Earnhardt aims for sweep at Michigan

NASCAR drivers got into the stock car sport for the speed. But feathering the gas pedal to save gas is a regular -- and dreaded -- part of their jobs.

Michigan International Speedway is one of the places where fuel economy often comes into play.


That's how Dale Earnhardt Jr. ended a 76-race winless string on Michigan's 2-mile oval in June, and it's likely to be a factor in Sunday's 3M Performance 400.

Drivers are either apologetic or defiant after winning a race by getting to the finish line on fumes while their closest competitors run out of gas or are forced to pit.

"My fans are happy and I'm happy for them," he said after barely stretching his last fuel load to the finish. "The other half are going to tear this apart on how we won this race. But I got the trophy and I got the points."

Earnhardt, who will start fourth on Sunday, hasn't won since the last Michigan race and has slipped from third to fourth in the season points.

"Just the race tracks we have been going to," he said. "I don't have good finishes at those race tracks. Couple of road courses, Pocono, it is just typically not a good part of the season where we have run very good. We are always strong at the races the first third and last third of the season."

Another victory here would be a good way to gain some momentum with only four races left until the start of the Chase for the Championship. And, if he has his choice, it will be a full throttle win.

"It would be good to get another win to show everybody we can do it on a full tank of gas," Earnhardt said. "It would be a good to get a win anywhere, but Michigan is a good place because of the manufacturers being close. Being close to Detroit, Motor City."

Asked what he will do if crew chief Tony Eury Jr. gets on the radio Sunday and tells him to start saving gas again, Earnhardt replied: "Get mad, because you don't want to save, you just want to run hard.

"It is a lot of work and you don't know if what you are doing is saving gas or not. You don't know what you are accomplishing, and it's no fun."

Jeff Burton agreed, noting that the timing of the request to try to save fuel can be important, too.

"The first thing I need to know is how much fuel do we need to save," Burton said. "You can't tell the driver to save fuel with five laps to go in the race. The information has to be fed to a driver as soon as that run starts.

"Look, we're on the edge here. The only way to save fuel is to go slower. You de-accelerate sooner. You're off the throttle sooner. You're on the throttle later and you're on the throttle less aggressively.

"By the way, you still have to make reasonable lap times in most cases."

Denny Hamlin, one of several drivers working hard to stay in the 12-man Chase field, is concerned because his team hasn't been good at fuel economy racing.

"We're terrible when it comes to that," said Hamlin, who goes into Sunday's race tied with Greg Biffle for 10th in the standings, just 83 points ahead of 13th-place Clint Bowyer. "We're just trying to get better, and we did definitely (improve) on road courses.

"But these bigger tracks we still are, it seems like, always about two or three laps less than what everyone else is. I'm not a fan of the fuel mileage races. I like the fastest car winning. ... I don't think the fans like a crew chief race -- I think they like to see a driver's race."

But Earnhardt isn't worried about what anybody thinks, as long as he wins.

"It depends on what side of the fence you are on, man," Junior said. "If you are on the winning side, you are happy, don't matter how. If you are the guy who had the fastest car all day, you aren't real happy about it.

"I have been on both sides of it. ... Everybody would like to just go out there and just outrun the hell out of everybody to win races. Sometimes, you have to take them how you get them."

Same strategies, differing results for Hendrick duo

Two Hendrick Motorsports teammates used the same strategy at the end of Sunday's Sprint Cup race at Texas Motor Speedway, but with very different results. Jeff Gordon parlayed a fuel gamble into a second-place finish, while Dale Earnhardt Jr. was left running on fumes.

Winner Carl Edwards wasn't the only one who tried to stretch his final fuel run in the Dickies 500. Gordon and Earnhardt, who both rallied from a lap down to get back into contention on the 1.5-mile racetrack, each used the same tactic to get to the front. It worked for Gordon, who's still winless on the season, but tied his best finish of the year with the runner-up result. Earnhardt, though, ran out of fuel with five laps remaining, stalled his No. 88 car when he ducked onto pit road for gasoline, and finished in 20th place.

“
I know it's late in the season, we haven't won yet, but that doesn't mean we're laying down.
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JEFF GORDON"I told [crew chief] Tony Eury Jr., you know, don't worry about that," Earnhardt said of the failed gambit. "We all tried to win the race, and we win as a team and lose as a team. We need to figure out the fuel mileage deal because Jeff Gordon stayed out as well, and just figure out what we need to do. We probably just should have started saving a little bit earlier."

Edwards set the standard, feathering his throttle to the checkered flag to complete a 69-lap, race-ending fuel run that gave him his eighth victory of the season and trimmed Jimmie Johnson's championship lead to 106 points. But it felt like a win for Gordon, who finished second for the first time since Martinsville in March. It looked bleak early for the Texas pole winner, when Edwards' relentless pace at the front put one car after another a lap down, Gordon's No. 24 Chevrolet included. Eventually Gordon was in position to receive a free pass back onto the lead lap -- Earnhardt did the same -- and make a bid for the front.

