There are those drivers for whom NASCAR was one option in their lives as they pondered careers. Dale Jarrett was a highly skilled golfer, Kyle Petty had offers to dodge linebackers in college football, Kurt Busch could have been a pharmacist. For Ralph Dale Earnhardt Jr.- racing was in his blood, a nearly foregone conclusion he would also climb into a race car cockpit.
Lest anyone think “Junior” was pushed into as a third generation race car driver- think again. Like NASCAR pioneer Ralph Earnhardt did with his son who would be known as Dale Earnhardt Sr.- Dale Jr.’s father almost seemed to encourage his son to go another direction. During his youth, Earnhardt the elder sent his son to military school, partly to deal with “Junebug’s” tendency to slack off in the classroom- and partly ensure that his younger son got the education that the Intimidator himself never had.
Dale Jr. finished high school, and even earned a 2 year college degree….in automotive. Even though we’ll never know all the contents of the conversations between the NASCAR legend and his son, Dale Sr. had to know that resistance was futile. After all, Dale Jr’s half-brother Kerry has already caught the bug, Junior’s maternal grandfather Robert Gee was a car builder, and lets not forget Earnhardt’s relationship to crew chiefs Tony Eury Sr. and Tony Eury Jr. From every account of Dale Jr’s youth, he strove for as much time in the presence of his busy dad as he could get- eating up every moment he could get at the track. If you’ve seen the videos- they’re pretty funny: a pre-teen Junior pretending to interview his dad.
Interviews with Earnhardt the Younger reveal an intense study of vehicles and track dynamics. Junior possesses strong opinions of how to employ and who should employ the draft, plus he has a study of car building going back to the days when Dale Jr. and Kerry jointly owned a 1979 Chevrolet Monte Carlo they bought for $200- providing an opportunity for sunny redhead to sharpen his racing acumen. Further deepening the family connection to racing was sister Kelley’s interest in racing. In fact, Earnhardt’s sister was not bashful about racing her brothers and would ultimately link into another NASCAR family as Kelley is married to Jimmy Elledge, who has crew chiefed for the likes of Juan Pablo Montoya and A.J. Allmendinger. Kelley also bears a prominent role in JR Motorsports, Junior’s Nationwide Series team.
The Kannapolis, North Carolina native got his first taste of competition outside the family racing in the street stock division at Concord Motorsport Park at the age of 17. From 1994 to 1996, Earnhardt won 3 feature victories in the NASCAR late model stock division.
Young Earnhardt made his Busch Series debut in 1996. In 1997, he made 8 more starts, earning a top 10 finish racing for his father’s company and Ed Whitaker.
Ready for full time NASCAR racing, the younger Earnhardt racing full time in what we now call the Nationwide Series. Junior grabbed the checkered flag in the Coca-Cola 300 at Texas Motor Speedway for his first win. Junior followed up the trip to victory lane with 6 more to win his first of two consecutive Busch Series titles. Almost as good in 1999, Earnhardt grabbed his second title with 6 wins. 1999 also marked Junior’s Cup debut, at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Charlotte. His start was promising- qualifying 8th and finishing 16th. All told, Dale ran 5 races in NASCARs’ top series with one top 10.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. hit the prime time in 2000, focusing virtually all his attention on the NASCAR Cup Series. There’ just something about Texas for the North Carolinian- the track marked another first, in this case, his first Cup win. His rookie season also proved historic- at Michigan, Dale Sr., Dale Jr. and Kerry all ran in the Pepsi 400- only the second time in Cup history where a father and two brothers all ran together in the same race. The Pettys were the first with Lee and his sons Richard and Maurice. Career win number two came later at Richmond.
Earnhardt would experience heartbreak at the outset of the 2001 season. Junior and teammate Michael Waltrip were running second and first respectively on the final lap of the Daytona 500- with Papa Dale running third- seeming to throw a block against Sterling Marlin. On the final lap, Dale Earnhardt Sr’s collision with the wall marked one of NASCAR’s most tragic and memorable moments. Earnhardt the Elder never knew his journeyman driver won his first Cup race, with son second.
