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Dale Earnhardt Jr. was fifth to give DEI two cars in the top five, and the showing moved him into Chase for the championship contention. He’s 12th in the standings — where he was before a 100-point penalty last month knocked him down to 14th — and is trying to end his time at DEI on top.
Earnhardt, who agreed to a five-year deal this week to drive for Hendrick Motorsports starting next season, congratulated Truex, his teammate.
“Martin did good, he did such a good job today. That team has found something — I might sneak over there and find out what it is,” Earnhardt said. “We had a good car. We were as good as anybody at the end of the race, just ran out of laps.”
Kyle Busch, who is losing his ride at Hendrick to make room for Earnhardt, was sixth and was followed by Kevin Harvick, Jamie McMurray and series points leader Jeff Gordon, who was ninth and the last driver on the lead lap.
Michael Waltrip, racing for just the third time this season, was a surprising 10th and even led one lap. He was with the leaders most of the race, and was lapped with one lap to go.
“It’s just a great, great feeling to run that well,” said Waltrip, who has failed to qualify 12 times this season.
“Overall, I’m very pleased. My guys are rusty, but you’d never know it. It was a hot day and I hadn’t got to race this much, but I felt just as good at the end as I did in the beginning.
“When the checkered fell then I felt hot, tired and glad it was over.”
Defending series champion Jimmie Johnson had been running in third, but ran out of gas seven laps from the finish and wound up 19th.
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