The walls surrounding Dale Earnhardt, Jr have come crashing down. Driver #88 now stands alone with the weight of a struggling team on his shoulders and the rubble and ruins of walls that were once held up by wins, top fives, poles and popularity at his feet.In a sport where kicking in doors, not taking "no" for an answer and making the most out of every opportunity pave the path to success, it's not hard to find someone willing to share the names of those who helped them along the way. The same can be said for a handful of drivers and team members who share one common thread...Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
Martin Truex, Jr, Shane Hmiel, Shane Huffman, Brad Keselowski and T.J. Majors (Dale Jr's Spotter) are where they are today due in large part to Dale Earnhardt,Jr. Each needed someone to give them a big break; each got it from Dale, Jr.
Dale, Jr needs that same break. He needs someone to think outside the box, get rid of the negatives and build on the positives. If you think that person may be Tony Eury, Jr then you are sadly mistaken. If the two haven't clicked by now then don't hold your breath thinking its going to change.
The problem with Eury, Jr isn't so much his work ethic, it's that the sport has passed him by. The new car, the ever-changing Goodyear tire, and his inability to figure out front-end geometry have pushed this team and its driver deeper into a hole.
The only way Junior can climb out of this hole is for someone to step up and give him the same amount of help and the same big break he has given out to others for years. Let's be honest, this is past the point of being the fault of the two "Juniors." This squarely falls on the shoulders of the man bearing the company name...Rick Hendrick.
Richard Childress didn't hesitate to make drastic changes. He split up the successful duo of Todd Berrier and Kevin Harvick two months into the season. The two were struggling and he made a change. No trial period. No extra time to work it out. No excuses. He pulled the trigger before it was too late.
Junior left DEI because he wanted to win races and contend for a championship; but most importantly he left DEI because he didn't want to drive for an absentee car owner anymore. He wanted to drive for an owner who was hands on and completely dedicated to the team and to the driver.
If Rick Hendrick is satisfied with how this team is performing and thinks that "time" rather than "change" can bring the 88 out of this slump then he is not the owner Dale, Jr thought he was.
9 comments:
I agree mostly with this article. But, there should be engineers on staff figuring out front end geometry. Im sure that that info is shared from the other 3 teams that are within Hendricks organization. Dale Jr, needs to drive the same setups that the 24 and 48 are using, and learn to adapt to them. Jr is still trying to make an old driving style work with a new car....AINT WORKING!!I have experience the same thing racing at the local level, and I know what hes going through. But he is the one who has to adapt, then Eury will learn to work with him. Im a Dale Jr, fan...but he needs to change himself first.
If Hendrick Changes crew chiefs and it doesn't work, his gravy train drops in value. There needs to be someone to blame other than Jr. If he changes and it works, he will look like a genius. If it doesn't, he will look like a fool for trading KB for Jr.
I think the fear in the Jr. camp is that if they do replace Eury and it doesn't work then Jr. will be exposed. I mean as it is right now, everyone is putting the blame on Eury without placing any blame on Jr. If they change crew chiefs and it doesn't work then at some point people will have to point the finger at Jr. Or will they?
Jr. apologists really have no limits from what I've seen. First it was the evil stepmother sabotaging his equipment, now it's Tony Jr.'s fault. Next they will say that Hendrick just isn't giving him the same equipment that the 24, 48 and 5 are getting. The excuses will never stop. Jr. could struggle for the rest of his career and his apologists would still always blame someone other than Jr.
I think Jr.'s problem is that he just isn't good at feeling out this car and knowing exactly what he wants in it and from what I've heard, he isn't as good at communicating what he wants to Eury as other drivers are at communicating with their crew chiefs.