Heartache was compounded by failure when Dale Jr. finished dead last at Rockingham. Hanging tough, the man who would become NASCAR’s favorite son won an emotional victory at Daytona in July. We also began to see glimpses of Earnhardt’s mastery of the super speedway- winning the first of an incredible 4 wins in a row at the Alabama track that his father seem to virtually own. He would also register a win at a non-restrictor plate track- picking up his third victory of the at times difficult season at Dover. Junior placed 8th in points.
Most would argue and probably rightly so, that there are many differences between racing’s answer to Elvis and his son. Being the son of a legend is a far different experience than growing up the son of a local driver trying to make it on his own. That mean streak Dale Sr. had is simply not evident in the easy-going Dale Jr. BUT where the two are very similar is in their dealings off the track. With a big assist from Teresa, Dale Sr. made the most of his fame and winnings, smartly building something of an empire. Dale Jr. quickly found himself not only very successful on the track, but found the notoriety created opportunities off of it. Junior has established Hammerhead Entertainment- a producer of shows like Back In The Day, and later, Shifting Gears.
Earnhardt also has a love of computers and music- making his relationship with “Go Daddy” a natural one- to go with numerous music video appearances- including Cheryl Crow, Trace Atkins, Nickelback and Jay Z- a Junior favorite.
Like his dad, Junior got into the ownership game- launching JR Motorsports. Earnhardt only ran 3 Busch races in 2002, but won two- his first as a car owner/driver came at Richmond. At the “varsity” level- he finished 11th in points with two wins.
2003 proved to be a watershed. His booming popularity led to the first 6 “Most Popular Driver” awards Earnhardt has won in a row. You want evidence that he’s not just popular because of his dad, but because he is good in his own right? Dale Jr’s father had been gone two years by now. What’s more Junior had most successful season yet- Dale took 3rd in the Cup points with a pair of wins, 13 top 5s, and 21 top 10s. A win at Phoenix also gave him another non-restrictor plate victory. Want some dominance? “Lil E” won ALL THREE of his Busch starts.
A Daytona 500 victory 6 years to the day after his father won his only season-opening race, seemed to set the tone for success in 2004. 6 wins came in a nice variety of tracks from the big tracks of Daytona and Talladega to the short tracks of Bristol and Richmond, and intermediates such as Atlanta and a pair at Phoenix. The Daytona 500 win provided another link with the Petty dynasty the Earnharts joined the Petty royalty as the only father-son combo to win the event known as the “Great American Race.” Junior dominance in the Busch Series was seen by picking up 2 wins in 4 races. A wreck in the fall Atlanta derailed a title run.
Changes at DEI in 2005 created a mess for the driver of the Budweiser #8. Pete Rondeau began the year as Junebug’s new crew chief but got cast aside by technical director Steve Hmiel after 11 races. Pit strategy at Chicagoland led to a Junior win- his lone victory of the year. He was 19th in points. 4 starts in the Busch Series provided no wins.
Tony Eury Jr., Junior’s cousin took over as crew chief in 2006. While he won only one race, Earnhardt’s consistency improved greatly with 10 top 5s, 17 top 10s and just 3 DNFs. He also renewed his efficiency in the Busch Series with a pair of wins in 5 races.
No matter what Dale Earnhardt Jr. accomplishes, there is a sense that more is expected because of his lineage. Though by now Junior has 18 wins at the Cup level to go with 22 wins in the Nationwide Series as well as two championships at that level, critics maintain he would be nowhere near as popular if were not for his family name. They almost lead to believe others in the sport, particularly his dad, accomplished much more with much less. Some says he’ too nice, too laid back, too distracted, too satisfied with his place in NASCAR to be all that focused on a championship. His father had the reputation as one who would hit his grandma’s car to win a race. Junior didn’t even go allthat hard after Kyle Busch after their collision in the spring Richmond race in 2008.
Some would suggest Junior’s step-mother Teresa Would be one of those less than impressed Junior’s fame. She doesn’t give many interviews, but she once told the Wall Street Journal that “Right now, the ball is in his court to decide whether he wants to be a NASCAR driver or a public personality.” No doubt, his fame has taken him places few other auto racers have ever gone before, having made more than a few appearances in movies (“Talladega Nights“, and a voice over in “Cars“), television, as well as interviews in Rolling Stone and Playboy. Earnhardt concedes “If I didn’t have the same name- and I kind of wish sometimes I didn’t- I wouldn’t have to be worrying about it.”