"Real proud of [crew chief] Steve Letarte and all the guys on this team for not giving up," Gordon said. "We struggled. We were good when we were out front at the beginning, and fell back to fifth, and we just kept trying to free it up through the middle. One time I got too loose and lost all the track position, lost a lap. We had to fight our way back to get on the lead lap. I give them a lot of credit for being patient with everything all day, and Steve Letarte for making that great call to come in and not only work on the car but get as much fuel in it as we could and go for it there at the end."

Gordon believes the free pass helped him in more ways than one. The caution that let him back on the lead lap was caused by a Juan Montoya accident that closed pit road, because the crippled No. 42 car was left blocking a part of it. As the field coasted under yellow, Gordon was able to save fuel that he'd need in the end.

"The leaders had already come in, and we had to ride around for quite a while, and that gave us the few extra laps," Gordon said. "Then when we pitted, we just took our time with it. We were the only car that had to be at the tail end anyway, and plus I saved on the caution laps. I was turning the engine off, so I felt pretty confident that we could make it if we were only one lap short."

Added Letarte: "We just played the hand we were dealt. We didn't have a good enough car to drive up to the front. We got behind on that one run. We got the [free pass]. The guys did a great job. Jeff drove a pretty smart race. When our car was off, he kept it in one piece, and we knew we were close on fuel. I didn't think anybody could make it. I thought we had it won, to be honest."

Not quite. Toward the end, it looked like Gordon might come up one lap short. But he made his fuel last.

"I conserved a little bit under yellow. So when they said we were one lap short, I really wasn't that worried," he said. "But I was still letting off real early, and we didn't know the No. 99 [car of Edwards] was going to go for it. Obviously a great call by Steve Letarte on this DuPont/Nicorette Chevrolet. Great, great teamwork all day. It was a heck of a fight for us."

But it still wasn't the race victory Gordon has been looking for. He's now gone 39 events since his last Sprint Cup victory, at Lowe's Motor Speedway in October of last year. He's 14 days away from his first winless season since his rookie campaign of 1993.

Sunday, though, brought hope. Intermediate tracks like Texas have been one of Gordon's biggest hurdles in the new car, and he left Fort Worth with renewed confidence.

"We're not going to give up, that's for sure. I know it's late in the season, we haven't won yet, but that doesn't mean we're laying down. We're certainly not going to do that. Just like going for the pole on Friday. I mean, we're doing everything we possibly can," said Gordon, who's won at every active track on the Sprint Cup tour with the exceptions of Texas and Homestead-Miami Speedway, where the season concludes in two weeks.

"You know, I'd be a little bit more excited about our chances if we had run up front and ran in that second position all night or all day. The thing is, we're going to look at any possible way to win races. We're going to try to make the car go as fast as we can. When we have that opportunity to make it on fuel, you know, we're going to take the opportunity. That's what we did [Sunday]. But I'm still disappointed that we struggled with the handling. I had my hands full. Some of it's me, some of it's the team and the setup. That's something we've got to work on coming back to Texas. But I look forward to the next two opportunities to try to win. [Sunday] is an obvious sign that we can still win. No matter how the car's running, we can still win. We'll go to the next two and do everything we can to try to win."

Not even Johnson immune to Talladega's harsh reality

Talladega Superspeedway is known for close-quarters, high-speed racing on the high banks, which is a combination that can sometimes result in wild, multi-car crashes. And it's that threat on every lap of the 2.66-mile oval that looms in the mind of every driver in the Chase for the Sprint Cup this weekend.

This is the track that has tripped up the championship chances of Chase drivers in the past, particularly for Jimmie Johnson, the current points leader.


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In 2004, Johnson collided with Kasey Kahne on pit road (watch video) and damaged the air duct to his radiator, which caused the engine to overheat and finally expire late in the race, leaving him 37th. The next fall, Johnson was at the center of a chain-reaction crash involving Elliott Sadler, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Mark Martin, with Michael Waltrip getting the worst of it (watch video).

Johnson was also involved in a huge 25-car wreck that spring (watch video), which resulted in Junior calling him "an idiot." So Sadler wasn't very complimentary after Johnson ran into the back of his car, triggering the pileup.

"I'm really upset at Jimmie," Sadler said. "I guess he's trying to keep his streak alive. He caused a big wreck here last year and he caused a big one again this year. Maybe that's his way of racing here at Talladega ... try to get rid of everybody so he can win the race."

Earnhardt, who was giving Johnson a bump draft, said the accident had more to do with circumstances.

"It was just hard racing," Junior said. "We're all together so it's hard to miss something when you're going so fast. You can turn left, but the car is still going to go straight. It's just frustrating, because there's nothing you can do."

But if you need an example of how fortunes can change in an instant at Talladega, one only needs to look back at the 2006 UAW-Ford 500, when soon-to-be ex-teammates -- and future teammates -- wound up having a major effect not only on the finishing order of the race, but on the championship.

