Banner
NASCAR Cup News
When Will It Turn
Friday, 13 March 2009 07:32
Dale Earnhardt, Jr.Now in his second season with Hendrick Motorsports, Dale Earnhardt Jr. has yet to hit his stride and reemerge as the contender he once was. After a falling out with step-mother Teresa Earnhardt, the sport's most popular driver left the organization his father built to venture out on his own.  Joining the Hendrick stable in 2008, Earnhardt Jr. was expected to take the next step in his career and contend for the championship.

However, since joining Hendrick Motorsports, the struggles and frustrations have continued for the 34-year-old driver.  After starting off his time at Hendrick Motorsports with a victory in last season's Budweiser Shootout in Daytona, the No. 8 8 team failed to live up to expectations. A win at Michigan in June came in a large part thanks to fuel mileage, but for Earnhardt Jr. a win is a win no matter how it came about.  The rest of the season was an up and down ordeal for the Kannapolis, N.C.-native.  Along with his lone victory, Earnhardt Jr. had ten top-5s, sixteen top-10s and one pole en route to a twelfth-place finish in the final standings.

Unlike in his final years with Dale Earnhardt Inc., Junior was not plagued with DNFs last season, but instead struggled to find the consistency needed to be a title contender.  Great runs one week would be followed up by mediocre or poor runs the next, throw on top of that a touchy working relationship with cousin and crew chief Tony Eury Jr. and you have a recipe for underachievement and disappointment.

Hoping last season was just part of a learning curve and a period of adjustment for the team, Earnhardt Jr. entered the 2009 season with high hopes.

"I feel good.  I'm ready to work," Earnhardt Jr. said prior to the Daytona 500. "I have good bosses and they feel comfortable.  My teammates are excited. We're all getting along good and having a good time. Everybody's confident and it feels good. The team seems confident. They're kind of a quiet bunch, but they seem like they're ready and they talk about how well put together all the cars are and how ahead of schedule they are this year compared to last year in the shop.  I'm looking forward to it -- I feel real comfortable."

Unfortunately for the team that comfortable feeling has not related to on the track success. A strong showing in the Daytona 500 was negated when two pit road mistakes by Earnhardt Jr. mired the team a lap down and left the driver frustrated and aggressive.  Racing Brian Vickers hard for the Lucky Dog, Earnhardt Jr. made contact with Vickers on the backstretch and triggered the "Big One" that took out many of the day's biggest contenders. Showing a side of himself rarely seen, Junior was unsympathetic and brash in his comments and, in a rare occasion, the fans seemed to let him know their disapproval.

"It was interesting to be on this side of the fence," Earnhardt Jr. said following the Daytona incident. "I'm not on this side too much. So it wasn't too bad. It will all turn around just as quick as it blew up."

While the scrutiny and attention may have passed, one thing that ended up blowing up in California the next week was Earnhardt Jr.'s motor. The blown engine less than fifty laps from the end of the race relegated the No. 88 team to a 39th-place finish and dropped him close to the top-35 in owner points.

Finding himself in a situation few expected this early in the season, Earnhardt Jr. was forced to find a way to come up with better results, and fast.  Scoring a top-10 in Las Vegas, Junior and his team showed they had the ability to run at the top of the field and consistency was now the goal.

Heading into Atlanta last weekend, Earnhardt Jr. looked to back up his third-place run from last year's event.  Starting from the 20th-spot, Earnhardt Jr. fought the car for much of the day. Although he was able to bring the car home in the 11th-spot, Earnhardt Jr. remained frustrated with his showing.

"Well you know, we are doing about as miserable as we can do without being too upset about it. You know. I mean, I would like to run better than that," Earnhardt Jr. said of his race in Atlanta. "We struggled all day; we just can't struggle. I look at my teammates and they are running better, we should run the way they run. It is frustrating for me and the team. The only thing you can do is keep working and show up  next week with a new attitude. This weekend off will be good for everybody. We are repairing some damage we did early in the season, the first couple of races with these finishes, but they don't make  you, running 11th and struggling all day, doesn't really do much for  your confidence."

Heading into the first off weekend of the 2009 season, this team is at a cross roads. Currently 24th in the series standings, Junior  understands he has not lived up to the expectations.  With one top-10, one DNF and only one lap led, many throughout Junior Nation are starting to wonder when things will get better.
< Prev   Next >
 

More NASCAR Cup News