Dale Earnhardt Jr. focused on consistency

By Mike Mulhern
MEDIA GENERAL NEWS SERVICE
Published: April 24, 2008

TALLADEGA, Ala. - If Dale Earnhardt Jr. is getting frustrated by his long losing streak—next week it will be precisely two years since his last tour win—he’s hiding it well. Maybe that’s because it’s clear he’s probably going to win this season, perhaps several times, and his focus thus is more on consistency, making the Chase for the Sprint Cup and having a good shot at winning the championship.

He turns 34 this year and this is his ninth full-time season on the tour.

At Texas three weeks ago, he seemed charmed, only to fade.

Talladega is one of his best tracks, but his last win here was in 2004.

But the consolation is that Rick Hendrick’s drivers, now Earnhardt’s teammates, have won five of the past six Talladega races, including a sweep by Jeff Gordon last season.

“We obviously had a lot of success at Talladega, there is no denying that,” Earnhardt said. “And I feel we’re going to have a good chance this weekend, and I’m motivated by that.

“But I’ve felt that way all year, really.

“Before—probably four or five years ago—I definitely went into these races with a little more confidence than I would carry into the other events. But this season I’ve felt we’ve had a shot every time we show up.

“But I definitely like running Talladega. We’ve won a lot of races there, got a really big fan base there; and that means a lot to me.”

Earnhardt’s talents are obvious. But what about Tony Eury Jr., his crew chief? How well is his cousin fitting in at Hendrick Motorsports? Eury and Earnhardt have been leading the Hendrick points game all season, and that may make their rivals a bit uneasy.

Earnhardt said it’s been an unusual season for Eury: “It’s sort of been a double-edged sword for Tony Jr. He’s had a lot of praise from within the organization. He’s done a terrific job getting our program where it needs to be for the start of the season. He’s done a great job up to this point getting me cars that are running good, and making good decisions.

“But he has just as many critics as he does people that want to praise him. I feel it’s happening more this year than ever. And I really can’t put my finger on why he’s taken as much heat as he’s taken.

“But he handles it pretty well. He’s pretty tough. It really does motivate him when people question his ability.

“But to be honest with you, Chad (Knaus, Jimmie Johnson’s crew chief) seems to really enjoy working with Tony Jr.

“Everybody understands he has something to bring to the table. When me and Tony Jr. went to work for Rick, our main worry was what could we bring to the table, if anything? Would we be an asset?

“He’s definitely been able to do that. And that satisfies him a lot—to come in and lay some things out he knows they’ll like.”

But at Talladega the Earnhardt name is, well, you have to be there to feel it, the power that the fans generate around him, just as they did for his father.

And this time around, Earnhardt said he’s coming in with a bit of trepidation.

“It’s been a little bit more overwhelming this year than I anticipated,” Earnhardt said of his fans. “I’m pretty happy about taking this car to Talladega for the first time—the new package, the new team, the new number, everything.

“I’m looking forward to racing it in front of all those people. They’ve been so good to us, so dedicated, so supportive, that you go into that race feeling you owe them to put the car out front.”

This week, Earnhardt has been tire testing for Goodyear at Indianapolis for the July Brickyard 400: “Definitely in the top-four biggest races of the season, and that’s why I really felt lucky to test.

“I’m not sure it’s as big an advantage as one might think. We’re not necessarily discovering gold; we’re running into the same old problems with this (new winged) car, the same scenarios.”

The new NASCAR stocker hasn’t quite been a dream on the tour’s fast midsize tracks, and some poor shows, such as at Atlanta, have led NASCAR to schedule an extra test for everyone at Charlotte’s Lowe’s Motor Speedway in two weeks.

Earnhardt said he and Eury will be giving the new car a good workout at other tracks, too.

“We have a lot of testing coming up over the next three or four weeks,” Earnhardt said. “I’ve got about seven tests scheduled for the next month; that’s new, definitely something new for me. If it gets me to victory lane, it will be worth it.

“Coming up on two years without a win, it’s definitely a stat you are aware of—and reminded of.

“It’s not a whole lot of pressure. I still drive for a good team, and I still have a great opportunity to win every time I show up.

“I feel a win is around the corner. We’ve been in position to do that just about every week.”

Running plate races at Daytona and Talladega is a peculiar deal, Earnhardt said. The cars may all run in a pack, but some are stronger than others, when it comes time to make a move.

“I’ve been in some plate races where we weren’t strong, we never could flex our muscles,” Earnhardt said. “When we did dominate, it was because I had strong cars. I knew what I wanted the cars to do. And that’s important—to be able to make the next move, and to take advantage of this and that.

“You’ve got to be a smart driver to do that, but those cars were able to accommodate me.

“If your car ain’t strong enough, you’re just going to get overpowered eventually on the plate tracks.”

Richmond, next week’s stop, is another good track for Earnhardt. Actually, that’s where he scored his last win.

But then comes Darlington, which is lightning fast after just being repaved. And there are a lot of questions about that track, those tires and those speeds—200 mph into the old turn one.

“The new paving job looks great,” Earnhardt said. “Looks like they worked very hard to make sure it was done as well as possible.

“From what I can tell it’s very fast. So it should be interesting ... an interesting weekend, and interesting to see how the pavement deals with the cars and the heat of the day.

“We’re going to be running on it Thursday and most of the day Friday; it’s a Saturday night race, so the cooler temperatures should help the track stay together. Won’t have any problems with the track coming apart.

“But how fast will the speeds get later in the evening? That should be interesting to see.

“And how good will the racing be? Typically you don’t have too much side by side (on fast new asphalt). But you do have a lot of guys passing, because you have guys with tires falling off (in speed over the 100-mile fuel runs).

“But will that be the case this time? I’m not sure with the new pavement.”

Mike Mulhern can be reached at .