Earnhardt to start race but not finish

The NASCAR star, recovering from a fiery crash, will give way to rookie Martin Truex Jr.

By Mike Harris ~ The Associated Press

LOUDON, N.H. -- His neck still tightly wrapped in a gauze bandage, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is ready to race again.

At least for a few laps.

In pain and needing more time for burns on his legs and face to heal after a frightening crash last week, Earnhardt sat out Friday's practice and qualifying at New Hampshire International Speedway, letting rookie Martin Truex Jr. take the wheel instead.

Earnhardt plans to get into his No. 8 Budweiser Chevrolet for practice Saturday and will start Sunday's Siemens 300 to earn the NASCAR Nextel Cup championship points before giving up the driver's seat to Truex.

"We just have to wait and see how this plays itself out," Earnhardt said during a news conference Friday, looking a bit uncomfortable with his dressings.

"Unfortunately, after the wreck last weekend, I won't be able to run the entire race," he said. "I'm really disappointed. I've never been in this situation before.

"It's painful to walk around, but what's most comfortable for me is sitting in the race car. This is just an opportunity to give Martin more time and a better opportunity to give us a better finish."

In Friday's qualifying, Ryan Newman, the last of 46 drivers to make qualifying attempts, knocked NASCAR Nextel Cup points leader Jimmie Johnson out of the top spot. Newman's lap of 132.360 mph was easily good to win for the 22nd pole of his 99-race career and third in just six tries here. Johnson, twice a winner here last year, claimed the outside of the front row with a fast lap of 131.984 in a Chevrolet.

Truex qualified third, but the car will have to start at the back of the pack. NASCAR rules require a team making a driver change after qualifying to start the race from the rear of the field. The driver who starts the race earns the points for that event.

Truex, the Busch Series points leader, drives for Chance 2 Motorsports, co-owned by Earnhardt and stepmother Teresa Earnhardt. Truex tested recently on New Hampshire's 1.058-mile oval for what was supposed to be his Cup debut in the September race here.

Instead, he will make his first Cup appearance relieving Earnhardt, who sustained second-degree burns on the inside of his legs and on his neck and chin when he crashed last Sunday during a warmup for an American Le Mans Series sports car race in Sonoma, Calif.

"Obviously, this isn't the way we'd like to get our first Nextel Cup start," Truex said. "Junior is real focused to win the championship and we're here to help get him all the points we can get."