With an opportunity to make major gains in the standings when Jeff Burton pitted late for a flat tire, Earnhardt and Johnson expected to make it a two-car fight to the finish on the final lap. But Brian Vickers -- who had already announced plans to leave Hendrick Motorsports at the end of the season -- had other plans.

As the three headed out of Turn 2, Johnson made his move to the inside of Junior. But as Vickers followed his teammate, he tapped the back bumper of Johnson, sending him into Junior. As the two cars slid out of control into the infield, Vickers stayed in the gas and led the field back around to the checkered flag for his first win (watch video).

Vickers was apologetic when he reached Victory Lane.

"I got into Jimmie and I hate it," Vickers said. "The last thing I wanted to do was wreck either one of those guys, but what happened, happened. It wasn't intentional.

"It's definitely mixed emotions for me, being my first win, but also what happened with Jimmie because he is my friend and also a teammate, as well."

Johnson, who wound up 24th, was understandably livid.

"I just can't believe it. Here we go all day long, I had a great chance to make up some points, and I end up getting wrecked by a teammate," he said. "Knowing the situation we're all in, I would hope that someone would be a little more patient than they were back there.

"I know he was trying to get his first win, but he was in a position to finish second or third the way that was, and he gave me one hell of a push from behind and pushed me into [Earnhardt] and off we went."

Johnson's crew chief, Chad Knaus, understood that Vickers was trying to help when things went wrong.

"I honestly don't think Brian was trying to wreck us, I think he was trying to help us," Knaus said. "I just don't think he has the talent to understand what he has underneath him."

And Junior, who finished one position better than Johnson, took things somewhat in stride, even if his loyal fan base was more interested with showering the winner with boos and beer cans.

"Brian was just excited there," he said. "I'm not really that upset. I mean, that's just the way racing goes here and sometimes you come out on the good end of those deals and sometimes you don't."

Both Johnson and Earnhardt rebounded the next weekend at Lowe's Motor Speedway with top-five finishes, but their fortunes went in opposite directions from that point forward. While Johnson would go on to record five consecutive finishes of first or second and win the championship, Junior's title hopes took a huge hit with a finish of 22nd at Martinsville. He wound up fifth in the final standings.

As for Vickers, he's still searching for win No. 2. He suffered through a season of growing pains with Toyota's Red Bull operation in 2007. This season, he has three top-fives, including finishing a distant second to Kahne at Pocono, but nothing comes close to that one day in early October when he found himself in the middle of a controversial last-lap finish at Talladega.

Smack: Undecided voters in Junior, Busch debate

1. Now that the season is almost over, it's time to assess: did Rick Hendrick make the right move by releasing Kyle Busch to add Dale Earnhardt Jr.?

Dave Rodman: I'm not dodging the question, but it's still a case where time will ultimately tell. Look at it this way: Three Hendrick teams made the Chase, and so did three at Joe Gibbs Racing, where Busch competes now. So I think it's been beneficial all the way around.

David Caraviello: I don't know who the joker is who came up with this question, but it's unanswerable. The Earnhardt-Busch situation was not a zero-sum game. You're talking about two guys who both needed new surroundings. And two guys who both clearly benefited from the change.

Joe Menzer: Well, Roadman is obviously avoiding the question. But the fact of the matter is that this is just like one of those NFL or major league baseball free-agency deals. You need a full three years to make the correct judgment. If you are asking how it looks right now, at this very moment, judging off just this first year, then the answer is obvious and you would have to say no.

David Caraviello: Three years? Dude, you're not covering the NFL anymore. Three years in this deal is a lifetime. This is a results-now business. And if you look at where they are versus where they were, both are much better off.

Dave Rodman: It will take even longer than three years, I believe. Who's gonna end up with the most championships? And that is totally open-ended. At Daytona in July you might've said Kyle would -- but with the way he's tanked in the last third of the season, we're gonna need another whole year to see what they really have.

Joe Menzer: Well, if you're gonna judge it that way ... then how can anyone possibly say you're better off to have a guy who has one win versus a guy who has eight in Cup?

David Caraviello: Because I don't think Kyle would have won eight races in that environment. It's all about fit, and for whatever reason, he didn't fit at Hendrick. There's something about Gibbs that's brought out his best. It's the same thing with Earnhardt. It was going to be very difficult for him to make the Chase and contend for titles at DEI. He needed a place where the equipment was more reliable and his talent could show. He found it at Hendrick.

Joe Menzer: There is indeed some truth to the fact that getting pushed out at Hendrick forced Kyle to mature, or lit a fire under him, or whatever. It put him in position with the right guy in crew chief Steve Addington.

Dave Rodman: Again, there are a lot of parameters you have to judge it by. Hendrick's Chase teams are gonna handle JGR's, and who finishes better between Junior and Shrub still remains to be seen. David, your point on timeframes is well-made, but I think the assessment here is longer-term.