Things came to a head when it came time to decide whether or not Junior would re-sign with DEI in 2007. He struggled with numerous mechanical issues on his car and seemed to indicate frustration at the direction of the company. It almost seemed prophetic when Junior took over Kyle Busch’s #5 ride with Hendrick Motorsports at Texas Motor Speedway on April 15. Dale’s #8 was already parked for the day, when Busch stormed off the track following a wreck. The car was fixed, abd with no one to drive it, Earnhardt volunteered to finish out the Samsung/Radio Shack 500 in Kyle’s car.
In May, 2007, Earnhardt touched off one of the greatest periods of speculation when he announced he would part company with Dale Earnhardt Incorporated. Perhaps Junior would join Richard Childress Racing, Dale Sr.’s employer. Others thought another high profile team like Joe Gibbs would throw enough money his way. On June 13, Junior and Rick Hendrick called a press conference to announce that NASCAR’s most visible racer would sign a 5-year deal with Hendrick Motorsports- home to Earnhardt Sr. arch rival Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson. To clear room in the garage, Kyle Busch would be released at season’s end.
In the minds of many fans that Dale Jr. inherited from his father, this move seemed like betrayal. It seemed like heresy to have Earnhardt drive for a team with a driver they rooted so hard against. Remember- it was at Talladega- one of Dale Sr.’s favorite tracks- where Gordon was pelted with beer cans after winning a race there. In various chat rooms around the Internet, a few fans announced they were through with Dale the Younger- while yet others pledged to bite the bullet and accept the move as being good for the driver now 34-years old. Earnhardt was quick to point out the good relationship his father had with Rick Hendrick, and it almost seemed as though he viewed the owner as something of a surrogate father figure.
Earnhardt needed something different. He would miss the cut in the 2007 Chase, and seemed almost eager to get the whole nightmare over with. Earnhardt’s #8 team was fined and docked points for an equipment violation, resulting also in the suspension of Junior’s crew chief. He would also endure a winless season, making changes with his own team when he fired Shane Huffman, driver of the #88 with Michigan native Brad Keselowski.
How closely followed is Dale Earnhardt Jr.? Even his selection of a car number fueled unprecedented speculation for what is generally such a minor move. The #8 would not be released by DEI, once again igniting resentment towards her by “Junior Nation”, and it was also clear Junior really wanted no part of seeking Dale Sr’s #3- which has been out of circulation since his passing. During the 2007 offseason, it was announced that among possibilities such as 81, 83 and 88, Dale Earnhardt Jr. would drive in a car numbered #88, once held by Yates Racing. Fans also learned Dale would be sponsored by Mt. Dew/ Amp Energy drink and the National Guard.
2008 started with great promise for Earnhardt. Junior took the checkered flag at the Bud Shootout- a season-opening, non-points event. That same week, he picked off a win in the Gatorade Duals. While not winning the Daytona 500, Junior came away with a more than respectable 9th place finish as Ryan Newman took the checkered flag.
Though Earnhardt’s track greatly improved over the previous season, there still seemed to be a little restlessness and even disappointment among the driver and his fans. Junior was a contender in numerous races, but his winless streak ran all the way up to 76 races before Junior capitalized on fuel mileage to win at Michigan for Cup career win number 18. Junior picked up 10 top 5s and 16 top 10s to go with the victory, but it always seemed like his cars would start strong and sputter towards the end. Some fans wonder aloud if a change isn’t needed in the pit box. Yet others seemed to have come to the conclusion Dale Earnhardt Jr. simply isn’t destined for the same greatness his father achieved. Dale ended up qualifying for the Chase, but numerous late season difficulties relegated him to a 12th place finish.
2009 is rife with speculation concerning the future of NASCAR and fans seem divided between hopeful and resigned on the future of Dale Earnhardt Jr. Publicly, Junior speaks of being more committed than ever to achieving a Sprint Cup title. Privately, fans wonder if the trappings of fame aren’t proving to be too great a distraction.
