Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Fellow drivers pleased by Earnhardt Jr.’s win

Tuesday, July 10, 2001 | 10:25 a.m.

Brian Hilderbrand covers motor sports for the Las Vegas Sun. Reach him at bh@lasvegassun.com or 259-4089.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s emotional victory Saturday night in NASCAR's first race at Daytona International Speedway since the death of Dale Earnhardt was not just a hit with the 200,000 racing fans in attendance and a nationwide television audience.

Almost to a man, every driver in the field for the Pepsi 400 said Junior's win was the perfect ending to a nearly five-month ordeal. And the popularity of Earnhardt Jr.'s win wasn't limited to fellow Chevy drivers.

"That's a fitting ending," Dale Jarrett, who drives a Ford, said. "Ford, Chevrolet, whatever ... throw all of that out the window. There couldn't have been a better winner."

Even veteran driver Rusty Wallace, who never has won a race at Daytona and ran second to Earnhardt Jr. for much of the race before finishing seventh in a Ford, applauded the outcome -- and went a step further.

"I can't think of a better script to play than (for Earnhardt Jr.) to come back to the track that took his father away from him (and win the race)," Wallace said. "To have him be able to honor him with the victory is pretty cool.

"I only wish I would have been the one shoving him across the line."

Sterling Marlin, who drives a Dodge, agreed with Wallace.

"I'm tickled to death for Dale Jr.," Marlin said. "That was a big win for him."

"It's hard to imagine anybody that you would want to win here any more than Little Earnhardt," Ford driver Jeff Burton said. "It's good to see. This sport lost a hero. A lot of people lost a hero, but he lost a hero and his dad.

"To come back to where he lost his father and win is pretty cool."

Todd Bodine, another Ford driver, summed up the feelings of most of his colleagues.

"That's poetic justice," Bodine said of Junior's win. "For him and Michael (Waltrip) to come in first and second here, I don't think there's a person in this garage area that's not happy for them."

Jason Leffler (24th) was the highest finishing rookie Saturday for the first time this season.

Busch is the only rookie contender to have started all 17 Winston Cup races entering Sunday's Tropicana 400 at Chicagoland Speedway.

NASCAR will set up a television studio on the show floor to broadcast NASCAR Tech TV with hosts Ned Jarrett and Stephanie Durner. The weekly program airs Sundays on Fox Sports Net.

The AAPEX trade show, which draws more than 83,000 attendees, is not open to the public.

"I never would have imagined this would happen. I never would imagine being so dominant and winning this race. I can't imagine it. I can't sit here and understand it. I can't believe this is happening to me."