Joe Menzer: But the question was if Rick Hendrick made the right move. And if I recall, even Hendrick said late last year that if Kyle had driven and acted like he did the latter part of that year, he never would have parted ways with him.

Dave Rodman: All things considered -- especially considering Casey Mears might win a couple of races next season -- I wonder if Rick ever wishes he had both Junior and Shrub right now. Wouldn't that raise some outcry amongst all the other fans that are still left in the sport. Though the point that can't be lost is that Steve Addington and that 18 crew are a big part of why that team won so much, just as much as they're at the root of the current slump.

David Caraviello: Given how things have turned out with Casey, there's reason to believe Rick might be second-guessing himself on cutting Kyle loose. But if Kyle isn't the odd man out at Hendrick, then does he become that more mature driver who wins eight races at Gibbs? In some ways, you could say he's a product of the environment.

Joe Menzer: Now that's an interesting point. But I think Mr. H is pretty happy to put Mark Martin in that car for at least next year. And, by the way, Dave, what makes you think Casey Mears will win anything next year? Not sure I see that.

Dave Rodman: He's teaming up with Gil Martin and a two-time Chase team.

Joe Menzer: So you're saying Mears' inability to win (more than once, anyway) in good equipment at Hendrick was his crew chief's fault -- more than his own?

Dave Rodman: If they mesh well, I can see him doing quite well. But of course, with Mark Martin already in the 2009 Chase, that doesn't leave many spots. I already can't wait.

David Caraviello: Well, Casey has been sort of jobbed throughout his career -- the whole five teams in five years thing. A little stability might do him good.

Dave Rodman: How did Kyle Busch win so little at Hendrick, comparatively speaking? We all know these teams and their success rates are the result of infinitely, exquisitely agonizing bouts of chemical balance. Did that make sense? Got off on the language there.

Joe Menzer: The younger, supposedly much less mature Kyle Busch still managed four Cup victories in the same car at Hendrick with Alan Gustafson as his crew chief. And you could argue that Gustafson's job was tougher under those circumstances.

David Caraviello: Hey, the comparison here isn't Kyle against Casey -- that's a no-brainer. As for Earnhardt and Busch, both guys seem much happier and much more able to live up to potential. Nobody loses.

2. Petty Enterprises is holding preliminary talks about some sort of merger or alliance with DEI. Would Petty still be Petty, even if operating under another name?

Joe Menzer: Well, let's be clear about this: Robbie Loomis and others at Petty have made a point of saying while they've talked, nothing is imminent -- and one source said he can't see anything happening there.

David Caraviello: Man, tough questions today. My gut feeling would be no. Petty is about so much more than the racecars. It's about what they refer to as the Petty "brand," all that history, outside activities like the driving experience and the camp, and the silhouette of the King. How can you keep all that if you merge with another organization?

Dave Rodman: If you recall the previous partnership deal, it's obvious the Petty brand is the key to everything. So no offense to DEI, but I wouldn't think any merger with anyone would radically change that.


Thinking about it
Petty Enterprises has beeen a staple in NASCAR from the beginning, but in these tough economic times the team is finding it hard to compete. For that reason, Petty Enterprises is talking with other teams, including DEI, looking to possibly merge.

Complete story, click here
Joe Menzer: But if it's not DEI, it's probably going to be someone else they form an alliance with. Boston Ventures didn't buy a majority interest in Petty with the idea that Petty would remain overmatched forever in the garage, and the only way they're not going to be overmatched is if they team up with another team sort of in the same boat as them.

David Caraviello: But the Petty folks have always been very conscious -- and rightly so -- of the fact that the name is the meal ticket. They haven't ever done anything to undercut that. This is the only team in the garage that can run less than competitively and get away with it, because of the Petty name. You sacrifice that, the results don't follow -- and then what do you have?

Joe Menzer: Earnhardt is a pretty big name in the business, too, folks!

David Caraviello: It is, Joe, but the Earnhardt name is all about performance. This is a team that's used to winning recently, and thinks they can get back there fairly soon. Petty's one big piece of leverage is the last name.

Dave Rodman: The danger here is taking too narrow a view of any merger or alliance. There's no reason anything like that would involve name changes. Depends how much egos come into it. Over the weekend, Richard said they were talking to a lot of people -- as everyone is. But he also said they were fairly comfortable with their situation.

Joe Menzer: Even they can't get away with running in the back forever. You're already seeing that now with them obviously having more problems getting sponsors than anyone thought they would have.

David Caraviello: The new Boston Ventures folks in charge seem to have a keen understanding of the fact that Petty isn't just a race team, it's a brand name. I think that's why they bought in.

Joe Menzer: I'll be blunt about this: I don't think the higher-ups at NASCAR will ever let the entity known as Petty Enterprises ever go completely away. Nor should they.

David Caraviello: Well, these are privately-run businesses. Kyle's gonna get out of the car for good sometime in the near future, and when Petty doesn't have a Petty behind the wheel anymore, that will be the real test.

