Dale Jr. to RCR? Not as Outlandish as You Might Think
kevinharvick.com
One of my favorite writers in NASCAR is Godwin Kelly of the Daytona Beach News-Journal.
Not only is he a great writer, he’s also a hell of a comic, one of the best in the sport with one-liners. Every time I’ve had him on the air on Sirius NASCAR Radio, I’ve had to be careful not to take a drink or bite of food while he’s talking, because you never know what outlandish thing is going to come out of his mouth – and then what I might spit out of my own mouth while laughing my butt off in response.
Lest there be any misunderstanding, I mean that in a very good, completely complimentary way to Godwin.
On Monday, Godwin had something else outlandish to say … well, actually, he wrote it in his News-Journal online blog. But the more I thought about it, I think he really may be on to something.
Seriously.
Now, as many of us in the NASCAR media like to do, Godwin was simply hypothesizing out loud – or, in cyberprint, as it were.
Or, as I like to say, he was “What if-fing.”
There was no real news, no quotes, no confirmations – just out and out wishful thinking of sorts.
Godwin wrote about the combination of Dale Earnhardt Jr.‘s comments last weekend at Charlotte that he’s at the end of his rope, along with the strong inference by Kevin Harvick that he’s leaving Richard Childress Racing at the end of next season.
And then, as he put it, Kelly connected the dots and came up with an intriguing possibility: could Harvick’s leaving open the door for Earnhardt to leave Hendrick Motorsports and join RCR for 2011?
Godwin makes a compelling case – even if it is just pure speculation at this point.
Think about it: Harvick leaves RCR and Junior arrives, just in time for the 10th anniversary of his late father’s death at Daytona International Speedway. What’s more, Godwin theorized that what better way for Junior and Childress to make a huge splash than by bringing back the black No. 3 Chevrolet – and for Little E to drive it.
“Everybody out there knows that the Childress-Dale Jr. union is NASCAR’s missing link, you know, the next big thing, a moon shot for the sport,” Kelly wrote. “It would bring one aspect of NASCAR full circle.”
The simplicity yet genius of that idea hit me in the forehead like a ton of bricks. It’s an outstanding thought – even if it is just speculation at this point.
Or is it?
Think a bit more outside of the box and it could make tremendous sense, particularly if Earnhardt struggles with HMS again in 2010. Even though he has a five-year deal with Hendrick that runs through 2012, if the marriage just isn’t working – and if it continues to look next year like it never will work – I’m betting Hendrick would cut Junior loose from his contract if he asks.
And, even though Earnhardt and Hendrick have had a close relationship for years, it’s nowhere near as close as the relationship Junior has had with Childress his entire life, particularly while growing up. Junior thinks of Richard as a second father and Richard thinks of Junior as a son. What better way to welcome the prodigal son back into the family, so to speak, than to put him in his father’s old ride?
Do you know what such a reunion of sorts would do to NASCAR? The publicity alone would be the biggest and most positive we’ve seen in many years, even bigger than when Junior announced he was leaving DEI for Hendrick Motorsports.
If it were to happen, the Junior Nation would go crazier than it ever has. And can you imagine the tens of millions of dollars that Junior, Childress and Hendrick (certainly, he has to have some kind of cut of the pie if he lets Junior out of his contract) could rake in with souvenir and memorabilia sales from diecasts to jackets, from ball caps to t-shirts.
And what about Chevrolet? With all the economic woes it and General Motors have had, this wouldn’t be just a home run, it would be the equivalent of 100 grand slams. I can already see thousands of young bucks lining up at their local Chevy dealer to buy an upcoming Dale Earnhardt Jr. model Impala – in all-black, of course.
Harvick, from what I’ve been hearing, has a number of options on the table. He could join Stewart Haas Racing as a third driver (most likely), stays with RCR or starts his own Cup team (both not as likely) or, in a rather interesting twist, would drive for Junior if he decides to start his own Cup operation (remains to be seen).
It’s not outlandish at all. Junior’s father built DEI while racing for RCR. Why can’t Junior race for RCR while taking JR Motorsports to the next most logical level: Cup racing?
Hell of a column, Godwin … and it really is a hell of an idea. Only time will tell if there’s any likelihood of it happening, but it certainly will have people talking, that’s for sure.
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