NSCR: Dale Jr Retiring

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jdoggivjc

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Bad comparison. Tiger actually won championships. Junior would be just another driver if he had a different last name. He's a good representative for Nascar, but the hype was completely overblown based off his on track results.

A lot of Junior's early prime of his career was impacted by the fact that his father did pass away. He was stuck with his stepmother running DEI and she had no business doing so as she ran that organization into the ground, and the fact that Junior was as competitive as he was during that stage of his career should be attributed to his racing abilities. I mean, DEI basically became a nonfactor as soon as Junior left for Hendrick. Then the last years of his prime were wasted in the first years of Hendrick being with a pit crew chief that he didn't click with. Imagine Tom Brady with any other coach besides Belicheck. Would Brady be GOAT if he wasn't with Belicheck his entire career? Probably not, and if it's not hard to imagine that, why is it hard to grasp that the relationship between a crew chief and a driver is similar? By the time Junior did get paired with a chief at Hendrick that he got along with, he was out of the prime of his career.

Perhaps I'm making excuses for Junior's inability to win a championship. And I'm certainly not saying Junior is on the same level as Jimmie Johnson or Jeff Gordon or even his father. What I am saying is Junior dealt with a lot of crap over his career that would buried a lesser driver, and while he didn't win a championship, he was still relatively successful and certainly was a class act. He certainly wasn't making these "excuses". But I still can't help but think if his father doesn't die, or Theresa turns over operations of DEI to someone who actually knows what he/she is doing, or if he races with Hendrick his entire career, or if he got put with a crew chief that he meshed well with from the beginning at Hendrick, perhaps he does have at least one championship on his resume.
 
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cowgirl836

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A lot of Junior's early prime of his career was impacted by the fact that his father did pass away. He was stuck with his stepmother running DEI and she had no business doing so as she ran that organization into the ground, and the fact that Junior was as competitive as he was during that stage of his career should be attributed to his racing abilities. I mean, DEI basically became a nonfactor as soon as Junior left for Hendrick. Then the last years of his prime were wasted in the first years of Hendrick being with a pit crew chief that he didn't click with. Imagine Tom Brady with any other coach besides Belicheck. Would Brady be GOAT if he wasn't with Belicheck his entire career? Probably not, and if it's not hard to imagine that, why is it hard to grasp that the relationship between a crew chief and a driver is similar? By the time Junior did get paired with a chief at Hendrick that he got along with, he was out of the prime of his career.

Perhaps I'm making excuses for Junior's inability to win a championship. And I'm certainly not saying Junior is on the same level as Jimmie Johnson or Jeff Gordon or even his father. What I am saying is Junior dealt with a lot of crap over his career that would buried a lesser driver, and while he didn't win a championship, he was still relatively successful and certainly was a class act. He certainly wasn't making these "excuses". But I still can't help but think if his father doesn't die, or Theresa turns over operations of DEI to someone who actually knows what he/she is doing, or if he races with Hendrick his entire career, or if he got put with a crew chief that he meshed well with from the beginning at Hendrick, perhaps he does have at least one championship on his resume.


it's hard to imagine what DEI could have been with a better leader or if Jr and Letarte had been paired up sooner.
 

Cyclones_R_GR8

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A lot of Junior's early prime of his career was impacted by the fact that his father did pass away. He was stuck with his stepmother running DEI and she had no business doing so as she ran that organization into the ground, and the fact that Junior was as competitive as he was during that stage of his career should be attributed to his racing abilities. I mean, DEI basically became a nonfactor as soon as Junior left for Hendrick. Then the last years of his prime were wasted in the first years of Hendrick being with a pit crew chief that he didn't click with. Imagine Tom Brady with any other coach besides Belicheck. Would Brady be GOAT if he wasn't with Belicheck his entire career? Probably not, and if it's not hard to imagine that, why is it hard to grasp that the relationship between a crew chief and a driver is similar? By the time Junior did get paired with a chief at Hendrick that he got along with, he was out of the prime of his career.

Perhaps I'm making excuses for Junior's inability to win a championship. And I'm certainly not saying Junior is on the same level as Jimmie Johnson or Jeff Gordon or even his father. What I am saying is Junior dealt with a lot of crap over his career that would buried a lesser driver, and while he didn't win a championship, he was still relatively successful and certainly was a class act. He certainly wasn't making these "excuses". But I still can't help but think if his father doesn't die, or Theresa turns over operations of DEI to someone who actually knows what he/she is doing, or if he races with Hendrick his entire career, or if he got put with a crew chief that he meshed well with from the beginning at Hendrick, perhaps he does have at least one championship on his resume.
The whole DEI thing is baffling. Not sure why Sr. gave Theresa complete autonomy over his business. While I'm not a Jr. fan he knows more about racing than Theresa and when he was still with DEI he used to talk about having to take his Cup car to his JR Motorsports shop because there were needed tools that she refused to purchase.
 