Dave Rodman: Yikes. Without going into any great detail, and as painful as the thought is, I don't think NASCAR would think that deeply about it. Business, unfortunately would be business -- as it most always has been.

Joe Menzer: Now you are testing my patience, Roadman. Are you saying NASCAR has never propped up big-name teams before? Seems to me they helped Junior Johnson out a little once back in the day.

Dave Rodman: That was a previous time and different people -- with different goals and value sets, unfortunately.

David Caraviello: Here's my question: could two teams merge and still keep their individual names? Could Petty and Earnhardt merge, build cars out of both shops, call one Petty and one Earnhardt, and leave it at that? Because surely, DEI has a name and a legacy it would want to protect as well.

Joe Menzer: I don't think it will be an issue -- because I don't think it's going to happen. I think Petty will end up merging -- or forming an alliance, or whatever you want to call it -- with another Dodge organization.

Dave Rodman: That's what I said before, DC -- if egos would allow it, they certainly could. Richard was asked the question last weekend and didn't much want to comment about names or bargaining positions, but he did infer that DEI was in the weaker position of the two organizations.

David Caraviello: But Joe, aren't they still in the same boat, regardless of who they merge with? Protecting the name that means so much to them? That's why they haven't merged with anyone to this point, to be honest.

Joe Menzer: You said it yourself. Because of the name, they are so much more than just a race team. They're an entity -- one that includes the Petty Driving Experience, etc. -- but they'll have to do something on the merger front to ever get competitive on the track again. But I guess to answer the question, yes, there will always be a Petty Enterprises involved in NASCAR in my opinion. In some form and on some level.

David Caraviello: Well, they have proven the past few years they're not above changing -- moving from Level Cross and all that. Maybe this is another break with tradition they're willing to make to be competitive again.

3. It's the last fall Chase race for Atlanta, which moves into the Labor Day spot next season. Is it a good move for a track with attendance issues?

Joe Menzer: I think so. They had to do something, and this might help. But if it doesn't, look out. If it fails, they could be looking at losing one of their races in another two to three years.

David Caraviello: It surely can't hurt. Atlanta has been besieged by cold and rainy weather during its long tenure near the back end of the schedule. Any move to warmer months will certainly help.


Changing lanes
Atlanta Motor Speedway and NASCAR are hoping rain and attendance aren't an issue when the track's fall race moves to Labor Day beginning in 2009.

Complete story, click here
Caraviello: Tough one to sell
Complete 2009 Cup schedule
Joe Menzer: The other side of the equation is California. Having a race out there on Labor Day was a bad idea from the start, and maybe this will help them as well. At least you won't be able to fry an egg on Roadman's forehead.

Dave Rodman: It's potentially gonna be cold and possibly rainy on at least one day in Atlanta. Incomprehensibly, that track seems to have issues drawing a near-to-full house, so it's got to be good to try something.

Joe Menzer: I don't know how incomprehensible it is. Atlanta, to me, traditionally has never been the strongest of sports towns for the professional market.

Dave Rodman: Well, good point. But it's great racing and great racing draws 'em in from miles around.

Joe Menzer: And we might also mention here that calling it "Atlanta Motor Speedway" sort of would be the same as calling Martinsville "Greensboro Motor Speedway." They're about the same distance from those respective cities.

David Caraviello: Well Mr. NFL man, as for your geographic stickiness, don't the Detroit Lions play in Pontiac? The Washington Redskins in Landover? The Dallas Cowboys in Irving? Night qualifying at Atlanta has always been pretty neat, so a full Cup race under the lights there should be spectacular. There's won't be much of a conflict with football, and the weather will be warmer. So it's as good a shot, on the surface, as the place has had.

Dave Rodman: This brings up an old, sore point with me. The schedule should not be set in stone. Tracks should have a black-and-white set of parameters to meet: Attendance, ingress/egress, facilities, purse. If they can't make it this year, they lose a race in the near future. Give someone else a shot who can meet the same parameters. Atlanta would already be facing a hiatus, and so would California. Kentucky and Nashville would have had a shot, by now. And even though I'm told Iowa might not be the best track for a Cup race, they might even have had an opportunity.

Joe Menzer: As hard as it is for me -- and Smack observers -- to believe, I think Roadman has hit on a very good point here and I agree with him. The problem is the track operators like it being set in stone, arguing that it helps 'em sell tickets.

Dave Rodman: Well, stone will be more like lava next season. I think their ticket-selling dramas are only beginning.

Joe Menzer: I would argue, on the other hand, that you could keep certain dates that are proven successful over the long haul set in stone, if you like. But move the others around.

David Caraviello: I think F1 has a set of track criteria that facilities must meet. And then that sanctioning body ignores it in the case of creaky old Monaco. These race organizations run the show, and can do what they want.