What will 2009 hold for the beloved and alternately unfairly criticized driver? Time will only tell. It would almost seem that Dale Earnhardt Jr. would need to cure cancer, fix the economy, and capture Osama Bin Laden to offset the ridiculous expectations. A more realistic approach may be just to root for him if you’re a fan of his, or just leave him alone and root for somebody else if you don’t.
{ 9 comments… read them below or add one }
Junior will never achieve greatness in NASCAR as long as Tony Eury, Jr. is his crew chief. It will only continue to be more of the same. I don’t understand why Junior wants to keep him and why Rick Hendrick continues to tolerate their average performances. GET RID OF EURY!!!
Jr isn’t as aggressive as his dad was but I wish Jr could say what he’s thinking. I think it would help Nascar tremendously. For example, Kyle wrecked Jr this past season. I think Jr would have loved to really call him out but he didn’t. The announcers said Jr knew the weight of his words so Junior’s words were measured. The other drivers don’t ‘have’ to be careful and worry about blowback when they call out other drivers. I’ve heard several drivers complain that they have to be cautious around Jr. They don’t want to be the driver that takes him out. Junebug needs to be able to talk freely and not walk on eggshells. The other drivers should be able to have at it against Junior as well (without worrying about any serious blowback). Nascar would be in a much better place if the fan favorite driver was able to display emotion. Sports are built on a good team with rivalries and a little bit of controversy.
@Larry- This is an interesting question of whether or not Tony is dragging Junior down. From what I know, I think TE is a good chief, but the chemistry with Junior is all wrong. It looks like he gets good set-ups, but everything goes away late in the race. I don’t think Tony is getting the information he needs from Junior to help and that’s on Tony. I believe he may be on a short leash. I think intervention by Rick is needed.
@Susan- Not only do I think Junior overthinks what he says, I tend to think he’s overthinking how he races. Perhaps taking the gloves off would do him some good.
It’s obvious that Junior doesn’t llike controversy. And I assume that is, at least in part, due to growing up as the son of one of the most controversial drivers of all time. He is bound to have seen a lot of the fallout from such actions in a much more personal atmosphere. And I believe Junior doesn’t want to make negative comments about other drivers and situations due to the way most so-called fans will perceive him as a whiner. So, he takes the Mark Martin route and simply clams up and says basically nothing!
As far as the repercussions other drivers fear from wrecking Junior, that must have been highly reinforced in May of 2008 at Richmond when Kyle Busch took him out. Kyle has been a “marked man” ever since that night. And the pressure from that incident snowballed for Kyle and his team until they finally just fell apart in The Chase.
@Larry- This is an interesting question of whether or not Tony is dragging Junior down. From what I know, I think TE is a good chief,
>>>>>>If you listen to an interview with Chad Knaus about the dynamics of a race car and an interview with Eury, Jr., you soon get the impression that Eury knows nothing compared to Knaus. Additionally, Junior did great in the Busch series with Eury, Sr. as his crew chief just as Brad Keselowski is now.
but the chemistry with Junior is all wrong.
>>>>>>This is true. Junior needs a crew chief, not a cousin to work with.
It looks like he gets good set-ups, but everything goes away late in the race. I don’t think Tony is getting the information he needs from Junior to help and that’s on Tony.
>>>>>>This may be true, too but Hendrick isn’t going to change the driver so the crew chief must go. Junior needs an authority figure to work with.
I believe he may be on a short leash. I think intervention by Rick is needed.
>>>>>>I believe Amp and The National Guard would appreciate this as well. They are going to get tired of spending $35M per year for such lackluster results. As the economy tightens, the sponsors are going to demand more from their drivers for the dollars spent. Because, eventually, those sponsorship contracts will be up for renewal and average results won’t be tolerated for such an expensive sponsor. I know Junior is highly marketable and popular but that will wear thin as time goes on if he doesn’t start performing on the racetrack. My whole point with this feeling toward Eury, Jr. has always been that it couldn’t hurt to try switching Eury, Jr. with one of the other crew chiefs just to see how it works out. But it’s painfully obvious that it’s not working in the present configuration.
