There has been a lot of scrutiny of Dale Earnhardt Jr. and his No. 88 team thus far in 2009. Poor decisions, bad luck and disappointing finishes have left this team frustrated and caused many in the stands to begin asking questions. Eager to put all of the talk behind him, Earnhardt Jr. is optimistic heading into this weekend’s Aaron’s 499.

Not only is Talladega Superspeedway one of Junior’s best tracks, it is also the home of Junior Nation. Fans at the 2.66-mile behemoth of a track hoot and holler louder for the driver of the No. 88 more than anywhere else. The Hardcore Race Fans in the stands watched Dale Earnhardt Sr. master the track and have stuck with Junior as he has followed in his footsteps.

At a time when he is being questioned from all sides – NASCAR, media, competitors and fans alike – perhaps there is no better cure than the high banks of Talladega. Judging by Dale Jr.’s attitude heading into the event, this weekend may be the turning point of the year for this team.

The statistics prove the third-generation driver is a serious threat at Talladega. In eighteen starts, Junior has led in sixteen of those eighteen events, has five wins, seven top-5s and ten top-10s. From October, 2001 to April, 2003, Dale Jr. put the No. 8 Budweiser Chevrolet in victory lane four times in a row. His fifth win at the track came in October of 2004.

While his numbers speak volumes, in the eight races since that last win Dale Jr. just has not gotten the job done. Following that win in 2004, Junior only has two top-10s and four DNFs in eight races. He has finished outside the top-25 four times and outside the top-20 all but three times.

Despite those disappointing results, Earnhardt Jr. has been able to remain optimistic and eager going into this weekend’s event.

“I go in with a real good attitude. When you go into something with a good attitude you normally get good results,” Earnhardt Jr. explained. “Dad was real good at it. We always just put a little extra attention into those races and those race cars that we took to those tracks. We spent a little more time with them, and we just take it very, very seriously.”

“I think patience is a big part of being good at Talladega,” crew chief Tony Eury Jr. added. “Your driver needs to be able to hang out in the draft when he needs to but also needs to see when things are happening and make a move. Dale knows who he can work with, and that’s a big part of it, too -- having the right people to draft with.”

With teammates like Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Mark Martin, Junior should definitely have some help in the draft. Dale Jr. has used lessons learned from his father to become one of the best in the business in the draft, and finding a partner is no tall order.

Adding extra incentive on the weekend, Dale Jr. is the only Hendrick Motorsports driver without a victory thus far in 2009. Jimmie Johnson took the win in Martinsville, Jeff Gordon broke his streak in Texas and Mark Martin got the job done in the desert last week at Phoenix. Winless in the last twenty-nine races, Junior would give team owner Rick Hendrick four wins in the last five races if he can go to victory lane on Sunday.

“There’s a lot of cohesiveness,” Marshall Carlson, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Hendrick Motorsports said of the organization. “We send a quote out every week to our employees, and the one this past Monday was, ‘Where there is unity, there is always victory,’ and it comes from a Roman author from sometime B.C. That really speaks to (team owner) Rick’s (Hendrick) philosophy that he’s been building here for years and years, and I can’t, at least since I’ve been here, remember a time when there’s been more unity among the entire company than right now. That’s an exciting thing to see come together, and I think the guys are really proud of it. And it’s showing on the track.”

Earnhardt Jr. just hopes that unity pushes his No. 88 Chevrolet ahead of the pack and across the finish line first when the checkered flag is thrown on Sunday’s Aaron’s 499.

 MORE NASCAR CUP NEWS