Fast facts
What Pep Boys Auto 500
When 2:20 p.m. ET Sunday
TV ABC, 1 p.m. ET
Radio PRN (Sirius Ch. 128), 1:15 ET

• Track Page | Tickets | TravelJoe Menzer: Hate to keep comparing this sport to others, but why not? It's not like you see the NFL schedule completely set in stone each year. They play division rivals, then rotate other dates and teams in and out.

Dave Rodman: Oh yeah, Joe. Daytona, Lowe's, Bristol, Richmond -- and even New Hampshire because even with a short legacy, they've filled the place up and improved it, consistently. They would all be locks, as is. But these others...

David Caraviello: Right, guys, but the schedule does come out only about six months ahead of time. All this is on a year-to-year basis. They're not saying Atlanta will have the Labor Day date for 20 years.

Joe Menzer: Carl Edwards said it best the other day, but it won't ever happen. He said he thought it would be neat if they could race on 36 different tracks throughout the season. Go to Kentucky, Montreal, some places Cup has never been.

Dave Rodman: Which is why I said "they'd lose a date in the near future..." Screw up fall 2008, you're back to one date in 2010, which gives you plenty of time to work on fixes.

David Caraviello: A buddy and I sat in a bar one night and came up with a 25-race schedule. Two races for many of the places Dave mentioned, everybody else gets one. You're out before football season heats up and everything else gets lost.

Dave Rodman: Along with meeting parameters, certain tracks should rotate having two dates in a season. That, too, would give other facilities a chance. Any track that wants a date and can meet the criteria should have a chance. The fans, and I bet, the teams would love it.

David Caraviello: Boy, guys, all that would make selling tickets very hard.

Joe Menzer: Of course you would always need to have two races at certain places, like Daytona and Talladega ... and Vegas, baby! We need two at Vegas!

David Caraviello: Joe, the people in Vegas would be glad to see you again, too. Nobody can part ways with $100 faster.

Joe Menzer: Or $150.

Earnhardt: Don't look for changes in radio chatter

Dale Earnhardt Jr. wants there to be no mistaking how badly he wants to win the Sprint Cup championship, and Friday at Dover International Speedway he insisted that anyone who monitors his radio communications with his team will understand his passion.

He didn't apologize for the emotion he displayed last weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on his way to fifth place, and said not to expect any changes in the future -- despite a lot being made about car owner Rick Hendrick coming on his radio frequency during last week's Sylvania 300, ostensibly to calm him down.

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It's real easy to get frustrated when you're not realizing the potential every weekend, because I feel like we're a great team that should be in the thick of this. I don't want to be sitting there five races in, 150 points out, going, 'What the hell did we do wrong?'
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DALE EARNHARDT JR."I would love to be calmer under those types of situations, I would," Earnhardt said before qualifying 10th for Sunday's Camping World RV 400. "And I was [calmer], when I first started, I was. And then I got called lackadaisical. I got compared to my father and his determination. I got questioned about if I quit partying so much and focused and this, that and the other -- so now I'm on the chip and want it more than anybody else and I am getting hell for getting too excited.

"Regardless of how I act, somebody is going to criticize me one way or another and find an angle. I don't really want to change because I don't want to lose my enthusiasm and I don't want it to matter less -- I want it to matter as much as it matters to me. If that means it is going to get me excited when things don't go right, I just need to be better at controlling that, you know?"

But don't expect Earnhardt to seek professional help, such as from the sports psychologists some of his competitors have sought.

"No I haven't [seen a sports psychologist]," Earnhardt said. "But I could probably teach him a thing or two."

Virtually all of Earnhardt's success has come with his cousin, crew chief Tony Eury Jr. Earnhardt said that relationship and the cousins' affinity for each other leads to some of their broadcast emotion.

"Me and Tony Jr. have worked together for a long, long time," Earnhardt said. "I think Rick likes being in the middle of it because it's fun. I don't know of any driver on the racetrack that doesn't get hot under the collar. I don't do it every race. But I have had some real good ones you all missed apparently -- last week wasn't my best. I've had some pretty good ones.
"The Chase is real important to me. My determination has never been higher. Those things are hard to harness, you know, when you're trying to accomplish what you want to accomplish. You're leading the race all day and things go away and the car changes and there is no answer. That is all you want is an answer. So it's real easy to get frustrated when you're not realizing the potential every weekend, because I feel like we're a great team that should be in the thick of this. I don't want to be sitting there five races in, 150 points out, going, 'What the hell did we do wrong?'

Still, Earnhardt said his emotion in the car is part of who he is, and his relationship with Eury makes it easier to communicate -- something others may not understand.

"I guess I can understand how my comments are offensive and definitely over the top at times," he said. "As you get older you try to do better at that because that is just how you are supposed to act. It's hard in the car. It's hard to remember. I look at those guys and I think they are great friends of mine, but they don't know me well enough, maybe, to talk to them like that."

That was what led Hendrick to get more involved with his newest driver last weekend. With five days to digest that, Earnhardt said he welcomed his owner's involvement, anytime, anywhere.

