Motorsports

8 that really matter

Some of the personalities with impact (including one no longer living) on the Dale Earnhardt Jr.-DEI saga.

By BY BRANT JAMES
Published February 24, 2007

You didn't get sidetracked by all that cheating and noncaution-flag waving at Daytona last week did you? Dale Earnhardt Jr. is still not signed to return to Dale Earnhardt Inc. and there are only 35 points races left until he's a free agent. Stay focused. In deference to his current car number, here are eight people who will influence where NASCAR's most popular driver hangs his helmet next season.

8 Tony Eury Sr.: Earnhardt's uncle was there from the beginning of the dream. Dale Earnhardt Sr. wanted to build a company where his and Eury's children could work and thrive as they "sat on the porch and drank beer."

7 Tony Eury Jr.: Earnhardt Jr.'s crew chief told the Times he would try to go with his cousin if he leaves. That would likely involve Earnhardt buying out his contract, as he is finally signed long term after working on a handshake deal at DEI for a decade.

6 Max Siegel: Welcome to the job, Max. The heady title of "president of global operations" certainly comes with equally profound duties. But the former record executive brings a fresh perspective from the entertainment industry and has apparently impressed Earnhardt Jr. in their informal chats. If anyone can make this work, it's him.

5 Dale Earnhardt Sr.: Would it ever have gotten to this point if he were still alive? His influence and legacy continue to shape modern events. What would he have wanted? No one can say. His image and souvenir-selling power may be all his wife, Teresa, has left if his son goes elsewhere.

4 Richard Childress: Earnhardt Sr. won six championships with the fabled team owner and Childress still possesses the right to use the famed No. 3 on the track. He has said he would love to have Earnhardt Jr. drive it one day. Earnhardt said he would like that too, but after he won championships at DEI. That was then. Earnhardt bringing sponsor Budweiser and his crew chief from DEI would make for an easier start-up for a fourth Cup team.

3 Kelley Earnhardt-Elledge: Earnhardt Jr.'s sister and president of his Busch Series team is a savvy businesswoman. She is the woman of power in his life, runs his finances, gives him a place to have family holiday dinner, defends his interests in these negotiations. She will likely be the final person Earnhardt confides in before making a decision.

2 Teresa Earnhardt: Too often painted as a gold-digger, she was married to Earnhardt for 18 years and is credited with helping him build an empire. Her quandary is finding a middle ground, somehow satisfying the franchise without becoming an employee. But she possesses the one thing he wants: ownership of DEI. She can't win a public relations battle with her stepson and she needs to hope for a tie in negotiations.

1 Dale Earnhardt Jr.: He has all the money he needs, all the fame he can handle. The one thing he lacks, the thing he wants most is ownership - 100 percent, he says - in the company his father created for him and his siblings. Personal issues run deep with his stepmother/team owner, as any child of divorce can attest. The question is whether he is willing to be his own man, as his father was, but at the same time risk DEI withering. As Tony Stewart said, DEI without Earnhardt Jr. is a museum.

[Last modified February 24, 2007, 01:30:41]