Dale Earnhardt Jr spent a lot of time in victory lane throughout the first half of the 2000's. After all, 16 of his 18 career victories occurred from 2000 to 2005. Perhaps fans and media alike took his success for granted. Sure, he was the topic of converstion quite a bit throughout his days of winning. He was the most popular driver in NASCAR, just like he is today. Articles regarding Earnhardt Jr generated the most hits. His exodus from DEI and entrance to Hendrick Motorsports was perhaps the most publicized silly season move in NASCAR history. With that said, I do not recall the media coverage of Earnhardt Jr to be as extensive as it is now.
It is no secret that Earnhardt Jr has hit a major slide in performance, with bright spots few and far between. Typically, when that happens to a driver, they tend to fall off the radar. For instance, Bobby Labonte is the 2000 champion. But, as soon as he stopped winning and contending for wins, he is rarely brought up in NASCAR talk, unless you are a Bobby Labonte fan.
Scenedaily.com, which is a reputable publication by the way, covers Earnhardt Jr rather frequently, sometimes having two or three articles dedicated to Earnhardt and his quest to break out of this agonizing slump. Other publications follow suit. It seems as if they post an Earnhardt article when it is not really necessary. Do not mistake me, I am not complaining, but it is an interesting observation that not only myself, but thousands of others have noticed.
Perhaps the media took Earnhardt Jr for granted when he was winning. We could have had a field day back when he was winning and running towards the front on a weekly basis in that red Budweiser Chevy. We all know, covering Earnhardt Jr satisfies a colossal portion of the NASCAR fan base. Why else would so much Internet real estate be dedicated to a driver who has a total of two wins in five years?
Earnhardt Jr will win again someday, I truly believe that. So, when that happens, we will have reason to write and read articles about a victories Earnhardt instead of one who is frustrated, wondering when that next win will occur, or how crucial qualifying is for him at a particular track.
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Thursday, July 21, 2011
The Decision NASCAR-style: Edwards and Bowyer
On the surface, Carl Edwards and Clint Bowyer are in enviable places. Both drivers have had the luxury of developing into successful drivers with top tier teams. Edwards joined Roush Fenway's Truck program in 2003, and eventually replaced Jeff Burton in the No. 99 Ford in August of 2004.
Richard Childress spotted a young Clint Bowyer driving an underfunded ARCA ride at Nashville in 2003, and was rather impressed. He swiftly signed Bowyer to a developmental contract, and by 2005, he was contending for the Nationwide (then-Busch) Series title. In 2006, he joined RCR's Cup program, finishing second to Denny Hamlin in the Rookie of the Year standings.
Edwards currently leads the standings with one victory, and Bowyer is well within striking distance of entering Chase eligibility. So, why are the two free agents still unsigned for 2012 and beyond?
For Bowyer, it is about sponsorship. At RCR, a sponsorship package has yet to be arranged, and the team is in negotiations with current sponsors General Mills and BB&T for 2012. Because of the sponsorship uncertainty and the fact that Childress' grandsons Austin and Ty Dillon are developing at a rapid pace in lower divisions, Bowyer apparently considered joining Red Bull Racing only because of the guaranteed sponsorship attached to the deal, and the fact that he would become the flagship driver. When Red Bull announced that they are abandoning their NASCAR program, Bowyer's backup plan diminished, therefore the pressure is even higher to sign a deal with RCR, which has always been Bowyer's first choice.
Weeks after the Red Bull announcement, there is no indication that a deal is close to being completed for Bowyer and RCR.
Edwards' circumstance is different. While Bowyer is vocal regarding where he wants to drive in 2012, Edwards is vague. He has not stated exactly where he wants to drive. All he says is that he wants to drive for an organization that gives him the best opportunity to win a Sprint Cup championship. Well, is there a better organization than Roush Fenway Racing?
Hendrick Motorsports is out of the equation. Joe Gibbs Racing and RCR are the only other groups that would be considered equal to Roush Fenway. RCR is a highly unlikely candidate, and it is reported that Edwards' decision has come down two teams.