"I think it's great," Earnhardt said. "I welcome and want Rick's input on exactly what he thinks about exactly what I'm doing every minute of the day that I'm on the job -- and even some of the things I chose to do in my personal life. I want his opinion on it, because I trust him that much. I believe what he says. I wouldn't argue with him. I just told him it would be hard to talk me off the ledge. I know he's talked a few drivers off of it before, but it's hard to get me calmed down, because I want them to get excited. I want to hear the same frustration from them. I want to know -- I'm sitting in the car, I want to know they are as diligent about it as I am as far as finding what happened.

"It makes you more angry and more angry when you hear '10-4' or 'things are going to be better.' I don't want those stock answers; I want to know exactly what's going on. Tell me exactly what you're looking for and what you think it might be. Make up something, lie to me, I don't care. That is what's going to make me feel better."

Earnhardt said the one thing he'd have a hard time doing is taking Hendrick's advice to "tone it down a little."

"I don't know," Earnhardt said. "I mean, it's just hard to take it down a little. I'm serious. I grew up in this sport and I've been raised around this and it's all I can do and it's all that matters to me. I'm very serious about it. When I'm hot on the radio, I'm challenging everybody else to get to that level and get that serious and make it mean that much to you.

"I take it pretty seriously. I understand what Rick's saying and I believe he's right, that I do need to chose my words wisely and take it easy -- only probably because of the exposure it gets, not so much because of how it affects me and Tony Jr.

"I can't do any better at communicating. I only know the car as good as I know it. I'm only going to be able to tell them and explain it to them the best way I can. I feel like I do that. I don't think when I get [upset] I communicate worse, I think it is harder for them. I think at that point, Tony Jr. isn't listening to what I'm saying and thinking how to fix the car -- he's hearing me raise hell, and wanting to raise hell back, you know?

Moving forward, Earnhardt said anyone could scan his radio communications, but at their own risk.

"I don't mind if ya'll listen, but keep your opinions to yourself -- all right?" Earnhardt said. "Because I'm doing business out there and I'm doing my job and that is how I do it. Ya'll can listen all you want, but if you hear something that upsets you, don't come crying to me or whoever said it on my radio. That's the way I feel about it. I don't want to restrict the fans' access, I like the access. If I am a fan, that is what I would want.

"Ya'll can tell, you can sit on the Internet all week and talk about [what] you want. I don't like answering questions about it and I'm not going work too damn hard about changing it because I kind of like how it is -- it keeps me motivated and enthused during the race, it keeps me from getting relaxed and monotone during the race. I don't want that to happen."

Not great, but Junior's first year at HMS a good start

MARTINSVILLE, Va. -- It wasn't a win, but second place in the TUMS QuikPak 500 at Martinsville Speedway sure felt like one for Dale Earnhardt Jr. on Sunday.

There will be no Sprint Cup Series championship for the kid named Earnhardt this year. His strong finish Sunday moved him up just one spot in the standings -- to ninth -- and hardly atoned for disastrous runs the previous two weeks at Talladega and Lowe's Motor Speedway near Charlotte, N.C.

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But to Junior and his No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports team, it was salve to apply to the open wounds left by those earlier terrible finishes that took him out of this Chase for the Sprint Cup championship almost before he ever could get up to speed.

"We ran good at Talladega and we ran good at Charlotte, and couldn't finish anything," crew chief Tony Eury Jr. said. "This was the kind of finish we really needed."

Earnhardt agreed.

"It's does feel great finishing like this," he said. "We have had such bad luck the last six weeks and tore up so many racecars. I had been proud of myself all year long for not wrecking cars and for keeping all my cars in one piece. Then I think we went through about six in the last month or something like that.

"It has been terrible. But this is good for my team."

Looking back
This was a season that began with such great promise eight months ago in Daytona, where Earnhardt won his first two races in the new No. 88 Chevrolet being fielded for him by owner Rick Hendrick. When he captured the Budweiser Shootout and his 125-mile qualifying race for the Daytona 500, however, it very well may have had the opposite effect of relieving any pressure he may have felt to succeed this season.

Indeed, it may have increased expectations on a season that already had great ones heaped upon the No. 88 team by the likes of former points champion and current television analyst Darrell Waltrip. It was Waltrip who predicted Earnhardt would win not only the season-opening Daytona 500 but "at least" five more races before the season was completed.

It was Waltrip who said that. But it was Earnhardt -- as well as Hendrick -- who did not flinch when told of Waltrip's great expectations.

As it turns out, they were too great. Earnhardt did not win a points event until gambling on fuel mileage at Michigan in mid-June, and he hasn't won another since -- despite leading lots of laps. He led at least one lap in eight of 10 races during one stretch, including 90 at Richmond, 76 at New Hampshire, 43 in a second go-round at Michigan and 33 -- nearly a third -- of a 102-lap road-course event at Watkins Glen.

