LONG POND, Pa. -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. is having a blast again, sharing a bond with his crew while growing increasingly comfortable as NASCAR's most popular driver.
Winning races sure has a way of easing burdens on Junior.
Earnhardt turned Brad Keselowski's trash into Victory Lane treasure, pulling away down the stretch Sunday at Pocono Raceway for his second victory of the season and a secured spot in the Chase field.
He paired his first career victory at Pocono with his Daytona 500 championship for his first multi-victory season since 2004.
"I feel like I'm such a lucky guy to have this second opportunity again to be competitive," Earnhardt said.
But for as strong as he ran in the No. 88 Chevrolet, Keselowski gift-wrapped this victory when he yielded the lead with five laps left in a desperate attempt to clear debris from his grille and cool his overheated engine.
Keselowski's gamble backfired -- he couldn't get the draft needed from the lapped traffic to clear his car and make one final pass for the victory on Earnhardt. Keselowski's No. 2 Ford still had the oomph in the engine needed to finish the race, and he had his second-cconsecutive runner-up finish.
"It was definitely a mistake because the engine made it," Keselowski said, rubbing his face. "It probably shouldn't have."
Junior shook off the rising red gauges in the No. 88 that could have had his car meet a similar fate as Keselowski.
"They were still within good reason to stand on it and give it hell," he said.
Kurt Busch, Denny Hamlin and rookie Kyle Larson completed the top five.
Earnhardt gave Hendrick Motorsports three consecutive victories, following back-to-back victories by Jimmie Johnson. Johnson overcame a pit road accident to finish sixth.
Owner Rick Hendrick texted Earnhardt before the race to let him know he would not attend and would see him next week at Michigan. Earnhardt told him, "I'll drink one for you after it's over."
Earnhardt stuck to his end of the deal, spraying all types of beverages in a jubilant Victory Lane. Johnson was the first driver over to congratulate him.
I don't have much to do tomorrow," Earnhardt said, grinning. "Tonight's going to be a long one."
Earnhardt, long NASCAR's most popular driver, gave the Pocono crowd plenty of reason to cheer. He was mobbed by almost 100 fans outside the Pocono media center, screaming his name and clamoring for a picture with the winner.
He waved and ducked into a waiting car, whisked away for another party.
Earnhardt won for the 29th time in 519 career Sprint Cup starts.
"When we won at Daytona, man, it made the rest of the year a lot more relaxing, a lot easier," he said. "It makes it fun because you can just go to the track and just race, not worry about points."
Junior's breakthrough was more meaningful because it has come in crew chief Steve Letarte's final season. Letarte, who had a Pocono victory with Jeff Gordon, has become one of Earnhardt's best friends. That tightness off the track just may have sparked the victories on the track.
"Maybe that's why him and I are such good friends, because I might be the only one in the world that doesn't wonder what it's like to be Dale Junior," Letarte said. "He's a normal guy, he's a great guy, he's a great talent. I don't have any idea what it's like to be him."
Earnhardt led three Hendrick drivers in the top 10; Gordon finished eighth.
Johnson's bid for a third consecutive victory was derailed when he connected on pit road with Marcos Ambrose. Coming off victories in the Coca-Cola 600 and at Dover, Johnson was fifth when he pitted under yellow. Johnson hit Ambrose and spun 180-degrees, which forced him to back into his stall for more repairs. He needed two tires, had right-front damage and dropped to 29th on the restart.
Sports on 06/09/2014