What's good for Dale Jr. is good for NASCAR

What's good for Dale Jr. is good for NASCAR

This just in: NASCAR now will run six races a year at Michigan International Speedway.


OK, I'm pulling your throttle leg a little on that one, but one could understand the desire for it. If Dale Earnhardt Jr. has an on-track happy place, Michigan is it.

He has two Sprint Cup victories since winning at Richmond in 2006, and both came on the 2-mile oval in the Irish Hills, including the one Sunday that ended his 143-race winless streak.

The endless questions of "Will Junior win again?" now are over, at least for a few weeks. More importantly, what's good for Dale Jr. is good for NASCAR.
 
Even through his long losing streak, Earnhardt continued to be the most popular driver in the sport by a wide margin. He has his critics, but Earnhardt is well-liked by the majority of fans and the majority of people in the Cup garage. They want him to do well.


"That's the way I feel about people," Earnhardt said Sunday after his victory. "I want to see good people do good things, and I want to see people who I think are good people have success and be happy."


Some of the first people to greet Earnhardt on pit road after the win were Jimmie Johnson's pit crew, including crew chief Chad Knaus, who reached into the car to shake Earnhardt's hand. Earnhardt's No. 88 Chevy team works in the same building at Johnson's No. 48 crew.


Greg Biffle, who ended his 49-race winless streak earlier this season at Texas, expressed how many drivers felt about watching Earnhardt go to Victory Lane on Father's Day.

"I am really excited for Junior," Biffle said. "What a great day for him to win on. There has been a lot of pressure on him and I am glad he won."

Finally winning is the icing on the cake this season for Earnhardt. He has been a contending driver all season, easily his best year since joining Hendrick Motorsports in 2008.

He's only four points behind Matt Kenseth for the top spot in the standings. Earnhardt also has a series best 12 top-10s in 15 races. If the Chase started today, Earnhardt would be tied for fifth in the standings, only three points behind the four drivers tied for first.

Things have continued to improve since Rick Hendrick paired Earnhardt with crew chief Steve Letarte last season. Earnhardt finished outside the top 20 in the standings in 2009 and 2010, but made the Chase last year in his first season with Letarte.

Earnhardt had come close to winning several times with Letarte, but now with the elusive victory out of the way, they can focus on contending for the title.

"It was pretty tough for a couple years," Earnhardt said. "Back when me and [former crew chief] Lance [McGrew] were trying to figure it out, we worked hard together. We didn't beat on each other too bad, but just couldn't get it figured out.

"It takes a unique combination. You can put the best people together and sometimes not get it to work. It takes a certain combination. We found one that works for me."

source : espn