What's happening at Earnhardt Ganassi Racing?

I suppose the simple answer to this question is a ton of uncertainty is happening.  At present, it would appear that only 2 cars out of the combined teams now have sponsorship for 2009.  The number 1 Chevrolet of Martin Truex Jr. appears to have full sponsorship for 2009 with Bass Pro Shops.  Juan Pablo Montoya appears to have at least partial sponsorship from Target, Big Red, and other associated gum brands.

The 15, which won 2 Daytona 500's with Michael Waltrip at the wheel, will not run in 2009 unless a driver and sponsor can be found.  With the latest driver, Paul Menard now driving a Ford for Yates Racing, apparently the 15 will be on hold in 2009.   The 8 of Aric Almirola as of now has announced no sponsorship for 2009, though supposedly the plan is to attempt a full Cup season in the car.

The really big news as of right now is that the 41 is no longer 'owned' by Earnhardt Ganassi Racing.  Jeremy Mayfield has registered the 41 number for at least the Daytona 500, and Jeremy Mayfield is the owner of that team.  They're also running Toyota's, and so far as I know Earnhardt Ganassi isn't running Toyotas this year.

I sincerely hope that the 8 car of Almirola picks up some sponsorship in 2009.  It would be a shame to see a number with such a storied history be eliminated from competition in 2009 because no sponsor can be found.  This is still an Earnhardt owned car, and the quick decline from prominence on the track is disturbing.

The 2009 season is shaping up, and there are a ton of changes.  Some of these changes are probably good for the sport, but probably an equal number are not so good.  

Here's hoping for a good 2009 season.

Negative Feelings (And what you can do with them)

How's it looking for your driver this year?  Do you hope he wins it all or are you hoping that he loses just to prove a point?

Say your driver is Jeff Gordon.  Do you dislike Steve Letarte to the point that you hope your driver loses again just to prove your point about Steve?  Or say you're a Dale Earnhardt Jr. fan.  Do you want Dale to lose to prove your point about Tony Eury Jr. being his crew chief?  It would seem like there is a lot of this type of sentiment going around in 2009.

Personally, I've never been a fan of either Jimmie Johnson or Chad Knaus, but they seem to have a winning combination together, let's make that 3 years so far.  Your 2006, 2007, and now 2008 champion have been not only Jimmie Johnson, but also Chad Knaus, because he's been integral in every one of those race wins, and every one of those championships.  Without one, you could not have had the other.  Facts are part of life, folks.   Jimmie and Chad have indeed won three championships in a row.

Love Jeff Gordon or hate him.  It doesn't matter to me.  His crew chief right now is Steve Letarte, and without Steve, Jeff will win exactly nothing.  Oh, he's already done that, you may say?  Sure he has.  In 2008, Jeff Gordon was completely victory free for the first time since he started racing in the Cup series.  Does the fact that Jeff Gordon didn't win a race in all of 2008 make him fire his crew chief?  Not so far.

Relationships between drivers and crew chiefs are difficult to explain.  Take my driver, for instance.  Dale Earnhardt Jr. barely won at Michigan last year.  His crew chief is Tony Eury Jr., who also happens to be Dale's cousin.  Tony Eury Jr. has said that he doesn't read much stuff on the internet, because it basically pollutes his mind when it comes to racing.  Tony Jr. is 100 per cent dedicated to being Dale Jr.'s crew chief, and Dale seems to be 100 per cent committed to having Tony Jr. on top of the pit box on Sundays.  We as fans have many ways to voice our opinions, but drivers can only go so far in that realm.  Crew chiefs have even fewer outlets, if they want to remain sane.

I believe that in 2009, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is the real deal.  He wants to win races.  He wants to win the Cup.  His chosen crew chief is Tony Eury Jr.  No one is better qualified to make the call as to who sits on top of the 88 team's pit box in 2009 than Dale Earnhardt Jr.  If Dale says it will be Tony Eury, Jr, then who am I to argue with that decision?  I'm a fan, just like you.  I have no say in making that decision.

So, as one fan to another, I say sit down, shut up, buckle in, and let's get ready to have a ride in 2009.  Voice your opinions all you want to, but don't expect your driver to change his mind because of your opinion.  If you were that smart in the first place, Rick Hendrick, Chip Ganassi, Richard Childress, Jack Roush or a host of other owners would have hired you long before now, and you wouldn't have time to be reading this.

Buckle up and get ready, because here we go.

My Vote for 2009 Champion

Yep, I'm talking about my boy Dale Earnhardt Jr.  I think he can do it all in 2009.  Think I 'm kidding?  I kid you not.

Dale Jr. has been trying for this chapter in his career all his racing life, and this year, his second with one of the best teams in existence, Hendrick Motorsports, might be his best chance.  Dale Jr. and Tony Eury Jr., cousin and crew chief either have it figured out or they don't.  I'm betting that they do.  I'm guessing that Dale Jr. does what his fans want him to do this season:  Win.  And win big.

Hendrick Motorsports has given Dale and Tony a plan for how to win in 2009.  Between these guys, they can figure out the details.  They've both been racers for too long not to figure it all out by now.  I say, look out for Dale Jr. in 2009.