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So there have been plenty of bright spots. Earnhardt has been out of the top 10 in the standings only one week out of 32 this season, so he has been remarkably consistent. He has run up front and challenged for victories.

But too many times, especially lately, his finishes had not matched the effort or the early-race successes. Sunday's did.

"This will give us momentum heading into Atlanta and Texas, and that's what we need," Eury said. "We want to finish this season strong. We run strong at these tracks coming up, and it's important to finish this off the right way and build some momentum that we can take into next year."

Learning experience
It hasn't been a horrible first year for Earnhardt at Hendrick. It just hasn't been the grand success that Waltrip and others had envisioned for him.

After Earnhardt's fifth-place finish at New Hampshire -- the first event in the 10-race Chase -- Hendrick took great pains to point out that he has been very pleased with Earnhardt's first season with his organization. But he also made it clear that he, like Earnhardt and Eury and everyone else associated with the team, believes that it could have been better and should be better in the future.

Earnhardt is hoping Sunday is a start down that path. He said he considers himself lucky to be working out of the same building as the No. 48 team of two-time defending champion Jimmie Johnson, who moved one step closer to becoming the second driver in NASCAR history to win three consecutive titles when he was the only one to finish ahead of Earnhardt at Martinsville.

"I'm fortunate enough to be in the same shop as Jimmie and see how they work and what they do," Earnhardt said. "Hopefully a lot of that stuff is going to rub off on us."

Maybe it's already starting to. There were fleeting moments when Earnhardt thought he might even catch Johnson on Sunday. But they passed before he could make the pass.

In the end, the consensus was that his car just wasn't quite strong enough.

"I would have liked to have had that opportunity and I think I could have given Jimmie a good run for his money, but I knew for a fact that wasn't going to be the outcome," Earnhardt said.

The outcome, as it was, did not turn out that badly for Earnhardt. And on the whole, neither has his first season at hm

Unilever to sponsor No. 5 car for 10 races in 2009

Unilever, a multi-national company that owns more than 400 of the world's most recognized food and home care brands, will be a primary sponsor for JR Motorsports' No. 5 Chevrolets in 10 Nationwide Series races in 2009 (watch video).

The 10-race sponsorship package will be divided amongst four popular Unilever brands -- Hellmann's mayonnaise, Ragu pasta sauce, Klondike ice cream and Lipton tea. Three different drivers will compete in select races in the Unilever-branded No. 5 car -- two-time series champion Earnhardt, all-time wins leader Mark Martin and current rookie contender Landon Cassill. Martin and Earnhardt alone combine for 70 series victories.

"Unilever is thrilled to associate our brands with two of racing's most popular and respected drivers, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Mark Martin, and with one of the sport's top rising talents, Landon Cassill," said Marc Shaw, Director of Integrated Marketing for Unilever. "By partnering with Dale Jr. and JR Motorsports, we are expanding an already successful history with NASCAR -- especially with a driver whose popularity transcends motor racing with wide appeal and recognition. We are extremely pleased that Dale, Mark and Landon will represent our brands in the 2009 NASCAR Nationwide Series."

The select races that will feature Unilever brands on the No. 5 Chevrolet are still being finalized. However, it is confirmed that Earnhardt Jr. will kick off the partnership by driving the No. 5 Hellmann's Chevy in the season-opening race at Daytona International Speedway on Feb. 14. Five of Earnhardt's 22 series victories have come at the 2.5-mile superspeedway.

"I am really excited to partner with Unilever and continue what we've been able to accomplish with JR Motorsports," said Earnhardt, who co-owns the No. 5 team with Rick Hendrick. "In a short amount of time, we've gone from an upstart, single-car team in the NASCAR Nationwide Series to having two highly competitive teams that won races in 2008. When we merged our Nationwide Series operations with Hendrick Motorsports last year, it really elevated our program to the next level. Having Unilever come on board will help us continue that momentum."

The 2009 campaign will mark the second consecutive year that Earnhardt, Martin and Cassill share driving duties in the No. 5 Chevrolet. Martin, whose 48 series victories are the most of any driver, kick-started JR Motorsports' breakout season with a win at Las Vegas in March. It was the first of two wins achieved by the No. 5 team this year, and the first of four that JR Motorsports has celebrated among its two full-time teams thus far in 2008.

Like Martin, Cassill has played a contributing role in the team's success this year. The 19-year-old driver from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, scored a career-best finish of sixth at Gateway in July, and he won the pole for the June race at New Hampshire. Cassill currently holds a one-point lead in the Raybestos Rookie of the Year standings.

"We know that NASCAR fans crave real food that tastes great and is made from simple ingredients; we're all about real food for real fans," said James Fish, Senior Brand Manager for Hellmann's and Best Foods. "One of the main platforms for our involvement in NASCAR has been to search for and reward 'real' fans, and we plan to continue and even expand our campaign with Dale Jr., Mark Martin and Landon Cassill, three NASCAR drivers who are real in every sense of the word."