EARNHARDT LEADS FIRST DAY OF NEXTEL CUP TESTING AT INDIANAPOLIS
Stewart begins title defense with second-fastest speed

INDIANAPOLIS, Monday, July 10, 2006 -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. topped the speed
chart July 10 on the first day of 2006 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series testing at
Indianapolis Motor Speedway, posting a lap of 177.518 mph in the No. 8
Budweiser Chevrolet.

"We've just been good since we got off the trailer, really,"
Earnhardt said.
"We got some great ideas how to improve the car, make it turn better if the
track tightens up. We didn't make any qualifying runs today, just practiced
race stuff.

"I'm really happy with how my car was. This is definitely the best we've been
at testing here. Our team's improved, and it's starting to show when we go to
racetracks like this and run like we're running."

Earnhardt and 50 other NEXTEL Cup Series drivers are scheduled to test at the
2.5-mile oval July 10-12.

Among the other drivers testing July 10 were defending Allstate 400 at the
Brickyard champion Tony Stewart, who was second fastest of the day at 177.319
in the No. 20 The Home Depot Chevrolet. Robby Gordon was third at 177.204 in
the No. 7 Menards Chevrolet. Ken Schrader was fourth in the No. 21 Little
Debbie Ford and Jeff Burton fifth in the No. 31 Cingular Wireless Chevrolet.

Earnhardt said the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard is "on his list"
of races he
wants to win in his career, and despite the intense competition expected from
defending winner Stewart, four-time Allstate 400 at the Brickyard champion
Jeff Gordon and others, he is more confident this year than in the past that
his No. 8 Dale Earnhardt, Inc., team can win at Indianapolis.

"We're going to bring a little extra horsepower, something we haven't had
here, and I think we'll be able to compete with those guys," Earnhardt said.
"My car's driving good and handling good. It's about time we come up here and
get us a win."

Earnhardt's best finish at the Speedway was 10th in 2001, and he struggled in
three of the past four years with finishes outside the top 20, including a
last-place finish in 2005 after being caught up in a multi-car accident early
in the race.

Stewart, by contrast, had a dream season in 2005 by winning the Allstate 400
at the Brickyard, fulfilling his lifelong dream of winning at the
Indianapolis Motor Speedway, which is located less than an hour from his home
in Columbus, Ind. He followed that accomplishment with a second NEXTEL Cup
Series season championship.

Stewart was pleased with his Joe Gibbs Racing team's efforts on the first day
of testing, but said their accomplishments had little to do with his place on
the speed chart.

"Just trying a lot of things, really," Stewart said. "You
don't set your
benchmark strictly on the test itself and speeds you run. You set it more on
what you're trying to accomplish and trying new things is what we're here
for."

Thirty-nine drivers turned laps July 10. The only serious incident of the day
involved Sterling Marlin, when he made heavy contact with the SAFER Barrier
in Turn 2, causing heavy damage to his No. 14 Waste Management Chevrolet.
Marlin was unhurt and cleared to drive.

Stewart and JGR teammates Denny Hamlin and J.J. Yeley will have the day off
July 11, as the team is scheduled to return for a final day of testing July
12.

Roush Racing, DEI, Petty Enterprises, Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates,
MB2 Motorsports and Robert Yates Racing are among the teams that are
scheduled to test for a second day July 11.

The Hendrick Motorsports stable of Gordon, NEXTEL Cup points leader Jimmie
Johnson, Kyle Busch and Brian Vickers, Penske Racing teammates Ryan Newman
and Kurt Busch and Evernham Motorsports drivers Scott Riggs and Jeremy
Mayfield are among the drivers scheduled to begin testing July 11. Evernham
driver Kasey Kahne tested July 10.

***

NASCAR NEXTEL CUP SERIES TESTING QUOTES:

DALE EARNHARDT JR. (No. 8 Budweiser Chevrolet): "Trying to learn what we can
with the time we got, the car seems to be driving OK. We've got a couple
areas we need to improve on as far as handling. Track's in great condition;
it's great weather, everything's good." (You came into this race last year
struggling a little and then had a tough race, is it for you to bounce back
here more so than other tracks?): "Yeah, absolutely, this is one of the
tracks where you put it on your list as far as where you want to win
throughout your career. There's some you could probably live without, but
this up at the top of list as far as ones you'd like to get under your belt.
It's a real pleasure to be back working with Tony (Eury) Jr. The car seems to
be driving good, and we'll have an opportunity to be competitive like we have
been most of the year."

KASEY KAHNE (No. 9 UAW Dodge Dealers Dodge): (Why Allstate 400 at the
Brickyard is so important?): "I look forward to it. Allstate is one of our
really good sponsors. Coming to the Brickyard is obviously a track that I
would really -- really enjoyed, would love to win it at some point. We came
close two years in a row. I'm just looking forward to it, hoping to have a
really good test this weekend. By the time we come back, hopefully, I'll have
a shot at it."

MARK MARTIN (No. 6 AAA Ford): (About how important it is to have a good test
to carry over to the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard): "Well, I've seen guys
come here and have a bad test and come back and run good. But we sure don't
want to do that. We don't want to hope for that. I think we're off to a good
start. You know, we seem to have respectable speed, much better than we've
had in these three disappointing races. If we've got speed, I can -- my team
and I can easily adjust our race car to suit my liking. But when you don't
have speed, you can adjust it to your liking, but you're still going to take
a whipping on the racetrack. For some reason, we seemed to hit the track
running today, and I feel good about it. You know, I think it will be -- it's
a good time for us to test after taking a whooping the last three races."

JEFF BURTON (No. 31 Cingular Wireless Chevrolet): "This is a big race for a
lot of reasons, as close as the points thing is and just Indy being Indy.
It's going to be a real big weekend. Looking forward to it. Test has gone
pretty well; we were reasonably fast, kind of hard to learn a lot today. The
track's not rubbered up yet, so the tires wear out so quickly that it's hard
to learn a whole lot, so I kind of feel like we're wasting our time today.
But it's always cool to be at Indy."

MATT KENSETH (No. 17 DeWalt Ford): (Your assessment of first test session at
Indy?): "We really didn't get too much accomplished. On the way to the
racetrack, I got ran into by a student driver. That was the start of my
morning. I was at a stoplight. Biffle was following me from the airport. He
always runs into me, so I thought it was him joking. It wasn't. It was a
student driver and instructor just pile-drove into the back of me. That was
exciting. Got here, ran a couple laps, didn't run too good. Took a second car
out -- I wrecked that right away. It's been an eventful 24 hours. The
beginning of our test hasn't been very good, to answer your question."

CARL EDWARDS (No. 99 Office Depot Ford): (About the test and preparing for
other races at this test): "This test is perfect for all the downforce tracks
because it's almost like a big skid pad. It is really easy to repeat laps
here. The track is really smooth, and you can really feel the changes. We can
make the smallest change here and really feel the difference." (About the
change in tire compared to last year): "We are a lot tighter than we were
last year. We've freed the car up a little bit, but it is still way too
tight. We're having to work though that, and hopefully by the end of today
we'll have that ironed out." (About the Indianapolis Motor Speedway):
"There
are so many things to like about this place. Indianapolis is a fun town,
first of all. It's a great place. The history here is second to none. The
first time I came here I was helping out Kenny Schrader's Budweiser team when
he drove for Hendrick. I sat and polished wheels on the trailer watching guys
like Jeff Gordon and all these guys drive in and out of the test session. It
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