Dale Earnhardt Jr. Picks Hendrick
Junior Will Race for Nextel's Hendrick Motorsports next Season
Dale Earnhardt Jr. announced Wednesday he'll join Hendrick Motorsports for the 2008 Nextel Cup season. Owner Rick Hendrick said driver Kyle Busch will leave HMS.
In the final analysis Rick Hendrick’s comment that there was “no room at the inn” for Nextel Cup favorite Dale Earnhardt Jr. proved disingenuous at best.
For, in a surprise move – up until Tuesday, anyway – Earnhardt Jr. today announced he’d be joining the NASCAR powerhouse next season, once his contract expires with DEI, the racing team founded by his famous father.
By leaving Dale Earnhardt, Inc., Junior will join former Nextel Cup champions Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson at Hendrick Motorsports, winner of six championships since 1995. The fourth driver at HMS is Casey Mears. The odd man out at HMS is Kyle Busch, who has twice this season brought unfavorable publicity upon the team.
“It became pretty obvious to both of us that maybe a fresh start might be good for both of us,” said Hendrick. “He had unbelievable opportunities. I had an unbelievable opportunity. He’s got so much opportunity ahead of me. We decided that it would be good for him to purse those and me to pursue this opportunity with Junior.”
Close but no Cigar
Earnhardt, winner of 17 individual Nextel races but no titles, was clear last month that he wanted to go to an elite organization – an organization that could enable him to win a championship. And he wanted to remain driving a Chevy. That left three possible matches – Hendrick, Richard Childress Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing, in addition to dark horse, Ginn Racing. Each had hurdles, however.
Earnhardt Jr. Sweepstakes
Considering that the late Dale Earnhardt won six of his seven championships at RCR, it was initially felt that Childress might have an inside track. But RCR has committed to a joint engine-development deal with DEI. An RCR deal with Jack Daniels also may have put a crimp in the process.
The Gibbs team has won three titles over the past six years. But the Gibbs family are committed Christians, and wouldn’t condone Earnhardt Jr.’s long-time sponsor, Budweiser. And Junior remains under a personal services contract with Anheiser Busch through 2008. Lastly, word recently leaked that Gibbs – in its final year of a multi-year contract with General Motors – is talking with Toyota, another disqualifier in Junior’s eyes.
Newcomer Bobby Ginn is in his first season as a team owner at the Nextel Cup level, and has transformed a midlevel team into a contender, but still has a way to go to vie for a Nextel Cup championship. That left HMS, which, at the time, appeared the longest of long shots.
This Bud’s for Who?
Ironically, it appears Budweiser may follow Earnhardt to Hendrick. Bud sponsored the No. 25 for Hendrick during the 1990s.
The publicity surrounding Junior’s leave taking has been astounding, but shouldn’t surprise. After all, he’s NASCAR nation’s favorite driver. When he announced he was leaving DEI last month, the media frenzy began.
Junior admittedly decided to leave because of differences with his stepmother, Teresa Earnhardt, who inherited 100 percent of the operation in the wake of Dale Sr.’s death during the 2001 running of the Daytona 500. Since Teresa’s takeover Earnhardt Jr. has only managed a third-place finish in the top NASCAR division. Junior wanted a majority stake in DEI. Teresa declined.
