Racing Is Family Fun Again
Earnhardt Jr. excited to work with cousin in '06
By GODWIN KELLY Motorsports Editor
DAYTONA BEACH -- If you think a Nextel Cup stock car is a hunk of cold metal riding on four patches of rubber, then take a hard look at Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s situation last season.
Earnhardt had a falling out with his first cousin -- Tony Eury Jr. -- in 2004 and they worked with different Dale Earnhardt Inc. teams in 2005.
In 2004, Earnhardt won six races with Eury as his car chief. Last year, Earnhardt struggled to one victory and failed to make the Chase for the Nextel Cup playoffs. Eury was on the other side of the shop working on another driver's car.
Stock car old-timers will tell you Earnhardt was in an unhappy race car.
"Yeah, it's real easy to sit here now and think, 'Man, what a mistake' and 'What were you thinking?'
" Earnhardt said during a break in testing at Daytona International Speedway Monday. "It's bigger than anything that you guys know about. It's bigger than the sport and my success as a driver.
"It was about me and my cousin not getting along. That was more important to me. It wasn't about trying to be more successful or winning more races or being a champion. I didn't want to get to the point to where I couldn't stand my cousin anymore. That would be hard core."
Earnhardt and Eury had worked together, shoulder-to-shoulder, since the 1998 season when Earnhardt won the first of two Busch Series championships. Earnhardt's uncle, Tony Eury Sr., was his crew chief through the 2004 season.
Earnhardt said at the 2004 season final at Homestead, he never once spoke to his cousin that entire race weekend. The following week, DEI announced the big shakeup.
Eury Sr. was promoted to DEI team manager in 2005 and Eury Jr. was sent to work with Michael Waltrip and the No. 15 Chevrolet. For the first time in his racing career, Earnhardt was in the No. 8 car without family support.
Earnhardt said this family squabble was beginning to affect the entire DEI organization.
"I was thinking, 'I got to change. I've got to get away from this. It'll do him some good,' " Earnhardt said. "I was just scared to do it. I was scared to be the one to make the change or the decision to do it because a lot of people wouldn't understand it and a lot of people didn't understand it.
"The company wasn't gaining anything by the situation as it imploded, so we needed to make a change," Earnhardt said. "We didn't have any success. We could have maybe done it differently to have better success on the racetrack, but I'm glad to be where I am now."
The Earnhardt-Eury Jr. split didn't translate to any success at the racetrack. Waltrip, now with Bill Davis Racing, didn't win all season and Earnhardt managed one trip to Victory Lane. The long term effects of the breakup could produce dividends for years to come.
Earnhardt said he and Eury Jr. now have a mutual respect for each other. The tie that binds, the family blood line, is stronger than ever, Earnhardt reports.
The two men had a closed-door meeting near the end of the '05 season, worked out their differences and reconciled.
"He said some things that he normally wouldn't say and one of them was that he really had a lot of -- I don't want to over-quote him here -- but that he really had a lot of confidence in my abilities," Earnhardt said. "That's something he never even said before."
At the DEI race shop, the sky looks blue, the grass looks green and the No. 8 Chevrolet looks fast for 2006. Earnhardt could be the bounce-back story of the year.
"We've got everybody pretty much on board and we're focused and looking forward to next season," Earnhardt said. "I think we'll be strong and be able to compliment each other now. We've worked hard and improved."
"This is where we start to climb back up the hill," Earnhardt said. "Hopefully, in two or three years, we can be proud of ourselves and what we've been able to accomplish."
godwin.kelly@news-jrnl.com
By GODWIN KELLY Motorsports Editor
DAYTONA BEACH -- If you think a Nextel Cup stock car is a hunk of cold metal riding on four patches of rubber, then take a hard look at Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s situation last season.
Earnhardt had a falling out with his first cousin -- Tony Eury Jr. -- in 2004 and they worked with different Dale Earnhardt Inc. teams in 2005.
In 2004, Earnhardt won six races with Eury as his car chief. Last year, Earnhardt struggled to one victory and failed to make the Chase for the Nextel Cup playoffs. Eury was on the other side of the shop working on another driver's car.
Stock car old-timers will tell you Earnhardt was in an unhappy race car.
"Yeah, it's real easy to sit here now and think, 'Man, what a mistake' and 'What were you thinking?'
" Earnhardt said during a break in testing at Daytona International Speedway Monday. "It's bigger than anything that you guys know about. It's bigger than the sport and my success as a driver.
"It was about me and my cousin not getting along. That was more important to me. It wasn't about trying to be more successful or winning more races or being a champion. I didn't want to get to the point to where I couldn't stand my cousin anymore. That would be hard core."
Earnhardt and Eury had worked together, shoulder-to-shoulder, since the 1998 season when Earnhardt won the first of two Busch Series championships. Earnhardt's uncle, Tony Eury Sr., was his crew chief through the 2004 season.
Earnhardt said at the 2004 season final at Homestead, he never once spoke to his cousin that entire race weekend. The following week, DEI announced the big shakeup.
Eury Sr. was promoted to DEI team manager in 2005 and Eury Jr. was sent to work with Michael Waltrip and the No. 15 Chevrolet. For the first time in his racing career, Earnhardt was in the No. 8 car without family support.
Earnhardt said this family squabble was beginning to affect the entire DEI organization.
"I was thinking, 'I got to change. I've got to get away from this. It'll do him some good,' " Earnhardt said. "I was just scared to do it. I was scared to be the one to make the change or the decision to do it because a lot of people wouldn't understand it and a lot of people didn't understand it.
"The company wasn't gaining anything by the situation as it imploded, so we needed to make a change," Earnhardt said. "We didn't have any success. We could have maybe done it differently to have better success on the racetrack, but I'm glad to be where I am now."
The Earnhardt-Eury Jr. split didn't translate to any success at the racetrack. Waltrip, now with Bill Davis Racing, didn't win all season and Earnhardt managed one trip to Victory Lane. The long term effects of the breakup could produce dividends for years to come.
Earnhardt said he and Eury Jr. now have a mutual respect for each other. The tie that binds, the family blood line, is stronger than ever, Earnhardt reports.
The two men had a closed-door meeting near the end of the '05 season, worked out their differences and reconciled.
"He said some things that he normally wouldn't say and one of them was that he really had a lot of -- I don't want to over-quote him here -- but that he really had a lot of confidence in my abilities," Earnhardt said. "That's something he never even said before."
At the DEI race shop, the sky looks blue, the grass looks green and the No. 8 Chevrolet looks fast for 2006. Earnhardt could be the bounce-back story of the year.
"We've got everybody pretty much on board and we're focused and looking forward to next season," Earnhardt said. "I think we'll be strong and be able to compliment each other now. We've worked hard and improved."
"This is where we start to climb back up the hill," Earnhardt said. "Hopefully, in two or three years, we can be proud of ourselves and what we've been able to accomplish."
godwin.kelly@news-jrnl.com
1 Comments:
What would the world be like without the backscenes and politics...if on the time would pass faster to Daytona 500 Race Day!! What will the stars predict NASCAR will do this year?
Post a Comment
<< Home