Dale Jr. takes blame for race-ending transmission issue

On Lap 59 of 160 of Sunday’s Axalta 400 at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway, Earnhardt’s No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet appeared to fall off the pace.

The problem was a familiar one – as had happened on Friday, when Earnhardt attempted to shift to fourth gear, it instead went directly into second, the RPMs spiked and the engine was blown.

Earnhardt had started the race from the rear of the field because of the previous engine change on Friday. Sunday, he could only coast into the garage with another early exit.

“I don’t know what it is about the shifter this week, but it’s not natural to me,” Earnhardt said over his team radio. “(Expletive) motor again.”

Earnhardt’s crew chief, Greg Ives, immediately replied, “Keep your head up, we’re going to go to Michigan, we’re going to be fine.”

Speaking in the garage after the incident, Earnhardt appeared perplexed with the repeated issue, which he blamed on himself.

“It’s something in my motion. There really isn’t anything different. The shifter’s not different; the handle’s not different; the location – everything’s the same,” Earnhardt said. “It’s just going in the wrong gear. I wish I could blame it on something else because this is awful, feels awful.

“The car was fast. We drove up in the Top 15, had some great lap times and I was really happy with the car. We weren’t really running that hard. It’s my fault.

“I don’t know what’s going on what I have to do. It’s just happening out of nowhere. I don’t know when we’re going to have an answer to it other than me just paying more attention. I’ve been doing this all my life and it’s not a common issue.”

Earnhardt was credited with a 38th place finish when he left the track. He came into the race 22nd in the series standings and was coming off two finishes of 11th or better.

Sunday is the fourth time Earnhardt has failed to finish a race this season. The other three were due to crashes (Daytona, Martinsville and Bristol).