The people's choice: Dale Earnhardt Jr. sends a message for next year
By CURT CAVIN
Barring an extraordinary collapse in the season's final two races, Matt Kenseth will be crowned NASCAR's 2003 Winston Cup champion later this month. But the People's Champion has long been decided. Dale Earnhardt Jr. took that honor the moment his father died in the Daytona 500 in 2001, and he's building on it as he grows into the role.And the thing is, the mature way the sometimes-silly Earnhardt has been driving of late, he might just hold both crowns next season.
Earnhardt dominated the Checker Auto Parts 500k at Phoenix International Raceway to grab his second race win of the season. He also solidified his second-place status in the pursuit of Kenseth and offered a strong message to the 8-car-crazed legions that roared with approval after he burned tire rubber on the front straightaway."If we don't win [the championship] this year," he said, "we're going to win it next year."
This is Earnhardt's fourth full Winston Cup season, and he has won nine races. Sunday's win was only his second of the season, but that's proof he can chase a title with consistency and smarts. He is third in top-five finishes and second in top-10s. Yes, Earnhardt has an advantage in the restrictor-plate races, but he led 195 laps this season at Martinsville, the tightest course on the circuit, and 120 at New Hampshire, which like Phoenix is a mile in length. He led 87 of the 312 laps Sunday at Phoenix.As the pressure to catch Kenseth has intensified late in the season, Earnhardt has stayed steady and strong, earning five top-10 finishes in the past six races.
Earnhardt, who turned 29 in October, said the reason for his track improvement is comfort at home. He recently signed a contract to remain with the team his stepmother owns through the 2007 season. Dale Earnhardt Inc. has improved his pit crew, and there have been fewer pit-road mistakes. That has led to trust and new friendships, he said.
Earnhardt said there was a time not long ago when the only shop people he felt comfortable with were crew chief Tony Eury Sr., his father's best friend, and Eury's son, Tony Jr. But Earnhardt said he now has a relationship with "99 percent of the employees" at DEI, which gives him the comfort to visit almost every day he's in town. Amidst the Phoenix crazies celebrating his win Sunday were a band of Budweiser-clad crew members jumping around like children. That enthusiasm led Earnhardt to describe the feeling as "the best day I've had in the sport.
"To see the expression of my guys when I came down pit road; that's the most kick-ass thing about the whole thing," he said. "We all did it together."
As Earnhardt was speaking to the media in the post-race news conference, a woman rapped on the window to get his attention. Then she raised her shirt. He smiled.This popularity business of his seems to grow wackier by the day, and he said there haven't been many better salutes than the one the Phoenix fans as a whole gave him. Someone asked him to consider what it might be like if he took the next step from being a novelty act and occasional race winner to stringing six wins together or even winning a championship. He paused but didn't blink.
"I don't know if it would be a whole lot different," he said in a believable response. "Fans cheer for you not because of wins, but they cheer for you because of who you are, what you represent and your attitude. We have a genuine fan base."
Earnhardt went through his winning news conference in a white T-shirt as plain and worn as they come. He butchered the English language like we all do. He wore a Bud baseball cap, frontward no less.
And while he promoted his sponsor by saying it would be a suds party throughout the night, he also spoke of enjoying root beer like the rest of us. He might be racing's royalty, but he's real, or at least he is at his core.Even Kenseth enjoyed watching the masses embrace Earnhardt. "It's cool to see him win," Kenseth said.
Earnhardt was also humbled by Sunday's win and the track that it came on. He talked about the photographs from here the day he won his 1999 Busch Grand National championship. His father was here, and Little E even recalled how his father considered his 1990 Winston Cup win here as one of his own favorites, given how challenging of a track it is."It's just overwhelming to win here," he said.
Earnhardt's day could have been better only if Kenseth hadn't done his job, too. Kenseth rallied from a 37th-place qualifying position to finish sixth. With a 228-point lead, he can wrap up his first championship Nov. 9 at Rockingham by finishing seventh or better. He needs only to finish 30th in the final two races of the year.
"That's a good number to be at," Kenseth said. "And if you can't finish 30th or better in the last two races, you probably don't deserve the championship."
Kenseth described Rockingham as his best track on the circuit. He also knows Earnhardt is developing into one of his chief rivals for 2004.It should be fun to watch. It certainly will be popular with the people.
Phoenix International Raceway
1.0-mile oval
1. Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet, 312 laps at 93.984 mph avg. speed; 2. Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 312; 3. Ryan Newman, Dodge, 312; 4. Kurt Busch, Ford, 312; 5. Michael Waltrip, Chevrolet, 312; 6. Matt Kenseth, Ford, 312; 7. Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet, 312; 8. Jeff Burton, Ford, 312; 9. Scott Wimmer, Dodge, 312; 10. Mark Martin, Ford, 312;
11. Sterling Marlin, Dodge, 312; 12. Jamie McMurray, Dodge, 312; 13. Brian Vickers, Chevrolet, 312; 14. Bill Elliott, Dodge, 312; 15. Greg Biffle, Ford, 312; 16. John Andretti, Chevrolet, 312; 17. Ricky Rudd, Ford, 312; 18. Tony Stewart, Chevrolet, 312; 19. Tony Raines, Chevrolet, 312; 20. Elliott Sadler, Ford, 312;
21. Johnny Benson, Pontiac, 312; 22. Todd Bodine, Ford, 312; 23. Kevin Lepage, Pontiac, 312; 24. Dave Blaney, Ford, 312; 25. Kenny Wallace, Dodge, 312; 26. Mike Wallace, Dodge, 312; 27. Ken Schrader, Dodge, 312; 28. Larry Foyt, Dodge, 312; 29. Dale Jarrett, Ford, 312; 30. Terry Labonte, Chevrolet, 310;
31. Joe Nemechek, Pontiac, 310; 32. Robby Gordon, Chevrolet, 310; 33. Rusty Wallace, Dodge, 305; 34. Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 297; 35. Kyle Petty, Dodge, 280 (engine); 36. Bobby Labonte, Chevrolet, 267; 37. Jeff Green, Dodge, 266 (engine); 38. Ricky Craven, Pontiac, 207 (accident); 39. Steve Park, Chevrolet, 206 (accident); 40. Jimmy Spencer, Dodge, 167 (accident);
41. Ward Burton, Pontiac, 167 (accident); 42. Casey Mears, Dodge, 117 (engine); 43. Jeremy Mayfield, Dodge, 32 (engine)
TIME OF RACE: 3h 19m 11s
MARGIN OF VICTORY: 0.735s
PURSE: $4,436,424; winner's share $203,017
FAST QUALIFIER: Newman, 26.931s (133.675 mph)
PROVISIONALS: Kenseth, Craven, Jarrett, Park, Raines, Green, Lepage
DID NOT QUALIFY: Derrike Cope, Brandon Ash
LEAD CHANGES: 10 among six drivers
CAUTION PERIODS: 10 for 66 laps
POINT LEADERS: 1. Kenseth, 4828; 2. Earnhardt Jr., 4600; 3. Johnson, 4587; 4. J. Gordon, 4528; 5. Newman, 4499; 6. Harvick, 4477; 7. Stewart, 4260; 8. B. Labonte, 4055; 9. Busch, 3983; 10. Elliott, 3966
NEXT: Rockingham, N.C., Nov. 9 (12:30 p.m. Eastern, TNT)