Philadelphia, PA (Best E Casino) - It's been a marathon of a season, but we have finally reached the "playoffs" with the 12 best driver/team combinations of 2007 ready to vie for the championship.
Unfortunately for his many faithful fans, Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s team is not one of the dozen, but it didn't deserve to be. "Junior" drove well in 2007, but he was let down by his No.8 Dale Earnhardt Inc. crew.
The regular season finale at Richmond was a microcosm of the season for the No.8 Chevrolet. Earnhardt Jr.'s qualifying run was just average (21st), he drove the wheels off his car to get it into the top-five, but just six laps before the checkered flag the engine imploded, ending his day too soon. It was the fifth time in 2007 that Earnhardt Jr.'s day ended due to engine failure.
In addition, the team was penalized 100 points when it put an illegal rear wing bracket on the COT prior to the race in May at Darlington. Those errors cost Earnhardt Jr. a place in the "Chase for the Nextel Cup," and a chance at a championship.
But all that should be a thing of the past as Earnhardt Jr. jumps to Hendrick Motorsports in 2008. At HMS they have as much reliable horsepower as in any motor shop, they always seem to make the right race-day decisions and even when they receive a penalty they have what it takes to overcome it.
In 2007, Hendrick Motorsports has won 12 of the 26 races and earned 57 top-10s. They have the defending series champion in Jimmie Johnson and four- time series winner Jeff Gordon. Even outgoing Kyle Busch made this year's "Chase." They share information between the teams and are the "flagship" for their manufacturer - Chevrolet.
Now they will add the most popular and one of the most talented drivers to their already formidable stable - Earnhardt Jr.
Although "Junior" will no longer have to carry the team as he did at DEI, he will have a lot of pressure on him next year. He can no longer complain that his equipment isn't up to par, or that his team wasn't ready to win. At Hendrick Motorsports every team is expected to not only compete for the win, but to actually win - often.
It should be interesting to see how he performs in 2008. In fact, it should be a great season for Earnhardt Jr., possible even a title-winning one. At the very least, we should know whether "Junior" is worthy of the adulation that he inherited from his father.
