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A Must Win

4/6/2009

The notion of a "must win" has become a cliché in sports journalism. Or, should I say, sports punditry.

Strictly speaking, only a victory that avoids elimination from championship contention - or, maybe, getting fired - is a "must."

Still: Talladega, April 26, and/or Richmond, May 2, are as close to "must" wins for Dale Earnhardt Jr. as is possible less than a third of the way into the Sprint Cup season.

Those tremors you've been feeling haven't come from the latest California earthquake - Junior Nation is getting restless. Very restless.

The ramifications are much more serious than chatroom and Charlotte-area radio talk show gripes about crew chief Tony Eury Jr.

The Earnhardt Slump is increasingly unsettling for those who monitor the TV, attendance and souvenir sales numbers. There's already troubles enough with the economy, entertainment-challenged Car of Tomorrow, and the publicity vehicle of general circulation newspapers fading like last month's headlines. The NASCAR industry itself is fueled by Dale Jr. The Star, not Junior The Straggler.

All of this combines to increase the need to succeed.

And, yes, to employ yet another cliché - The Pressure.

Junior himself set the wrong tone for his second act in Rick Hendrick's No. 88 Amp Chevrolet with mystifying pit stop misses at Daytona. Then, giving the impression he was driving too hard to compensate, triggering the Big One. Since then, it's been weak runs week-in-and-week out. For his enormous and passionate fan constituency, Great Expectations have turned into Great Exasperations.

Earnhardt has gotten to grousing about the non-stop media pondering on the effectiveness of his relationship with Eury Jr. A storyline magnified by Kyle Busch's remarkable runs in his role as an ex-Hendrick driver.

"I put myself in this position," Junior admitted a few weeks ago. "I'm willing to accept the ups and downs and the goods and bads that come with it. We haven't run like we want to, like I think we should. It's alright for everyone to point that out."

Then came the Big "But" . . .

"I have said it a hundred times, and it just doesn't seem to make a dent, but the guy that I feel bad for is Tony Jr. because he gets criticized so badly. Everybody in this (press) room and some of you have criticized him yourselves, know how smart a guy he is. Truly know that he is a good mechanic and a solid crew chief.

"He just wanted to do this for a living, just like I do, but I'll take the fall. I would rather be crucified than him. Because every time I read in the paper that people are on his case, I feel like I am sending my brother to jail for a crime I committed, you know what I mean. It is kind of tough sometimes, but I feel bad for him because he just wants to work and have fun. He just wants to race. That is what everybody in the garage wants to do, we just all want to race.

"I understand that I need to run better. I understand what everybody . . . understand y'all's point of view when y'all say, 'What gives, where is the results?' I understand that and I am out there bustin' my butt trying to make it happen. That is my goal until nobody will include me in this sport, that is my goal, to make it happen. I just wish it were an easier job for him and the guys on the team. They take a little bit of the blow too, it is tough working on that team."

There was more in defense of his cousin.

"There are riffs between every driver and every crew chief and they work it out or they don't. I think me and Tony Jr. do a pretty good job of working it out. Obviously, through everything we have been through, we still love each other to death and would do anything for each other.

"Whether we are the perfect combination or not, that doesn't mean anything to me. I just like racing with him. That is what I want to do, you know, for the rest of my life."

Privately, Hendrick -- the eight-time Cup champion team owner -- has asked both Juniors what they need to improve. Publicly, he's worked to soothe the fans' turbulent emotions.

"My philosophy is, if you can, tweak it and keep inching it forward before you've got to just cut it apart to try to completely rebuild it," Hendrick explained.

"I can tell you this: Both of these guys, both Junior and Tony, have told me that if they thought that they need to be split, that they understood. And that's my call, and I'm not ready to make that call, not even close. Matter of fact, I feel better about it since we have been working through it with our guys.

"I'm convinced that they are better together . . . And I just think we have got the right combination. And I think we are going to be able to prove that to you folks here pretty soon."

Talladega - where 10-time winner Earnhardt Sr. became legendary for his supposed ability to "see" the air - and where spectators seemingly think five-time winner Earnhardt Jr. walks on water - is the place for the No. 88 family to get healthy. It wouldn't solve all the ills, but it would give the sport at least a short-term boost. And prevent disillusionment from sending the team's entire season spinning out of control. Ditto, Richmond, where Junior Nation has cheered on three occasions.

Those would appear to be Earnhardt's best chances for victory until the series returns to Daytona July 4. That's the Cup marathon's halfway point -- too long for all involved to wait.

So, go ahead, write it down: For Dale Earnhardt Jr. Talladega and/or Richmond are, indeed, "must" wins.

[ Next column: April 20 ]

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(I.N. Sider is the pen name for an independent motorsports business-person who has a quarter-century of professional experience working in almost every major North American racing series. The writer is not an employee of Valvoline or Ashland Inc. The column is intended to inform, entertain, and stimulate thought on the contemporary motorsports scene. The opinions expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of Valvoline or Ashland Inc.)

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