Monday, March 9, 2009

Sometimes It's Just Plain Hard Being a Dale Jr. Fan

I'm not a card-carrying member of Junior Nation, but I am a fan of the #88 team. And so far, this fan has been more than a bit frustrated.

I'm sure fellow Junior supporters can sympathize with me. Every race you hold your breath, hoping against hope that this is the day Junebug will take that #88 car to Victory Lane. He gets two laps down and you run through all the possibilities in your head: "If Junior can just get two lucky dogs and if the first four cars run out of fuel before the finish then maybe, just maybe..."

But as every "if" becomes an "if only," you begin to wonder if a winning season just isn't the cards. Sometimes it seems as if the proverbial deck--along with valve trains, pit road and caution flags--are all stacked against him.

Listening to Junior's radio during Sunday's Kobalt Tools 500, it seemed like the #88 team was going to communicate well, make the necessary adjustments and get their guy up to the front (jokes about whacking teammates with a hammer aside).

After all, Junior was making good time and passing the field early on. But as lap after lap went by and he couldn't get higher than 11th spot, it become pretty clear that his car just wasn't fast enough. And that's the way it's been for a while. No matter how promising he starts a race, the team just can't get it together at the finish. And that's especially frustrating when his teammates are racing well and running better.

We've given it a year. But now I think it's time that somebody at Hendrick Motorsports figures out what the problem is and make the tough changes if necessary.

Until then, this frustrated fan will still be rooting for #88. And I'll be keeping hope alive that Bristol will be better.

14 comments:

  1. I agree wholeheartedly. I also think that, even though Dale Jr. and Tony Jr. THINK that they work well together, Dale needs a different crew chief. Family just can't always get the job done because they are TOO close.

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  2. Amen!!!!!! I agree with you. I'm so sick of this. Its horrible seeing JJ and Jeff have a great finish week in and week out. Maybe Rick will step in and intervene. I know its family, but sometimes working with your family isn't the best. But the question is, who would Rick put in as CC for the 88? McGrew? God, I hope not!

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  3. I think the ship is foundering and about to end up in a whole so deep they can't get out. A drastic change is needed sooner rather then later. I love the thought of Jr and Jr. But to many Jr's on a team might not be a good idea.

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  4. I think they need to Doug Richert in there to be crew chief. He led Dale Sr to a championship years ago, why can't he lead Dale Jr. I don't believe Tony Jr. needs to be fired, I think he could be the car chief. That is what he did when Jr won the two Busch championships, and the 8 car until 2006????, I think that was the year.

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  5. My comment should have read "I think they need to get Doug Richert in there to be crew chief."

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  6. Nothing has changed but the car owner. Same crew chief, same crew as before the switch. Has always
    run good, then fall apart in the end. Can not seem to figure out the problem towards the end.
    He won the two Busch championships with Tony Sr not Tony Jr? Makes you wander sometimes if the wrong Tony got the job.

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  7. Jr. didn't win with another crew chief either. I think it is a communication problem. How can Jr. tell the crew chief what the car is doing so they can make adjustments when he is yelling and screaming on the radio? I think it is more a driver problem than a crew chief problem.

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  8. Ever since Tony Jr. became the crew cheif, whether is was with the 8 or the 88 Dale, Jr. has been floundering. I agree he needs a veteran crew cheif in there not only to help the team win but maybe give Dale, Jr some advice about being a dominant driver. No doubt, Jr. can drive and can certainly run a business and deal with people as good if not better than Sr. but enough is enough, lets get back to winning!! Rick Hendrick is a very good owner and I wish he would just step in and tell Dale, Jr where it's at and make a change.

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  9. He has gotten everything he haas cried about!! New team and all and he still cant win consistently or even finish consistently. Lets face it, he is no Dale Sr. If he wasnt an earnhardt then he would just be another normal race car driver. His popularity is b/c of his father not cause of his driving skills. I dont dislike him but and people might get mad but the truth hurts..

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  10. I agree he is no Dale, Sr. however, there have been enough times where the crew has screwed him out of a win or Tony Jr. has messed up a call. He's gotten a new team but the same crew chief and some of the same crew. With the amount of resources Hendrick Motorsports has he really should have more than one win in 2008 and an 11th place finish in the chase. This year is different, Dale, Jr. is off of his game and i say that because he's making mistakes but it's the crew chief is supposed to not only to lead the crew but calm his driver down and focus. I think he's popular not only because he's an earnhardt but he's a people person and seems to be a genuinely nice guy.

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  11. Its funny to hear Jr fans endlessly support their driver without question. After all, he can do no wrong. Jr. is just a mediocre driver at best.

    His communication skills on the radio talking about what the car is doing is just plain laughable. How can a crew chief guess as to what to do to make a car better when the info he's fed just doesn't cut it?

    Then I'm sure its the crew chiefs fault when he speeds on pit road, or misses his stall, or stops outside of the box, which he does lots of.

    Lawd knows, NASCAR tries its best to keep their golden boy on the lead lap with their mystery debris cautions where Jr is the beneficiary as the lucky dawg (2 last week alone). That would be an interesting stat to see I'm sure...

    Hendrick is no idiot. He hired Earnhardt not for his driving skill, but for his popularity. Popularity brings money into the organization and the more money the better the parts, people and performance, which leads to more sponsorship dollars, etc.

    Until Jrs popularity dwindles to that of Hut Stricklin's fanbase, he will remain a staple in the Hendrick stable.

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  12. Maybe it's time to realize Junior is a second rate driver. He is not Dale Sr or even JJ. sorry I am a Junior fan and I just don't see it. I was at Talladega when his dad won his last race. JR could never pull that off. Tony jr doesn't help and at the end of the day I don't really think JR cares. He likes racing but just isn't motivated enough. Anybody see the same fire in his eyes his dad had? I sure as hell don't.

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  13. I believe it comes down to the driver. Wether he has a capable crew chief or not, Jr needs to light that fire inside of him to win. He has to want it more. He's had plenty of great cars while at Hendricks. He's also done some pretty dumb things to blow his chances of winning {see Daytona 500}. I feel if he gets a new Crew Chief, it might take more to fire him up than having his cuz there.

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