Having gone four years without a victory, you'd have expected Dale Earnhardt Jr. to go a little nuts when he crossed the finish line first Sunday at Michigan International Speedway.




He didn't.

Instead, Junior calmly said over his radio, "I don't know what to say," then asked his crew chief Steve Letarte if, in fact, he'd really won. Letarte confirmed he had and, well, Junior was relieved.

Oh, there will celebrations across Junior Nation now that their driver's 143-race losing streak is over – "National holiday tomorrow," Tony Stewart said as Junior took the checkered flag – but just as he's done throughout these four long years, Junior won't get caught up in it. When he hopped out of his car, he immediately thanked his fans – "They stuck behind me for all these years. I appreciate their loyalty," he said – but going crazy over one victory isn't in his blood, not when his daddy won so many races and a championship is still the ultimate goal.

So as he celebrated in victory lane, Junior did so as if he'd been there the day before, and the day before that and the day before that, even if he hadn't been there since June 15, 2008.

"Winning races is all you ever want," Earnhardt said. "You work real hard to get there. I have got to thank [team owner] Rick Hendrick and the whole organization really for sticking with me. They could have taken another route, but they stuck with me, and we are back to victory lane."

This season has been a revival of sorts for NASCAR's most popular (and therefore most scrutinized) driver. He's been near the top of the standings all year, has finished every single lap of every single race, has 12 top-10 finishes in 15 tries and now this, a victory to end what's become the sport's most eternal question: When will Dale Jr. win again?
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