He's going to win races.  Eventually, he'll win championships.  He's too good to lose.  He's going to do great things in 2009.

I believe it.  I suggest you do too.

Paris? Berlin?

I'm getting some strange hits on the blog lately.  Paris, France?  Berlin, Germany?  That's strange.  I appreciate them all, but where are these hits coming from?  I want more hits from South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama, Florida, Virginia, and places like that.  That's the roots of NASCAR.

It's a good time to get prepared for a world of changes in NASCAR for 2009.  Bobby Labonte will be in the 96 Ford, not the 43 Dodge.  A lot of other drivers will be in different cars.  Try to spot Scott Riggs, or try to identify the UPS car this year, if you haven't been in the loop.  (Hint: The UPS car will be a Ford this year)

A new feature on the blog is the ability to follow this blog.  You can be the first, or the second to try it out.  I don't know exactly what it does, but you can do it.  I followed another blog member's blog, just to see if I could.  It's Dan Scott's blog, and Dan is a talk show host at 104.9 FM in Clemson, SC.  Dan has been battling with losing weight, and I wish him all the best.  My best answer for losing weight is stress.  Stress about losing your home, or not having enough money to pay your doctor's bills or feed your cats.  That's stress.  Do it, and I can pretty much guarantee you will lose weight.  I've personally gone from about 205 to 170.  Stress.  It works.

I live in the middle of NASCAR's traditional territory, but no one around here talks about NASCAR on the radio.  Is that a niche that needs to be filled?  If so, I could probably do it.  Besides my wonderful writing skills, I also have a pretty good radio voice.  I've been an amateur radio operator since 1994.  I could do a one to three hour show on weekends, talking about NASCAR in all it's glory.  I'm here for you, guys!  Let me know.

It's Daytona speed weeks time, and I'm jazzed as I can be.  Let's get this show on the road, boys and girls!  Let's get it on!

Getting Ready for the Big Show

As I write this, February is only a matter of days away, and the arrival of February can only mean one thing:  It's time to head to Daytona for Speed Weeks and eventually the grandest spectacle in NASCAR, which of course is the Daytona 500.

At the latest count, there are 54 cars vying for the 43 available starting positions in the 500.  Bad economy?  What bad economy?  Though the Daytona 500 is indeed the biggest race of the year, and subsequently has the biggest purse of all the races, the fact that 54 teams are attempting to make the field in 2009 shows that some small teams are taking advantage of recent team shut downs and mergers to toss their collective hats into the Daytona ring.

It's been announced that Kirk Shelmerdine, who began his NASCAR career as a crew chief, will attempt not just the Daytona 500, but all 36 races in 2009.  Shelmerdine will drive the 27 Ford as an owner/driver in attempting to qualify for the Daytona 500.  Who says the days of owner/drivers are over?  Just look at Robby Gordon.  

Another owner/driver is a man we have not heard much about lately.  Jeremy Mayfield will reportedly attempt to qualify an as yet unnumbered Toyota in February.  Derricke Cope and Joe Nemechek will also attempt to qualify in cars they own.

Another surprise, at least for me, was seeing car owner John Carter on the early entry list.  By all accounts, Carter, a northeast Georgia businessman, had ceased operations late last year. Apparently, however, the 08 Dodge lives, and making yet another attempt to qualify the car will be none other than James Hylton, who ran his first race in 1964, the year after this writer was born.  James Hylton was 29 years old at the time.  I'll let you do the math, but don't count Hylton out.  He's nearly qualified at Daytona in just the last few years.

In other news that I personally consider to be surprising, JR Motorsports Nationwide series driver Brad Keselowski will attempt to race in his first Daytona 500, piloting the 09 Chevy with Miccosukee Resorts and Gaming as a sponsor.  The car is owned by James Finch, and while Brad is in the car, Hendrick equipment will be used.  It's reported that Keselowski will attempt several Cup races in the car this year, and when Brad isn't in the car, the team will switch to Dodge and other drivers.  This is not unheard of in NASCAR, but it's a phenomena we have not seen since the 1980's.  I personally want to wish that team well, and I feel that Brad Keselowski has a bright future ahead of him as a Sprint Cup driver.

There will once again be two Labontes attempting the starting grid in 2009.  Bobby Labonte, in his new ride in the number 96 Ask.com  Ford, has owners points as the new driver for the Hall Of Fame Racing team.  In a rather unprecedented move, HOF switched from Toyota to Ford, and has aligned itself with Yates Racing, which means that the 96 car will have some of that famous Yates/Roush horsepower under the hood in 2009.  Brother Terry will attempt to make the field in the MSRP Motorsports owned Toyota.  Remember, Terry Labonte does have the 2nd most recent champion's provisional, so he has an excellent shot at making the field.  It will be nice to see both Labontes on the track again.

One other owner/driver who will be attempting to put his car in the field is Norm Benning, who we last saw in a Cup race in 1993.  Kelly Bires will attempt the race, as will Mike Wallace, Mike Skinner, Carl Long, and the most famous head of hair in all of NASCAR, Boris Said.

