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Will This be the Year for Dale Earnhardt Jr?

An Opinion




April 26, 2010

By Matthew Pizzolato
Matthew Pizzolato



There is an old saying in stock car racing – consistency wins championships. And so far this season, Dale Earnhardt Jr., has been consistent. After the first seven races of the year, he found himself in seventh place in the point standings.

His detractors like to claim that if his Hendrick teammates consistently finish in the top-5, then Earnhardt should be able to as well. Yet, unlike last season, he is not bringing up the rear of the Hendrick stable. Before the Talladega race, all four Hendrick cars were in the top-12 in points and in position to qualify for the Chase; Earnhardt was seventh in the standings, three positions ahead of teammate Mark Martin.

It is without doubt that he is NASCAR's most popular driver, but he often finds himself the victim of unjust criticism. His most ardent critics claim that he is overrated because of his last name, while on the other hand, card carrying members of Junior Nation expect too much of him.

There will probably never be another driver capable of winning seven Championships, unless Jimmie Johnson manages to pull it off. With three wins already this year, Johnson appears set to claim his fifth title in a row. And who better to end that streak than his own teammate, Dale Earnhardt Jr. If anyone is going to be able to knock Jimmie Johnson off his pedestal, it will probably be someone racing with equipment comparable to his own.

Earnhardt has started this season better than any of the others during his tenure at Hendrick Motorsports. The 88 team under new crew chief, Lance McGrew, is working together very well. When bad luck has struck, they have persevered and managed to claim top-15 finishes in most cases.

The race at Phoenix could have been a disastrous day for Earnhardt, who suffered from a broken splitter brace. Last season, it most likely would have been, but with a decision by Lance McGrew to take just two tires on a late race pit stop, Earnhardt brought the 88 car home in twelfth position.

"We have got a long way to go, I'll tell you that," Earnhardt was quoted as saying in a David Caraviello article for nascar.com. "We feel pretty confident about getting better, but we still feel like we have a lot to work and a lot more that we can do better. We definitely can be a much stronger race team. But we are seeing some good signs we are heading in the right direction. I am encouraged."

Even his mind set is different from last season and for Junior fans, that is a good sign. Earnhardt will definitely win races this year. If he continues running as consistently as he has been, he will qualify for the Chase, which is his ultimate goal for the season.

"I’ve just really been trying to race every lap and every track with the mindset of trying to gain as many points each week as we can to add to the total and give ourselves that chance to finish in the Chase," Earnhardt said in a yahoo sports article by Jenna Fryer.

If he does make the Chase, then what is to keep him from competing for the championship?

Nothing at all. He'll have as much of a chance as any of the other eleven drivers that qualify. With the way this season has started, this year will be the best chance he's had in a long time to finally win that elusive Championship.



If you would like to learn more about Matthew, please check out his web site at matthew-pizzolato.com.



You can contact Matthew Pizzolato at .. Insider Racing News

You Can Read Other Articles By Matthew Pizzolato

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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