Nascar has a long and storied history, but it also has a past littered with “What If?” questions. Join author Mike Mackler as he takes a look back at stock car racing’s 100 most-intriguing hypotheticals in “100 Stock Car Racing ‘What Ifs’”, the book available on Amazon in both Paperback and Kindle formats. Here’s a preview of one of the one hundred “What If” questions asked throughout the book:
53. What if Dale Earnhardt Jr. got partial ownership of DEI?
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| Inside DEI (the "Garage Mahal") |
Background: Dale Earnhardt Jr. got his start in Nascar racing for his father’s team, Dale Earnhardt Inc. After his father’s death, Dale Jr. became the public face not only of the team, but of the sport itself, driving the familiar number 8 Budweiser car for the team now operated by his stepmother, Teresa Earnhardt.
What Actually Happened: A downturn in DEI’s performance coincided with a contract year for Dale Jr. He asked for controlling interest in the team in order to re-sign, something that Teresa Earnhardt refused almost out of hand. Spurned, Dale Jr. moved to Hendrick Motorsports, while DEI would continue a slide into irrelevance.
What Could Have Been the Turning Point: What if Teresa Earnhardt was so concerned about losing Dale Jr., her most-talented driver at the time, that she simply gave into his demands?
What COULD Have Happened: Dale Jr. is a sponsorship magnet, as even in the sport’s challenging marketing atmosphere of the 2010’s, he rarely went without solid backing in Cup. His presence likely would have been enough to maintain sponsorship both for his own car and his teammates.
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| Who could've imagined Dale Jr. a HMS? |
And if THAT Happened…: While the immediate financial future of DEI would have been secured, the competitive picture may have continued to head downward. DEI had fallen behind Hendrick Motorsports and Richard Childress Racing in the Chevrolet pecking order, and while GM would likely have done whatever they could have to keep their most-popular driver in winning equipment, the company’s financial troubles were coming to the forefront as well.
What Else Could Have Happened: Would DEI have stayed in Nascar? That remains to be seen. The relationship between Dale Jr. and Teresa was frosty, albeit usually professional, and one may have still left the organization in the years that followed.
Why It Had to Turn Out The Way It Did: Dale Jr. was given the opportunity of a lifetime to race for Rick Hendrick AND run his own race team in JR Motorsports.