Does Dale Jr Suck?

[tonylongoriafan]

i'm a huge fan of the 88, there is no other driver i support more. but after a change in teams, given all the advantages joining powerhouse HMS, jr finished LAST in the chase...wtf? :wow

people were predicting mulitple wins and legit contention for the championship. i know things happen like getting wrecked and blowing tires, but the way this season ended leaves a bad taste.

all season long the 88 team was among the top 5 performers, once the chase started you could almost hear the stress in his voice over the radio. does he need to just keep plugging away to try to make it work or does he need a change, maybe a new crew chief (although i do like tony jr also).

looking through green and blue tinted glasses, i say he'll be alright, it was his first season at hendrick and the team will get better. but overall, he was never really that close to even touching and competing for wins against kyle busch, carl edwards, and jimmie johnson. i mean one win, on fuel mileage :depressed

[tonylongoriafan]

No Junior in New York caps off disappointing season
Joe Menzer
NASCAR.com - Dec 1, 2:23 pm EST NASCAR Gallery

So it’s Champions Week in the Big Apple.

It’s time to rain down more confetti on the head of Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson, who became the first driver (and only second ever) in 30 years to win three consecutive championships in 2008. It’s maximum exposure time for other drivers and their sponsors as well.

But something will be missing in New York this week—or at least during this Friday night’s gala wrap-up festivities in the Grand Ballroom of the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.

The most popular driver in NASCAR will be sitting this one out. Again.

When the top drivers of the 2008 season are introduced one-by-one to come up on stage and be recognized Friday, Dale Earnhardt Jr. will not be among them for the third time in four years. Since the Chase format was introduced in 2004, he has made the main stage at the end of a season only twice—placing fifth in points in ‘04 and again in 2006.

This year was supposed to be different, and it certainly started out that way.

Starting anew Ditching the supposed wicked stepmother, Teresa Earnhardt, and the company she was busy running into the ground that was founded by his late and legendary father, Earnhardt Jr. was starting anew in a No. 88 Chevrolet fielded by the most successful owner currently operating in the business, Rick Hendrick.

Former champion Darrell Waltrip predicted Junior would win the season-opening Daytona 500 and “at least” six races during the 2008 season. When Earnhardt opened up Speedweeks in Daytona by winning both the Bud Shootout and his 150-mile qualifying race for the 500, Waltrip was looking like a genius.

So was Hendrick. You got the feeling early on that if Mr. H would have been pressed hard to predict a champion from his crop of drivers at Hendrick Motorsports, he would have at the very least hemmed and hawed a good bit before picking Jimmie over Junior.

Earnhardt seemed that hot, that focused.

When he finished in the top 10 in five of the first six races, including second at Las Vegas, third in Atlanta, fifth at Bristol and sixth at Martinsville in consecutive weeks, the Juniorella story still seemed plausible. He hadn’t won in nearly two years, but who cared? Surely that was only a matter of time, and then he would go on to contend for the title.

He eventually did win one race—at Michigan in June—but even some saw that as being tainted because he did so only by milking fuel mileage. He might have won another earlier at Richmond, but he got run over by Kyle Busch.

The fact is, he led laps in 22 of the 36 races on the season. Only Johnson, Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch led more miles. Only that triumvirate, in fact, rated ahead of Earnhardt Jr. in driver rating and average running position.

But while he placed fourth in some of those key statistics to Johnson, Edwards and Busch, Junior literally lagged miles behind when it came to actually chasing down victories. The aforementioned Terrific Three accounted for 24 Cup victories between them.

Junior never won again after Michigan in early summer.

He made the Chase, starting the 10-race “playoff” seeded, appropriately enough, in the respectable but hardly feared fourth position. Arguably the only driver who faded from real contention for the title more quickly than he did was Busch, who tumbled from first all the way to 12th among Chase drivers before coming to his final resting place in 10th following more late-race troubles for Earnhardt in the season finale at Homestead.

That left you-know-who in 12th in the final standings.

Hendrick admitted he was disappointed in this, citing at one point that it was the result of having “tremendous little gremlins bite us, from tire problems to things you can’t control.”

The truth is, it wasn’t all the fault of those tremendous little gremlins. There were some things that could have been controlled and weren’t. Crew chief Tony Eury Jr. might have gambled more at times for victories, risking those precious “positive points finishes” in the process. The entire No. 88 team might benefit from Earnhardt not panicking and ripping into them every time he feels something vibrate in the car after running in the top five most of the day.

The great drivers just deal with this stuff. The great crew chiefs just get it fixed if the car isn’t turning the way the driver wants. The great teams work together and keep chipping away even when nothing seems to be going their way.

Let’s just say the No. 88 team didn’t always deal with even the slightest of adversity in the most positive of ways—like, say, the No. 48 Chevy team of Johnson or the No. 99 Ford team of points runner-up Edwards.