Joe Gibbs Racing sponsor Home Depot highly covets Edwards, who is not only marketable and sponsor-friendly, but is one of the few true threats to dethrone the Lowe's-sponsored Jimmie Johnson, unlike Joey Logano, who is developing slower than many anticipated.
The only thing we really know is that Edwards will either drive for Roush or Gibbs in 2012. The longer it takes for him to reveal his decision, the more it appears as if Edwards will jump ship to the Gibbs organization. If he was going to remain with Roush, I believe he would have said so by now.
Let us hope that Edwards does not pull a LeBron James.
Here is a quick possible scenario-
Edwards to the No. 20 Home Depot Toyota, with Logano moving to the fourth team, the No. 19 Gamestop/SportsClips Toyota.
Bowyer will have the best of both worlds, with Red Bull sponsorhip on the No. 33 RCR Chevrolet.
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
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Thursday, July 14, 2011
Media Confuses Stats By Combining Busch's Win Totals
This has been a thorn in my side for months now. Ever since the 2011 season began, the media has kept a close eye on Kyle Busch's win total from all three NASCAR series. Following his victory at the Traffic Jam 400 in Kentucky, he notched his 99th career win in NASCAR. While this is impressive no doubt, it is misleading.
Prior to Busch's recent ascendancy in the Nationwide and Camping World Truck Series, and his success in the Sprint Cup Series, the media never combined any other driver's win total. If so, then they would have been on the edge of their seat in the 1992 when Darrell Waltrip won his 84th career Cup race at Darlington, giving him 97 career NASCAR wins. You see, Waltrip won 13 races in the Busch Grand National Series. He was closing in on the exclusive '100-win' milestone. I do not recall any media hype surrounding Waltrip's combined win total.
Dale Earnhardt often competed in the Busch Series back in the day. In fact, he won 21 races in that series. Add that to his 76-win total in the Cup series, Earnhardt was on the verge of the '100-win' club prior to his tragic death with 97. There is no doubt that he would have likely exceeded that mark. However, as polarizing as Earnhardt was, people seemed to overlook his combined win total.
How about the ageless Mark Martin? Martin's win total is at 96. He is still competing and plans to in 2012 and beyond. Even if he does not have another Cup win in him, he still has the ability to win four more races in the Nationwide Series or Camping World Truck Series. However, I never hear the media combine Martin's win total.
When you combine win totals, it can be confusing. Based on the Kyle Busch rule of stats, Martin has won more NASCAR races than Jeff Gordon, who has a combined 89 wins (84 Cup, 5 Nationwide). As wonderful as Martin's career has been, he is not Jeff Gordon. But, he has more wins, as he opted to compete in other series. Gordon focused most of his attention on his Cup program.
In my humble opinion, you keep the win totals separate. I do not hear John Kruk, Wendy Nix, or any of the Baseball Tonight crew counting wins and strikeouts for Cliff Lee when he was in the minor leagues and adding them to his Major League totals.
So, why the obsession with Busch's win total? Here is my take. In the world of sports, records are meant to be broken. The sports world watched in excitement as Hank Aaron broke Babe Ruth's all-time home run record or when Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa raced to shatter the 61-single season home run mark held by Roger Maris. The same can be said when Tom Brady broke Peyton Manning's single season record of touchdowns.
Richard Petty holds the NASCAR record with 200 career wins, all in Cup, although many were in a completely different era. Distantly trailing Petty is David Pearson with 105 wins. Gordon has 84 Cup wins, and is the active leader in wins. However, there is no chance that he will sniff Petty's win total. It is never going to happen. Therefore, the media has watched Busch tear up the Truck and Nationwide Series, as well as notch a nice amount of wins in Sprint Cup. Ah-ha, now there is way in which we can promote an all-time record being shattered, a record that is legitimately untouchable.
I guess they are not satisfied with Jimmie Johnson's astonishing record of five consecutive championships.
In a few years, it is likely that Busch's win total will reach 200. However, by this logic, Busch better not stop at 201, because Petty has a win in the long-defunct NASCAR convertible series. So, Petty actually has 201 wins.
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