Dale Earnhardt Jr. Needs a New Crew Chief

Alright ya'll, here is the thing. Dale Earnhardt Jr. is not his dad.

We know this. However, except for his very first year in the Cup where he ran only five races, he has never placed out of the top 19 overall.

So, why all the hate? Why all the dismay? Dale Jr. is just getting started. He finished 19th in 2005. That was his worst season by far, points wise.

Here is what I am speaking of:

              Wins      Top 5’s   Top 10’s        Final Rank

2000        2             3                  5                16th

2001        3             9                 15                 8th

2002        2             11               16               11th

2003        2             13               21                 3rd

2004        6             16               21                 5th

2005        1             7                 13               19th

2006        1             10               17                 5th

2007        0              7                12               16th

2008        1             10               16               10th    (One Race to go in season)

Avg.         2             9.5              15.1     

You take the average NASCAR driver, and put his stats together, they won’t look that good. Not even close.

Yes, there is Rowdy, Cousin Carl, JJ, Jeff Gordon, and a handful of others who’s stats compare or go beyond what Junior is averaging.

Roughly 34 percent of the time, he was in the top 10. So why all the Junior hating? I’ll tell you why.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. is just a bit above average except for restrictor plate racing, where he excels. However in 2005, he went through several crew chiefs before DEI settled on his cousin, of the same age, Tony Eury Jr.

Tony’s father, Tony Eury Sr., was promoted within the DEI organization at the end of 2004 and had been Junior’s only Crew Chief up until then.

In the 2005 season they went through two crew chiefs, with no success, then Tony Jr. came in and semi-righted the ship and came in fifth the following year.

However, after that, there has been almost nothing. No Junior Championships, no spectacular wins, nothing.

With the move to Hendrick Motorsports, Dale has the equipment, now he needs the crew chief. Sorry Tony Jr. you just haven’t figured out the C.O.T. Simple as that.

Poor pit strategy, poor communication, and downright orneriness is the reason Dale Jr. is not winning more races. As a Dale Jr. fan, I can admit, the Michigan win was somewhat of a fluke. Would he have won without the first caution? Maybe.

Had it not been for the last second caution, he would not have won the race. He would have run out of gas and Kasey Kahne could have been the winner had the caution not come out soon after the white flag.

Despite the colorful language that flows from their mouths, Dale Jr. and Tony Jr. do not mix as driver/crew chief. They just do not.

The strategy for the old car, you could put 4 to the floor and the pedal to the medal, but the COT, you need to figure out strategy. Fuel mileage is one, tire wear, etc.

Tony Eury Jr. just has not done that. There have been many races this year that Dale Jr. had in the bag, until an off cycle or not needed cycle pit stop called for but Tony Jr., costing him critical track position.

In the age of the latest car NASCAR has mandated, it is no longer “If You’re not First, You’re Last” anymore. It is strategy, points, and so much more.

As the newest car has made the competition more about points than winning, passing via the draft is about the only way, and once a car gets a few car lengths ahead, there is almost no catching up unless via caution.

So, in conclusion, Dale Earnhardt Jr. will win a NASCAR Cup Championship, maybe not next year, but he will.

Now he has gotten the “Hollywood” out of him, being instructed by a mentor that is not afraid to reign him in (Rick Hendrick), oh, and lets not forget, the sharing of knowledge of Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon, nor the full time addition of wily veteran Mark Martin.

Get Junior a new crew chief who knows the COT, or force Eury Jr. to stick to Chad Knause like white on rice. Because Eury Jr. and Dale Jr. are at conflict, despite what people say.

*Stats are from Wikipedia, keyword Dale Earnhardt Jr

Several facts reviewed/confirmed via information available via nascar.com