Earnhardt wins Budweiser Shootout

[BlackVelvet04]

Probably nobody else here cares, but I'm excited.


Earnhardt wins Budweiser Shootout
February 10, 2008

By Bruce Martin PA SportsTicker Contributing Editor

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida (Ticker) - It didn't take Dale Earnhardt Jr. long to prove he made the right decision to join Hendrick Motorsports.

Earnhardt scored a victory in his very first race for his new team, winning Saturday night's Budweiser Shootout under the lights at Daytona International Speedway.

"I don't know what took him so long to win a race for us," team owner Rick Hendrick said. "It sure takes a lot of pressure off to come down and win a race early and have a lot of fun."

It was Earnhardt's first NASCAR win since the Richmond Cup race in May 2006. Nearly two years later, he is finally rid of that burden.

"I never felt like I had a monkey on my back," Earnhardt said. "I've always raced with pressure and lived with tumultuous situations. It was never a golden road and easy to travel. It is what it is.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nascar/news?slug=txbudweisershootout&prov=st&type=lgns