March 1, 2009
By Loren Dorrell
I've always been proud to boast that I'm a passport carrying member of Junior Nation, and while it's considered - at the least - unprofessional for a sports journalist to choose sides (at least publicly) irrespective of the sport, I'm not exactly what you'd call a "professional" so I figure I can get away with some blatant, down-right fanatic subjectivity.
I'm also ready to defend my position to anyone who has a gripe with what I have to say. So with that in mind, I hereby post this confession for all NASCAR fans to read, whether you think Dale Jr. is the second coming or isn't worth the powder to blow him to that proverbial deep, dark, devilishly hot place.
I recently read a post in one of the several NASCAR discussion groups I belong to that pointed to a mound of statistics showing that Dale Earnhardt, Jr. is in the top echelon among NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers, his 18 Cup victories putting him in the same class as Matt Kenseth, Kyle Busch, Kurt Busch and others. This is true enough, but when you look at it, most of those wins came in the first five years or so of his Cup career. Sure, he has the stats, but statistics don't always tell the whole story. There's a lot more to it than just wins and losses; here's an example - or two or three - of what I'm talking about.
Now, I could use the same system to show that my beloved Oakland Raiders have been the most successful pro sports franchise over the past 40 years, bar none - MLB, NBA, NHL or what ever; but with the exception of Super Bowl XXXVII, (which was a total embarrassment) they haven't done much to shout about for at least ten years.
Ditto for my equally beloved Notre Dame Fightin' Irish, who - while racking up 12 national championship titles - have also been pretty quiet over the last decade or so (though they remain one of the toughest teams to beat in the NCAA); having finally won a bowl game last season after an agonizingly long drought. The reason? Inconsistency.
Then there's my wonderful New York Yankees, who might not have been the greatest over the last 2-3 seasons, but who DO have the most incredible record of American League pennants and World Series championships of any team in Major League baseball - and are ALWAYS a force to be reckoned with every season.
Why?
Do I have to say it? Naaaw: ya get three guesses and the first two don't count.
I have been and always will be a die-hard Dale Earnhardt, Jr. fan; as loyal to the son as I was to the father. But I also have the intelligence to be objective about that loyalty. Let's face it: he ain't exactly been burnin' up the track lately, but the season is young and there's time to recover; if he can live up to his stats and start driving like we know he can.
The thing about ol' Junebug is that he's either hot or he's cold; he doesn't have much of an in-between speed. When he's hot, damn, the boy's a force of nature, as hard to beat as anyone ever was. When he's hot, he's happy; all smiles and good times and not a bad word about anyone or anything - as cuddly as a brand-new teddy bear.
But when he's cold, whew: he can't win for losin'; his attitude is as frosty as Antarctica in June, he's gets cranky and surly and about as pouty as a 3 year-old (I oughta know, I'm raisin' one myself). He can be as bad a driver as he is a good one, depending the day of the week or planetary alignment, full moon or whatever.
The point is; with the exception of his two Busch/Nationwide titles, the boy has never been what you'd call real consistent. Close, real close at times, but never spot on. Now you look at King Richard or Big E, Smoke or Jeffy, or any one of NASCAR's past champs and what is the one key to their success?
You guessed it; consistency.
Blame his crew chief, or faulty parts, or whatever. Blame his Karma or fate or just plain bad luck. Until he shows the same kind of consistent performance his daddy -- or any other champ -- had or has, he's bound to come up a little short. He jumped to Hendrick Motorsports because he wanted to run the show at DEI (something he wasn't ready for, BTW) and felt he wasn't getting a fair deal where he was.
OK, fine. But maybe his sister should have told him to cool his jets for a season or two; to stay put and see what happens. Considering the turn DEI/EGR has taken over the last year or so, who knows where he might be right now? The team (EGR) as a whole hasn't done so bad so far, now have they? Just a point to ponder.
I'll stick with Dale Jr. through thick and thin this season and the next, etc., etc. But if he doesn't get on the ball this year, he might wind up on the outside looking in -- maybe not even make the chase. I'll catch hell from the "love 'em or leave 'em" fans, but, hey, honesty is still the best policy.
The same fans will boo the heck out of me for saying it, but while I'll still root for Dale Jr. no matter what, I may have to pin my hopes for a champion on someone who's, well, more consistent (repetitive, yes; but I can't find a better word).
There are some good candidates out there, like Tony Stewart or Matt Kenseth, Kevin Harvick or Carl Edwards. Maybe even a dark horse or underdog like David Reutimann or Michael Waltrip, or someone out of the Richard Petty Motorsports or EGR camp. But whoever it is, I'm sad to say that 2009 doesn't look like Dale Jr's year. So sue me.
Here's hoping Junebug makes me look like a great, big, hairy horse's patoot.
The thoughts and ideas expressed by this writer or any other writer on Insider Racing News, are not necessarily the views of the staff and/or management of IRN.
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