There is a rumor circulating that has Dales Earnhardt Jr, the closest thing NASCAR has to a crown prince, leaving DEI and driving for Hendrick Motorsports.
NASCAR rumors being what they are, you be the judge of it's believability.
But I have a question. I think it's a good question.
Where would Dale Jr rank in a team that has Jeff Gordon, Jimmy Johnson and Kyle Busch?
New teams tend to struggle in the Cup series. Earnhardt's past problems with team chemistry don't make this less likely. He and his team would be judged upon results compared to his team mates--just as Casey Mears has been. Those teammates are very good.
Is Dale Earnhardt Junior better than these guys? Any of them?
Will the Earnhardt Jr marketing machine, including Budweiser and NASCAR, risk having the most popular personality in the sport--a sport starving for personalities right now--move to a situation where he could fail to shine?
No.
Picture credit:Matthew Stockman © Getty Images
No, he's not better than Jeff or Jimmie or Kyle.
That said, I can see the marketing machine at Anheuser-Busch salivating at the prospect of Junior hitching his wagon to the Hendrick train. "The most popular driver in NASCAR joins forces with the most powerful team in NASCAR!" Also, Budweiser used to be on the #25, so there is a history.
And no one has ever accused marketing departments of taking a long view of things. They'll see the immediate impact and bet the house on it. Plus, lately they've been marketing Junior as a personality far more than a race car driver. In this scenario, visibility outweights on-track performance.
Posted by: Diecast Dude | May 09, 2007 at 07:23 PM