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Family tradition
By JOANNE KORTH © St. Petersburg Times, published September 26, 1998 He is racing's promising future. More and more, seven-time Winston Cup champion Dale Earnhardt is racing's glorious past. Nearing 50 years old and about to wrap up his worst season since 1992, Earnhardt is beginning to think about retirement. "I turn 50 in three years, and I don't know if I want to race past that or not," said Earnhardt, whose contract to drive the No. 3 Chevrolet for owner Richard Childress expires after the 2000 season. * * *"I'm looking down the road. I want to be involved with NASCAR. I want to be part of the family, be part of the sport." Earnhardt started the 1998 season with a bang, winning the Daytona 500 for the first time in his career. But he has had little to celebrate since. Though he is eighth in the driver standings, up four places since June, Earnhardt is 1,015 points behind first-place Jeff Gordon -- well out of contention for a record eighth Winston Cup championship. Last week at Dover, Earnhardt used the past-champion's provisional to start last in the 43-car field. He finished 23rd, four laps behind winner Mark Martin. Too many more days like that, and Earnhardt may look to become a full-time owner sooner than later. Though still in its infancy, Dale Earnhardt Inc. is off to a fast start. DEI already fields one of the top teams in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series with driver Ron Hornaday. Last year, it launched the career of driver Steve Park, who pilots Earnhardt's first-year Winston Cup team. And this year, Earnhardt Jr. is leading the Busch series as a rookie with six victories. Next year, Earnhardt's oldest son, Kerry, will be a Busch series rookie, and Earnhardt Jr. will run five Winston Cup races before moving to the series full time in 2000. Earnhardt also is negotiating a deal to create a technological alliance among Winston Cup teams owned by himself, Childress and Andy Petree, all of which expect to be two-car teams by 2000. Plenty of opportunities beckon Earnhardt. But one thing about his future is certain: He will not drive his own race car. "I'm not going to drive for myself," Earnhardt said. "I don't like myself that good, and I don't want to argue with my wife about her car or my driving. That's out." ATTITUDE DRAWS HMIEL: Steve Hmiel, recently released after more than 20 years with Roush Racing, carefully chose Dale Earnhardt Inc. He will be a consultant for its Winston Cup and Busch Grand National teams. Hmiel will work with the No. 1 Winston Cup car driven by Park and the No. 3 Busch car driven by Earnhardt Jr. "I had lots of opportunities, but what I saw here was a commitment to winning and doing things the right way," Hmiel said. "Earnhardt runs a top-notch operation, and I think as this organization grows it will become one of the dominant teams in the sport." EYE ON RACING: To help make up for the loss of its National Football League contract, CBS will broadcast NASCAR races from the Miami-Dade Homestead Motorsports Complex in 1999. A three-year deal for the Busch Grand National and Winston Cup races the weekend of Nov. 13-14 was announced. DRIVER CHANGE: Steve Grissom and car owner Larry Hedrick have decided to part ways for the rest of the season. David Green, who has spent the past couple months in the Busch series, will drive the No. 41 Chevrolet at Martinsville. NEW WINNER: With Tom Kendall out of the Trans-Am series this season, Paul Gentilozzi has taken over as the dominating driver. Gentilozzi has won seven of 11 events this season and can wrap up the title this weekend. STAT OF THE WEEK: In the first 26 races of the Winston Cup season, 75 percent (98 of 130) of the top-five finishes have gone to just seven drivers -- Gordon with 20, Martin 17, Dale Jarrett 16, Jeff Burton 13, Rusty Wallace 12 and Bobby Labonte and Jeremy Mayfield with 10 each. NUTS AND BOLTS: NASCAR Craftsman Truck series regular Mike Bliss is the driver du jour for the No. 96 Chevrolet at Martinsville, while Ted Musgrave will drive the No. 77 Ford in place of injured Robert Pressley. ... Wallace has claimed three of five poles for short-track races this season and is the only driver who has led in all five events. -- Contact Joanne Korth at Korth@sptimes.com Spotlight: Dale Earnhardt Jr.CAR: No. 3 Chevrolet. AGE: 23. BORN: Kannapolis, N.C. RESIDES: Mooresville, N.C. NOTES: Earnhardt Jr. has signed a six-year deal to drive for Budweiser on the Winston Cup circuit, though he will not move to the circuit full time until 2000. The deal is estimated to be worth $10-million a year. Earnhardt Jr. drives cars owned by his father, Dale Earnhardt. Q : Will you ease into Winston Cup racing? A: We think this team is competitive enough and has the caliber of people to compete in the Winston Cup series with just a few adjustments. We have seen some Busch teams become Winston Cup teams before, and some of them have been unsuccessful. We think we know what we need to do to go to Winston Cup. We haven't announced the five races we're going to run next year. We'll have to look that over and see what's convenient with our Busch schedule. Q : Have you had some advantages early in your career that your father did not? A: My father definitely had the talent when he was my age, but a few things were lacking, and money was one of them. We'll just have to chalk it up to the changing times. There's a lot more money in the sport and a lot more sponsorships. People are a lot more experienced and skilled to put together these race teams. There's more opportunity for the drivers. Q : Are you surprised at how quickly you've been successful, and has any part of your sudden stardom been difficult? A: Everything has been happening super fast, and I'm trying to adjust to it. I don't want to adjust too much. I want to continue to be myself and do the things I like to do. Along with big business comes change. I'll have to get used to some things. I'm having a lot of fun with it. Who wouldn't be? We're just taking it as it comes, and I'm going to keep driving the cars.
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few days ago, Dale Earnhardt Jr. signed one of the richest sponsorship deals in Winston Cup racing, and he doesn't even drive on the circuit yet.