One other driver I'm happy to see at Daytona in 2009 is almost winner, and 2008 Rookie of the Year Regan Smith, who will be qualifying the number 78 Furniture Row Chevy.  Regan's ride basically dissolved after the 2008 season at Dale Earnhardt Inc., which is now Earnhardt Ganassi Racing.  One of my greatest fears going into the 2009 season was that last year's ROTY would not even have a ride in 2009.  Smith has some good skills as a driver, and I wish him well.

It's time to buy your favorite driver's new hat and tee shirt, a truck load of your favorite beverages and snacks, and as Larry MacReynolds says, pull on those belts one more time and get ready for NASCAR, 2009.  It's just around the corner, and it's time to get it on!

They All Died Too Young

Since this is mostly a NASCAR based blog, I can't help but lead off with a few NASCAR drivers that died far ahead of their time.  Of course there's Dale Earnhardt, but I get tears in my eyes when I think about Davey and Clifford Allison and what their lost lives mean to the NASCAR world.

Had Davey and Clifford lived, there is no telling what the sport would be like today.  I doubt that anyone who was a fan of the sport in the early 1990's doubts that Davey Allison would have eventually won championships.  We'll never know about Clifford, who lost his life only a few months before we lost Davey.  

In the year 2000, Nascar took a very tragic double hit when Kenny Irwin Jr.  and Adam Petty lost their lives.  Irwin was a hot young driver in the Cup series at the time of his death, and Adam was just getting started.  Adam was the 4th generation from Petty Enterprises to get into racing, and his death effectively snuffed out the hopes of the Petty name continuing to be what it once was in racing.  We of course will never know what Adam Petty might have meant to racing.  He died at such a young age that his true potential was never realized.  

NASCAR stars obviously aren't they only people who sometimes die at an early age.  Ronnie Van Zant, front man for the band Lynyrd Skynyrd died in a plane crash while still in his 20's.  Perhaps Ronnie's most famous performance was the live rendition of the song "Free Bird", which was performed at the Fox Theater in Atlanta.  The song was basically a tribute to Duane Allman, who in my opinion might have been the greatest guitarest of all time.  Duane died in motorcycle accident in Macon, Ga, back in the early 1970's.  Just a few years later, Van Zant died in Mississippi.  They both died way too young.  But then, so did Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and Jim Morrison.  So did Stevie Ray Vaughan.

What would the music world be like had Jimi Hendrix lived?  What would the NASCAR world be like if Dale Earnhardt was still with us?  Neither are questions we can answer for sure, but I'm guessing either way, it would be a better world.

Will NASCAR ever be as Fun Again?

Since I've never been a prognosticator, I'm not really going to attempt to answer my own question, and I'll leave that up to you to do.  NASCAR has such a rich history of personalities, that today's almost seemingly homogenized race car driver seems almost boring to me.  There are a few exceptions, of course, but when one watches a typical interview with the average driver, one can fall asleep.  We know there will be the gratuitous sponsor mentions, as well as thanking the team and owner, and perhaps the car manufacturer.  How often, though, does a driver really say what's on his mind?

In my perhaps not so humble opinion, NASCAR needs more 'characters' than it currently has.  When I use the term 'character', I'm really talking about a guy who's willing to speak his mind, and maybe stir up trouble a little.  Love him or hate him, Darrell Waltrip was probably the all time master at being a 'character'.  Even when he was a young driver, Darrell was always good for an interview before or after a race.  Darrell would say something that either made the audience laugh out loud or make their blood boil.  Fortunately for us, DW has not lost that ability.  Even in the booth for FOX he provokes us in similar ways, just like he used to do as a driver.  Darrell Waltrip, thank God people like you are still around.

Kyle Busch is much the 21st century version of DW.  Kyle makes people mad practically every time he opens his mouth, which is actually a good thing for the sport.  People love to hate Kyle Busch, and I have to salute him for keeping it real and keeping the sport interesting.  I'm obviously not a Kyle Busch fan, but I salute him for having the guts to wear the black hat for NASCAR.

If you want to see frankness from a driver, you can still look to interviews with Kevin Harvick.  Like Dale Earnhardt, the driver he replaced at Richard Childress Racing, you can still count on Kevin to give it to you straight.  When Kevin's had a bad day, he won't sugar coat things for you.  If he's annoyed with another driver, he'll tell you about it.  That's what NASCAR needs right now; the truth, and straight from the mouth of a p.o'ed driver.

I hope that NASCAR does not become so generic that we can't tell the drivers apart anymore.  NASCAR is unique in that there are relatively few players on any given Sunday, and we get to know them all, by how the drive and the personality, or lack thereof, they exude in front of the TV cameras.  I would give anything for a return of Bobby Allison, Junior Johnson, Neil Bonnett, Tim Richmond, and others that used to give the sport so much of the special flavor that we as fans loved.  Personally, I think that NASCAR will be just fine as long as we have drivers like the Busches, the Earnhardts, the Harvicks, and even the Johnsons and Gordons.  

I'd just like to see more personalities on display though.