“I was super excited about the way the season started,” Earnhardt said at Homestead. “I couldn’t wait to get to work this year. It was a long year, and we worked really hard. It went good sometimes and it went poorly other times. For the most part, I was real proud of just getting this season in the bank and getting done and looking forward to next year.”

Yeah, well, most of the rest of us expected a whole lot more than that. Most of the racing world expected Junior to at least be walking up on stage this Friday night at the Waldorf-Astoria.

[tonylongoriafan]

damn it, i can't wait until next season!!!!


http://www.stingraysstudios.com/images/dale_jr_88_win_leeb.jpg

[dawn]

OK... I'm gonna try not to sound like the bias JR fan that I am... Notice I say TRY...:lol

I see this two ways... It was a dissapointment that he came into the chase in the middle and finished in 12th...

BUT...

It was his FIRST year with this new team and he made the chase and won races...

I know Kyle Busch did also, and in his first season with Gibbs, and was the man the regular season, but a lot of this is due to good drivers with good equipment.

I HATE when I hear haters say Dale lives on his daddy's coat tails and is not a good driver...BULL SHIT. He has shown over and over that he can run up front, he can go from back to front of the pack, he can run high, middle groove, or low... he can run super speedways, restrictor plate, great at short track, can take a wrecked car and put it in victory lane, and can even contend on road courses.

His flaw... not knowing how to be PATIENT...as much as I loathe Jimmie Johnson, that is his best quality I think on the track, knowing how to be patient and then make his move when he needs to. And he and Chad just understand each other and the car better than I think ANY team in racing right now.

Junior and Tony work well...and they NEED each other I think. I think this next season is the true test. I think Kyle's deal was a fluke... honestly. Gibbs just happened to be the teams that got a grasp on the COT car early. Keep in mind that this was the first season the COT was run the entire schedule. I think the 88 team was going for all they could. Dale is one of those guys that I think looks at wins...all or nothing. Not so much a points racer until it is shoved down his throat to do it by his spotter and by Tony during the race. He will keep digging and pushing it to the point sometimes of wrecking himself if he thinks he can pull a win out... I kinda admire that about him.

I will say this though and I have said it for a long time...Until JR wins a championship, the haters will NEVER consider him a GREAT DRIVER or contender. On the same note, when he does finally do it, they will find another way to say he sucks and is not his dad... guess what folks, he's not. What they forget, one of the Greatest drivers ever, Jeff Gordon, has yet to win a title during the Chase format. That should tell you something, and it is not just because of the COT car or that Gordon has lost his stride. it is tough. All the cars being so equal, the drivers being very talented and then some.

What makes NASCAR so much fun in my eyes, and why others who dont watch will never understand, is unlike ANY OTHER SPORT...EVERY weekend in ONE venue, ALL 43 of the weekends best compete for ONE spot at the same time... that is why the fans love it...we see them all at once... It would be like seeing in one day EVERY major SUPER STAR in the NBA or NFL or MLB at one time play each other.

There are so many great drivers out there who have won TONS of races, but never been crowned as NASCAR CHAMPS... But none of them will ever feel the pressure I dont think from this that Dale Jr does from the critics and his fans. The HAters ignore the good. They ignore the top 5 and 10 finishes. They ignore the laps led this season...they ignore that he has finished in the top 3 in points in his career before. His fans expect great things from him because they know he is a great driver. I think he will win a title. Will he win more than one, I dont know...but I think it will be very interesting next season at Hendricks...

You got Jimmie stealing Jeff's thunder and glory... so that means GET JEFF GORDON BACK OUT THERE...notice he will have new paint schemes this season...you got Dale Jr, the most popular driver amoung the fans in racing and most could argue, the one person most want to see as the champ, and then God help us, the guy who just cant freaking og away already Mark Martin...You think they wont be REALLY pushing to get this guys a damn NASCAR CHAMP Trophy finally? It is gonna be very interesting to see where the focus will be at Hendrick.

One final thought... if Mark Martin was to win the whole deal...would he FINALLY go away and retire already?

[tonylongoriafan]

I HATE when I hear haters say Dale lives on his daddy's coat tails and is not a good driver...BULL SHIT. He has shown over and over that he can run up front, he can go from back to front of the pack, he can run high, middle groove, or low... he can run super speedways, restrictor plate, great at short track, can take a wrecked car and put it in victory lane, and can even contend on road courses.

who else runs the high line more consistently than he does? it takes some stones to run that close to the wall all day long. and i like that he's a little more old school than some of the younger drivers. sure he gets upset and appears to be frustrated, but he's got a lot on the line.

i mean think about what he's done...fueded with the step mom over control of dei, left the company his dad founded, joined the hms empire, all while everyone, and i mean everyone, is watching every move he makes.

of course he's gonna be upset with poor handling cars and bad sets of tires. he's aggressive, that's what the fans love about him. i just hope this entire situation doesn't change the way he drives...it's a slipperly slope, performance outwieghs everything else. they say you have to lose a championship before you can win one, i don't know if jr has done that. i think there might be more tenious seasons ahead before he breaks through and wins one. :(

[Heath Ledger]

Dale Jr. is the Anna Kornakova of Nascar.

