the superspeedways than Dale Earnhardt. He was truly, Master of the Game.

Almirola hopes test at road course pays off at Sonoma
Road courses in NASCAR, good or bad?

Latest news
“Proper send-off” for MacNeil after Rolex 24 win in GTD Pro
Jules Gounon says that winning at Daytona was an appropriate way for co-driver Cooper MacNeil to retire from racing in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
HPD boss "amazed" by GTP reliability in Rolex 24 at Daytona
The boss of Honda Performance Developments has expressed his amazement at the high levels of reliability demonstrated by the all-new GTP prototypes in last weekend's Rolex 24 at Daytona.
How MSR took Acura to the first win of sportscar racing's new era
After much anticipation, the new dawn for sportscar racing got underway with a result that mirrored the pattern of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship's previous DPi era. Here's how Acura once again took top honours in the Rolex 24 at Daytona with a 1-2 led by Meyer Shank Racing.
Why WTR Acura lacked pace to beat MSR in Rolex 24 showdown
Wayne Taylor Racing's Filipe Albuquerque admits that he knew it would be a tall order to beat the sister Acura of Meyer Shank Racing in the closing stages of last weekend's Rolex 24 at Daytona.
The ex-F1 driver taking on NASCAR with a new team
Saddled with uncompetitive Minardi machinery, Tarso Marques didn't manage to score points in his three partial seasons of Formula 1. But now the Brazilian has the chance to show what he can do in NASCAR, and explains the story of his comeback with new Cup Series entrant Team Stange
The early benefits and challenges of NASCAR's Next Gen car
NASCAR’s new stock car generation is encouraging an influx of fresh blood into its top tier. But there are concerns that parts are in short supply as the entire paddock tries to build up stocks at the same time
How Penske's rookie sensation opened NASCAR's new era in style
After holding his nerve and hip-checking his teammate on the run to the line, Austin Cindric made a perfect start to life as a full-timer in the NASCAR Cup Series by winning the Daytona 500. Here's how the Penske Ford man emerged first across the line in the first points-scoring race for the much-anticipated Next Generation cars
Six key themes to follow in the 2022 NASCAR Cup season
There are plenty of uncertainties ahead of the 2022 NASCAR Cup season as an all-new fleet of cars take to the track for the first time. Ahead of this weekend's Daytona 500, our experts explain what you need to know
How NASCAR had to learn a harsh lesson ahead of Next Gen arrival
The NASCAR Cup kicks off with the Daytona 500 this weekend, but a major engine overhaul and a subsequent mountain of work has been required to be ready for the arrival of the Next Gen cars.
How Larson took the long way round to NASCAR Cup glory
From villain to hero, Kyle Larson had to reach his lifelong goal the hard way and go through a very public shaming after a ban for using a racial slur, but his talents shone long before his name grabbed the headlines...
How NASCAR is gearing up for its "biggest change" in 2022
It’s not just Formula 1 that’s set for upheaval in 2022, as the NASCAR Cup series adopts its Next Gen cars that will cast any in-built advantages aside and require teams to adopt a totally new way of operating. Far more than just a change of machinery, the new cars amount to a shift in NASCAR's core philosophy
Why Bubba Wallace’s Talladega win is such a big moment for NASCAR
Bubba Wallace claimed his maiden NASCAR Cup Series at Talladega on Monday to become the first Black victor in the category since Wendell Scott in 1963. Both Wallace and Scott had faced obstacles and racism in their paths to their breakthrough wins, and NASCAR is trying to put it right with its range of diversity programmes
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.