Sonoma Tag

I'm sure if you asked Dale Earnhardt Jr. in June of '08 if he was going to enjoy his only win in the next four years...  He would probably look at you with the same dumbfounded look that he had after all 143 of those races where he failed to cross the finish line first.  Junior looks like he has finally found a groove for the first time in almost 10 years.  His seventh place finish in the 2011 standings gave him his first top 10 finish in the standings since 2006.

In 2003 Junior seemed to be coming into his own as one of the top driver's in NASCAR.  He competed for the championship throughout most of the season before falling off and eventually finishing third and 207 points off the lead.  The interesting thing about that season is who the competition was for Junior and eventual champion.  Current points leader Matt Kenseth led the standings for most of 2003 and his championship ways are what caused NASCAR to rethink the way the championship is won.