Is Dale Jr.'s Dream Sprint Cup Season Over?
When Dale Earnhardt Jr. opened the season with a win in the Daytona 500, it set into motion a series of events that many believed would result in Junior's first Sprint Cup Series championship.
In the weeks following Junior's second Daytona 500 victory, he posted a second-place finish at Phoenix, another runner-up finish at Las Vegas, and two weeks later he finished third at Martinsville. Two races after that, when Junior finished second to Kevin Harvick at Darlington, it was obvious that Junior was going to be a force to reckon with in 2014.
He's made every effort to back that up in the weeks since. He's won both Pocono races, for one. Keep in mind that Pocono was never one of Junior's best tracks, with 11 top 10s in his previous 28 starts. He placed third at Sonoma during the summer as well—Sonoma, where Junior made several consecutive starts that saw him turned around in a cloud of smoke and dust at least once during the race.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Junior's run of success carried well into August until the night race at Bristol where he was collected in an accident with Denny Hamlin. Afterward, things went downhill for Junior. After finishing 39th that night, he finished no better than ninth at Loudon in the six races since.
True, it isn't indicative of how strong the No. 88 has been in the races since. Sunday at Kansas, before pounding the wall, Junior led 45 laps and appeared to have the strongest car in the field. That performance alone should sum up that Junior's issues haven't been for lack of strength this season. If anything Junior's been hanging in there with the strongest teams this year.
However, with two races left before the next four drivers are eliminated, Junior has got to win or have an extreme bit of good luck, as 42 points aren't as easy to make up as two points. He may have some luck at Charlotte this weekend. In May he led 13 laps before issues relegated him to a 19th-place finish. After Charlotte comes Talladega, where once upon a time Junior was the man to beat.
The new Chase format gives a lot of scenarios and little room for error, especially when it comes to a driver in a hole like Junior's. He's not alone in that hole, as teammate Jimmie Johnson and former champion Brad Keselowski also had issues at Kansas.
What's sad about this is that Junior has a tendency to fade when the season is nearing an end. He may start off strong like he did this season, but by the time the season comes to a close he isn't considered a title threat. Good examples of this include the 2004 season, the 2006 season and the 2008 season. He started those seasons off with a bang, but come Homestead he went out with a whimper.
It's starting to look like Junior's career year of 2014 is shaping up to be the same: in with a bang at Daytona, out with a whimper at Kansas. It's heartbreaking, considering how everyone seemed to be riding a high that lasted through the regular season.
This was Junior's first multiple-win season since 2004. He was posting great results at his toughest tracks, but now it looks like he's going to fall to the side while the Penske Racing Fords and Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jeff Gordon run circles around the competition.
There are six races left in the season. There are a lot of great tracks coming up for Junior and a lot of chances for him to add to his win total for 2014. It can be done, but it's looking more and more like a long shot for the No. 88 team.
Follow Joseph on Twitter: @Shelton500.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
