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Dale Earnhardt Jr. entered the garage at Atlanta Motor Speedway at 9:13 a. m. on Monday. Gone was the red Budweiser gear that has become synonymous with his image. In was a white driver’s suit with a red adidas logo on the front, back and sleeves.
NASCAR’s most popular driver cruised right past the No. 8 Dale Earnhardt Inc. car he has driven since coming into the Nextel Cup Series eight years ago, straight for the first two garage stalls in which white No. 5 cars from Hendrick Motorsports were parked.
After a few moments to greet members of his new team, which included former crew chief Tony Eury Jr. and three of his crew, Earnhardt climbed behind the wheel and headed for the track.
It was such a big deal that HMS owner Rick Hendrick, who goes to tests about as often as one of his four Cup cars finishes outside the top 10, made a cameo appearance to get a picture with Earnhardt beside the car painted like his first in 1984. David Newton, ESPN.com
Dale Earnhardt Jr., NASCAR’s most popular driver, said he doesn’t anticipate any problems from a driving standpoint in making the switch from Dale Earnhardt Inc. to Hendrick Motorsports. The worry for him, as odd as it sounds, is whether he’ll fit in on a new team.
“It’s like going to a new school, making new friends, “ he said. “It’s hard to make friends. It’s hard to build relationships. ...
“I had such a great rapport and great relationship with all the guys on my team I’m currently with, and to have to go through the challenge of that and building that respect and trust with a whole new group’s going to be tough. “
He said that so far, it’s working out OK. RICK MINTER, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Junior was tired from NASCAR’s grueling schedule and sore from a nasty crash the previous day, when a hard lick in the closing laps cost him a chance to go for the win in a Nextel Cup race on this same 1.5-mile oval.
Still, Earnhardt got down to work with Hendrick Motorsports, which will be his home beginning in 2008 following a nasty split from Dale Earnhardt Inc. and its owner, stepmother Teresa Earnhardt, who remains his boss for three more races.
Since announcing his move to Hendrick, Earnhardt has walked a balancing act between his new team and soon-to-be-former operation. He conceded that it was a little strange to head to a different hauler on Monday, leaving Regan Smith to drive Junior’s No. 8 in testing.
“A couple of guys from the 8 car came over to see me today and asked me if I was all right and how things were going with the 5 car, “ Earnhardt said. “They’re looking out for me. We have work left to do there, and we’re going to do it. “ AP.org