I am a huge Jr fan. My comments aren’t meant to be negative about Jr in any way. I think Tony is a good crew chief. I think Tony and Jr both might benefit from being with a different driver/crew chief. If I was Tony I’d probably be wondering why I work my butt off but no one ever appreciate’s me. If I was Jr then I might be thinking that I might be better off with someone else. Tony isn’t a proven championship winner and neither is Jr. There has to be some doubt with both of them.
I don’t think Jr is worried about anyone calling him a whiner. I think that he would like to have normal reactions to racing events involving him. Unfortunately, there is a huge over-reaction (by Jr Nation AND anti-Jr Nation) to everything that happens with Jr. I think that is why he always has to be calm. I don’t think Junior is a ranter and I know he’s shy BUT I wanted to hear more than a ‘it is what it is’ statement.
Kyle’s chase problems were in no way due to Junior. Kyle’s team made a huge mistake at the start of the chase. Not every event is tied to Junior.
Kyle sure gained a lot of fans for a ‘marked’ man. Junior didn’t say anything IMO to make Kyle a marked man. I kept reading on blogs that Kyle was the next intimidater and Kyle is more like Dale Senior than Junior is. I read a lot more pro-Kyle than pro-Junior comments on blogs.
Nascar needs some smack talk. One of the greatest Nascar moments was Jeff Gordon toasting Dale Sr with milk at the banquet. Junior has a great sense of humor and Nascar needs for him to show the public more of that. JMO.
Let me preface this comment by saying that I am a Dale Jr. fan so don’t think I am saying these things because I don’t like him. In fact, the fact that I do like him is the reason I’m saying this. At the start of the 2008 season, I felt each week that Junior had a chance to win each race but as the year wore on and they continued to worsen, I felt they had no chance at all to win. How did this happen over the course of the year? Well, I have come to realize that Tony Eury, Jr. had no idea what he is doing as a crew chief. He can’t set the car up properly, can’t adjust for a changing track during a race and is terrible at making strategy calls during a race. Unfortunately, as long as Eury, Jr. is allowed to remain as Junior’s crew chief, the results of this seaon will be the results of future seasons. It is painfully obvious to me, and I sincerly hope to Rick Hendrick, that a change is necessary. And now that the number 5 team is getting a new driver next season, this would be the perfect time to make the switch. Who cares if Junior likes working with his cousin? This is big business and the whole world doesn’t revolve around him. Just ask Amp and the National Guard who are pumping $30-$35 million into this sponsorship annually if it’s OK with them to keep achieving mediocre results from this team. Junior is the most popular driver at this time but that is subject to change if he doesn’t pick up the pace. And I feel his attitude has something to do with this situation. When things don’t go his way, he gives up and pouts about it. None of these scenarios are conducive to a championship team. What makes the #48 team so superior year in and year out? They don’t make mistakes and the can handle the pressure both of which the #88 team could learn from if they had the proper chemistry within the team. And it is so obvious that they DO NOT. So to Junior’s fans, I beg you to contact Hendrick Motorsports somehow and plead with them to give Junior a new crew chief. I think Alan Gustafson would be a great fit for Junior. And this change could probably change Junior’s attitude of being so down all the time. Have you seen the big change in him as the year went on? He is just like he was at DEI, seeming to be focused on something other than the job at hand. And what could it hurt to try the switch? If it doesn’t work, they can always switch back. I’m no fan of Roush-Fenway Racing but Jack Roush is never afraid to move people around in search of the perfect combination of team chemistry and he has found it many times. So, why can’t Rick Hendrick do this? Is he afraid of offending Junior or Tony Eury, Jr.? As I said before, this is big business and it has no place for spoiled little boys in it.
Hey Susan, I just found this web site. I was just woundering how you can even compare Kyle to Dale Earnhardt Sr. Then you said that Kyle would be the next intimidater. There was only one intimidater and there will never be another intimidater. By you you sayen that you disrespected Dale Earnhardt Sr. his family, and all of his fans. Dale Sr. was a man not a crybaby like Kyle is so do not disrespect Dale Sr. like that again!!!!!!!!!!!!
@JoJo. If you look carefully, you’ll see Susan was not making that comparison, but rather, she said that numerous blogs were doing that. I know Susan well, and I can tell you she feels more like you do.
“There’s only one.”