- Image by Bristol Motor Speedway & Dragway via Flickr
The 2010 NASCAR season began for many fans on Friday at the Preseason Thunder Fan Fest at Daytona. With driver interviews featured throughout the weekend, it gives the fans a first look at the upcoming season and sets the stage for the Budweiser Shootout and the Daytona 500.
Dale Earnhardt Jr., sporting a full beard, seemed relaxed and confident as he talked about the disappointment of 2009 and his expectations for this year.
This is a completely different Dale Jr. than the one we saw at the end of 2009. His words towards the end of the season reflected his frustration and self doubt.
“I’m about to the end of my rope on it,” he said. “I’ve been riding it out, but there comes a point where you don’t want to ride it out no more. You’ve just had enough.”
On Friday, he spoke with a renewed passion and a quiet confidence.
His biggest regret seems to center around his extremely loyal fan base and the obligation he feels to give them something to cheer about.
“I feel like that I’ve came up short for them,” he said. “You know, they put up a fight with you all year long. They fight every week right there with you. They argue their way through every day of work with somebody who’s pulling against you. So they fight their own battles just like I do out on the racetrack. So yeah, you feel like you have let them down when you don’t make the Chase.”
His goal for this year is not just to be more competitive but to win races and to contend for the Championship.
“Our goal is to win as many races as we can, win the championship, challenge for the championship. I’d like to win – I think anything less than three races this year I’d be a little bit disappointed.”
In an effort to accomplish this goal, they’ve also made personnel changes on the 88 team. Jr says the entire team has undergone a transformation and they’re “all working and believing again in the 88.”
Teammate Mark Martin who drives the No. 5 car and shares a shop with the 88 team believes that small changes and some good luck are all that’s needed to see Dale Jr. contending for wins again.
“If they only make minor progress in the performance side, and they have the opposite kind of racing luck than they had, they will have a Chase-making and very, very, very respectable season. In other words, they don’t have to make a huge jump in performance if they can just get that monkey off their back.”
Dale Jr’s strategy for 2010 is simply to get out on the race track and prove himself.
“We’re just going to go out there and try our hardest and be ruthless from the first lap to the last.”
The real question is whether his passion and determination will translate into success. Dale Earnhardt Jr. does indeed have a lot to prove and this season will be a pivotal juncture in his career.