Tre4ISU

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Bad comparison. Tiger actually won championships. Junior would be just another driver if he had a different last name. He's a good representative for Nascar, but the hype was completely overblown based off his on track results.

No he wouldn't be. He's in a tier with guys after Johnson, Gordon and Stewart. He was almost always competitive even when he was racing for an organization that had no right at that level. Sure, his popularity far surpassed his on track success, but short of having a Gordon-like or better career, it was always going to be that way. The "overrated" stuff is so overplayed and lazy as well. It's not like he's a guy who wouldn't have a ride if it ween't for his name. With the exception of very few seasons, he's been very competitive, again, with ancillary pieces that weren't fitting.

He also raced different than a lot of guys and I don't know how many times I'd tune into a race where he was running toward the top with a fast car and in the last few laps would jump out of line to make a move, only for no one to go with. It seemed like that happened to him all the time and his finish went from a top 5 to a top 15.
 
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Tre4ISU

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The whole DEI thing is baffling. Not sure why Sr. gave Theresa complete autonomy over his business. While I'm not a Jr. fan he knows more about racing than Theresa and when he was still with DEI he used to talk about having to take his Cup car to his JR Motorsports shop because there were needed tools that she refused to purchase.

I think it has a lot to do with Dale Sr.'s affinity for women. He cared more about them than his kids when they were young. Not saying that didn't change but it's how he was and I don't think Jr. wanted to go down that road.
 
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cowgirl836

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I think it has a lot to do with Dale Sr.'s affinity for women. He cared more about them than his kids when they were young. Not saying that didn't change but it's how he was and I don't think Jr. wanted to go down that road.


I imagine Sr. had thoughts of having Kelly and Jr take the reins at DEI as they gained experience but Sr. died before that could happen. As far as Jr. only being famous for his name.........well, look how far that last name got Kerry. Jr. had plenty of talent and had to work hard for what he got - think he still holds the record for fewest starts to his first win. Though I agree that media overexposed him which I would bet a lot of $$$ Jr. didn't like. He's never been one to chase the spotlight. While he seems at peace with it now, for a long time he came across as a reluctant spokesperson.

I don't quite know what Kerry's upbringing was like, but Kelly and Jr. had a fairly tough childhood. It does seem that Sr. was more involved as they were grown, but Jr had talked a few times about wanting to do things differently than his dad did.
 

buf87

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NASCAR is going to be very different without Gordon, Stewart, Edwards and Earnhardt Jr.

Who is the big name of the young guys? Have to think Busch Bros, Johnson, Harvick, Newman, Bowyer aren't far behind in retiring.
 
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cowgirl836

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NASCAR is going to be very different without Gordon, Stewart, Edwards and Earnhardt Jr.

Who is the big name of the young guys? Have to think Busch Bros, Johnson, Harvick, Newman, Bowyer aren't far behind in retiring.

you forgot Kenseth (rookie same year as Jr.) but that's not uncommon, ha. Johnson might go a few more years but yeah, the guard is changing. Big name of the really young guys is probably Larson/Elliott.
 
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buf87

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I was a Stewart fan, but lost interest when the constant point changes started happening. The win one race and you're basically in the chase was dumb.
 
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cmjh10

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you forgot Kenseth (rookie same year as Jr.) but that's not uncommon, ha. Johnson might go a few more years but yeah, the guard is changing. Big name of the really young guys is probably Larson/Elliott.

Future is bright with Larson, Elliott, and Blaney. Especially when Hendrick gets all 3. ;););)
 

cyclone83

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you forgot Kenseth (rookie same year as Jr.) but that's not uncommon, ha. Johnson might go a few more years but yeah, the guard is changing. Big name of the really young guys is probably Larson/Elliott.
In every other sport that has someone as dominant as Jimmie Johnson they have hard core lovers and hard core haters. Jimmie Johnson doesn't seem to have either. When he wins races or championships Nascar fans don't seem to care either way.
 

cowgirl836

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In every other sport that has someone as dominant as Jimmie Johnson they have hard core lovers and hard core haters. Jimmie Johnson doesn't seem to have either. When he wins races or championships Nascar fans don't seem to care either way.


he used to get some hate but I think he just won and dominated so much that people stopped caring.