Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s day came to a sudden and abrupt end, when for the second time in three days, he missed a shift and broke the motor in his No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet.
After completing Stage 1 of the Pocono 400 at Pocono Raceway, Earnhardt began Stage 2, and when he did, he missed a shift on the 3,740-foot-long frontstretch. Earnhardt attempted to shift from third to fourth gear, but instead got second gear.
It was déjà vu all over again, because the same thing happened earlier in practice on Friday, and when it did, Earnhardt’s engine went past 12,000 rpms and broke.