There are probably 10-15 drivers in Cup that are better than Jr. at feeling out this new car and knowing what setups they want in it and those same guys are also better at communicating that info to their crew chiefs. Three of them just happen to be Jr.'s teammates. What Jr. needs to do is spend more time talking to his teammates and learning what they like and don't like and try to get his setups as close as he can to theirs. He also needs to spend some time listening to them communicate with their crew chiefs so he knows exactly what information that he needs to be giving to Eury instead of all that useless bickering that seems to go on between the two every week. If he does that then maybe, just maybe, he can start becoming a contender again.
what a breathe of fresh air...educated well thought out replys to a hotly debated topic.its always funny to read these blogs and see the junior haters.the amount of hate that these people have for junior rivals the love that any member of junior nation has for theirs.that being said i'm a huge fan of the juniors.dale and tony.i want nothing more than for them to be succesful together and this time last year,thats exactly what they were.the 24,the 5,these were the HMS cars that were being blasted on the internet.this year however has been quite the oppisite.it's not just the bad runs...its the bad runs at tracks junior doesent run bad at(richmond 3 wins,phoenix 2 wins),its the pit road circus that has become the 88 team,its the ho hum attitude on the radio.atleast when they're yelling you know they care.unfortunetly for the juniors the numbers dont lie.ever since tony sr. stopped calling the shots for dale jr he has had a total of 3 wins.1 with steve hmiel and 2 with tony jr.of those, 2 were fuel mileage gambles (chicago and michigan)and the other was richmond where i think he only led like 20 or 30 laps.granted they were the ones that counted but my point is he dident have a dominating car.i sit through every race every week and hope that the juniors can figure it out and every week they cant.i too think the 88 team needs a new crew chief and unfortunetly that may leave tony jr on the outside looking in.
As I am sure thousands of other have, I added Jr. to my prayer list a few years back. Beyond that, there isn't anything else I can do to help....
Marybeth
PB, this is J from The Post Corner! Very nice article. I'm glad to see you put into words what we spoke about earlier this week. It brings up a very good point of view and opens the gate for more exploratory comments and ideas. I like what the "Kens" brought to the table about possibly exposing Jr if he failed with another crew chief. I also like the comment stating Jr's success before Eury Jr.
I for one must agree with you PB. The time has passed Eury by. If you look at todays most successful crew chiefs, they have something in common: they arent the "good ole boys" of yesterdays past. They have big time education levels, mathematic backgrounds, leadership skills, etc. Brains is what it takes to be successful as technology is todays leading factor. Just cause you grew up a "grease monkey" doesn't equal success any longer.
Dale Sr was called "One Of Us" because he came from nothing and pure talent took him where he is today, but I'm not so sure that even Dale Sr could be successful in todays racing. The car is solid mathematics and geometry, pit stops are choreography, and decisions are strategic game plans. Racing of yesterday where Dale Sr was made and Dale Jr played, had none of this. It was a guy, a car, some buddies for a crew, and all heart. That won't win today.
Mark Martin said it best when he said Dale Jr drives harder than anyone out there week in and week out, but results aren't showing it. I say start with a different crew chief that has no relation or ties to Dale Jr and if that does not do it, then what I've stated above, unfortunately, is the truth....revealed.
JR will be exposed??
Its not like we havent seen him drive wheels off cars before. Once in a while his team hits a setup on his car and he drives very very well. The problem is that like we saw in richmond they can NOT keep up with the adjustments on the car. PLANE AND SIMPLE that car does not look right on the track 85 percent of the time. Exposed my ass
Wow! Unbielevable thoughtfull comments. I know that Jr can drive, unless he forgot. Just look at when he won. Who was leading him when he won. The fact that he struggles at tracks that he loves is very telling. He is a good driver. He has excelled at tracks that require a driver. Dover, Martinsville, Bristol, Richmond, you have to drive your car it is not just horsepower and handling. I am afraid he just needs a leader on the box, but, first in the head office.......Mr Hendrick we need you to step up and do what has to be done.
I would do anything for junior "ANYTHING" to help him out of this slump he can lean on me if he likes, if he needs help just reach out i will be there for him,i could never abandon or turn my back on him just because he is having a slump if your gonna be a fair weather fan dont be a fan at all. he needs us if i could do it i would give him a big hug and tell him go get em junior
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