[tonylongoriafan]

Dale Jr. is the Anna Kornakova of Nascar.

no he's not...he's actually good

[Biernutz]

Dale and Tony Jr need to split. Hendrick can get him a Chad Knaus type of crew chief. If Tony and Jr had won more I would say say as but that's not the case. Tony is his cousin but business is business and Jr needs to step up to move up to the next level.

[chode_regulator]

dawn brings up some good points, but overlooks some things. first, hendrick ahs as good a grip on the COT as anyone. and really the top three have a pretty solid grip, but its not so muc the overall organization as it is a single driver within. i mean busch won a ton, but stewart adn hamlin only won one each. same with hendrick and same with roush. after last year adn hendricks domination, i mean even mears won a race, i thought they owuld be unstoppable as an organization, but really only johnson was kicking ass.

im not a big 88 fan, htough i do like him, but i agree. people would say mark martin has had a great career, but hesnever won a championship. obviuosly it bothers him bc he's still out there trying. but no one will question his career. same as if dale sr had ended up never winning at daytona. their is an unfair amount of pressure on jr, both from himself and the media. but he made the chase in his first year at hendrick and looks to be solid for the coming year. i highly doubt that unless he somehow wins more championships than his daddy that people will ever give him due credit. and to everone who says, oh well he won a fuel mileage race, who gives a shit. how many of those did carl edwards win? i know at least 2, if not three this year.

that being said, get rid of the stupid chase format,or go back to only 10 drivers. or more importanly go back to the old way, and i mostly just want that bc im still pissed that my driver, gordon, has been screwed out of two championships bc of the chase. go 24!!!!!

[chode_regulator]

and oh yeah, the juniors dont need to split up. eury jr knows how to handle dale in teh car and they know they can disagree with each other to the piont of a fistfight and it wont matter the next day bc theyre family. also you have to consider the amount of races they won at DEI with the crap cars tehy had. i mean i knew that organization was bad off, but dale sr has to be rolling over in his grave to see teresa ruin that organization in just a few short years.
i hope one day jr is able to buy it back

[dawn]

I can see your point kinda on Hendricks...

BUT... Jeff Gordon did not win ONE race this year. He has STRUGGLED with this car. BIGTIME...

I would not split the cousins...again. We've been there and done that and seen how unsuccessful it was. I just don't see this season as a huge loss. I thought if he would have done better this year, GREAT...BONUS... if he would have won it. But keep in mind he was the winner of the damn Richmond race until bonehead Kyle pulled a Brian Vickers and took him out.

I have a good feeling about this next season for him, well that is IF there will be a full season... I am more interested to see how NASCAR gets through this season with car manufactures fighting to stay out of bankruptcy and sponsorship limited.

There are so many NATIONWIDE teams that were forced to close shop. They could not afford to run Cup and Nationwide, so they concentrated on cup. Shoot, there were two shops in particular that the day after homestead were looking to lay off close to 75% of their workforce in the shop and one hint to who that shop is, the man who started it is resposible for not only Dale Jr, but most of the success of NASCAR since 2001 and he was not even around to see it.

[lefty]

He sucks

[DBryant88]

Kyle Busch all the way!!!!!!!!!

[chode_regulator]

I can see your point kinda on Hendricks...

BUT... Jeff Gordon did not win ONE race this year. He has STRUGGLED with this car. BIGTIME...

.

exactly my point. in teh top three organizations only one team had a driver that consistently one and really flat out dominated. i mean to have three driver sthat won as many races as they all did on top of the fact from different organizations is crazy. just imagine if johnson hadnt won all his races, edwards would have had that many more. kinda wish i had beenaround back when petty used to win eery race and lap the whole field.

and gordon didnt win this year. first time since rookie year. again after last years dominatino by hendrick i expected the whole organization to be better. not to discredit them, i mean 3 drivers in the chase out of 4 adn with all the races won by 3 people, doesnt leave many to be won by others.

[chode_regulator]

Kyle Busch all the way!!!!!!!!!

i used to hate kurt, he seems to have calmed down a ton as he's gotten a little older. i hope kyle takes a lesson from his big bro.

[Biernutz]

Jimmy J. and Kyle B. had a handle on how to run the COT. They put the weight in the right location in the cars and got the cars to handle good in the turn into the corners. I recall Jimmy and Kyle ran the low side in most races. They both got their cars to handle. Gordon never got the balance of his car enough to make it work. Jeff had some good runs though. Junior had too many blown tires this year -he and Tony could not get the balance right. Jeff had lots of blown tires this year. Carl Edwards had good runs on the Ford tracks ( the mile to mile and a half). Carl's team also got the handling down on the COT.

The drivers who have good runs seem to change their driving style to the COT that day. With the testing ban, will we see any improvement in some of the teams or will they spend more money in the wind tunnel? Will the rich teams go for the high cost of rolling chassis dynos to sort the cars out.