you do have to have that driver talent to get to the
cup level no matter what your your name is.

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I'm on the fence on that one. Sure, you have to be talented to race but even a little bit of racing experience could get you in, as long as you had the $$ and sponsorship, you could get yourself in.

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SMOKE-N-ACES

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[QUOT why is his popularity with Sponsors and the media so much more than say, Denny Hamlin, Carl Edwards, Greg Biffle, Ryan Newman, or even Truex Jr? It's not because of his performance as a driver, because he is no better than any other driver on the field. Its because he carries a marquee name (Earnhardt). His daddy was a champion and a great racecar driver. He hasn't won a race in 67 races and doesn't have a championship under his belt...yet....until then, the media and the sponsors have no reason to raise him up on a pedastol above other drivers"



I understand what you are saying, but you are talking about him like he retired, last time I looked he was 5th in points. I dont see how you can consider someone in the top five in points at the time you are making your statements as a subpar driver. He has plenty of time to win a championship. He is obviously showing to you naysayers that if he has equipment, he can drive a lot better then his statistics show. I never said that he was the greatest driver ever, I was responding to the first post that said hes an also ran! Hes popular because of his name yes, his dad had a huge following, and what happened to them when he died in front of the whole world on national TV? Those loyal fans turned to Jr fans, and Harvick fans. I suppose that winining the Daytona 500 within a relatively short period of time isnt anything, how long did it take some people to do it? I suppose that no one should be interested in him when he ran 2nd in that race when his dad died blocking for him and Mikey? Hes also a likeable figure, that rarely points his finger even when he has the right to. Likeable people have a persona that is appealing to big corporations when it comes to selling products. Bill Elliot was the most poplular driver many years in row for the same reason, even when he wasnt winning, was he riding around on his Dads name also? No, Bill was just a likeable guy, just like JR. I dont think it is fair to compare driving ability with championships, So many people go into making the car,fixing the car,engine building, the lists are long. Sr drove for Childress even when he had his own corporation up and running. Jr is doing the same thing now. Hes trying to get the best equipment to see how he will stack up. He looks pretty good right now. Maybe he wont win a championship, although it looks likely that he will one day. Only time will tell, bashing him and not bashing Schrader who doesnt have any either is a double standard. I like Schrader, Edwards, Gordon and Johnson. I think Stewart and Gordon are 2 of the best drivers out there. But I wouldnt consider Jr subpar either.

The Sponsors and Nascar are the ones that are boosting Junior up so much higher then the other drivers because he brings in a lot of money for them, He's the "Intimidators" son so there going to feed off of him and get as much money as they can. It's not Junior's fault that he's on every magazine cover and it's not his fault that he gets talked about more then others during a race. The media knows that Junior's face sells so they're selling it as hard as they can. He's not the greatest driver in the world but he is a great driver and I believe that when he retires he will have a championship or two under his belt...or he may not but I won't think less of him for it. What you see is what you get with him, Junior doesn't force you to like him. You either like him or not and I really don't think he cares who likes him and who doesn't. He's a laid back kind of guy who goes out to race for the win everyday and that's why he has so many fans. The Earnhardt name sells and mostly everybody is buying, but again it's not Junior's fault.

Just my opinion.

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I honestly like Junior as a driver, I think he's a more down-to-earth guy that will shows just enough personality to not be boring. He knows how to get around a super speedway like the best, and he can also muscle through a short track pretty well.

But many of his fans, and the crazy amount of attention he gets keep me from cheering for him more than I might.

I know not all of his fans are the ones I typically associate him with. But the fans that stick out keep me from liking him. I know every team and driver in all of sports has obnoxious fans, but being that Junior has more fans overall, there are also more obnoxious ones.

I'm talking about the ones that nearly gave my girlfriend a concussion because they were throwing full cans of beer at Talladega (when Gordon won under caution) because they were so upset that Junior didn't win. Like Dale Sr. and DEI's dominance there wasn't enough.

The fans that will try to fight you if you laugh or make light of Junior wrecking. I can't help it that myself and others like to taunt the fans that leave the racetrack early when their favorite driver has a bad day.

I realize not all Junior fans are like this, but in my experience, I find more fans of his are like this, more so than with any other driver.

That, along with the ridiculous amount of exposure he gets, even if he's out of the race, is what keeps me from cheering for him. He's a really good driver, but I don't know if he's a multi-championship kind of driver. But that's how he's treated.

Guilty. I've turned the TV off many times after Dale Sr blew up or wrecked out, and I left Daytona after the 1st 125 mile qualifier back in 2000.

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I don't like Kyle Busch. He looks like Pee Wee Herman
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Ryan Newman, Daytona 500 Champion!!
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Amen Sister!
I so agree with you. I'm not a big Jr fan but it really isn't his fault or want that he gets so much attention. It's the media feeding off his famous name. They should just let Jr be Jr and not expect him to be his Dad! He has talent and I do hope that one day he will have at least one Cup Championship, he sure has paid his dues for it like any other driver has!

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Ryan Newman, Daytona 500 Champion!!
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""I understand what you are saying, but you are talking about him like he retired, last time I looked he was 5th in points. I dont see how you can consider someone in the top five in points at the time you are making your statements as a subpar driver.""

5th place and after only 5 races?? Too early to tell what he's going to do. But being in 5th after only 5 races and I should change my opinion on him being average? Nope. If he's still there at the end of the regular season, then I'll admit he's OK.

So do you think, If an NFL team is 5-0 at the beginning of the season make them the best team in the NFL??

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Ok, I'm ok now. I knew the subject of my first post would upset alot of people, and yes, Dale is doing OK so far this year, but honestly, I would like to see him win at least one season championship before people start treating him like the royalty his dad was.

And as far as my boy Smoke goes, he's in the same races, usually doing pretty well, but doesn't get the same coverage. Last race he was leading for many laps and the FOX coverage spent more time on the race for spots farther back in the pack even though the race for the lead was tight. People give Stewart a hard way to go because he is outspoken, like some other drivers dad used to be. ....but Dale had SO much clout that he could basically (sometimes) bend the rules to suit himself. I remember one race when the drivers were forbidden to pit on a yellow and Dale did it anyways. Thats been a long time ago and I don't remember exactly what happened, but when Dale pitted, everyone else came in too. ....so far as I can remember, nothing ever came of it. .....and it seems when Dale SR wrecked people out that were in front of him, he was a hero, but if anybody else did it, it was kind of questionable. Much of the dislike for Gordon is simple because Dale Sr is the one he was beating out of the top spot when Jeff earned a name for himself. Truth be known, statistically Richard Petty is one of the best drivers ever (thats why they call him the King, and yes I know it was a different time), but sometimes he doesn't get the same recognition because he's somehow overshadowed by Dale Sr.

I'm not really here to bash either Earnhardt, I would just like to see the media and officials handle things fairly, giving credit where credit is due and not bending the rules or spinning things just because a driver, or the name, brings in more $$$$. I think that somehow the media has a large influence on helping to create successful teams.

BTW, if you want to $peak in terms of winnings, so far this year Tony Stewart is second only to Ryan Newman.