ALL EYES ON JUNIOR
NASCAR hopes return is big boost in season of change.
The good news for DAYTONA BEACH, FLA. — NASCAR is that all signs indicate Dale Earnhardt Jr. has a legitimate shot to win the Daytona 500.
A victory for NASCAR’s most popular driver, in his return to racing after a concussion sidelined him the second half of last season, would be a massive boost for the sagging series. Earnhardt’s star power has been one of the bright spots of Speedweeks and his strength on the track has been obvious every time he’s behind the wheel of his Chevrolet.
Earnhardt was part of a Hendrick Motorsports qualifying sweep for today’s season-opening race. Chase Elliott won the pole, and Earnhardt will line up next to him on the starting grid. Elliott added a win in a qualifying race, and Earnhardt led 53 of 60 laps in a second qualifying race before he was passed at the end.
So the Hendrick cars have speed, the drivers aren’t cowering from the Toyota teamwork that dominated last year’s race with Denny Hamlin winning, and they are ready to go bumper-tobumper with the Team Penske Ford fleet.
It means today could be a strong opening day for NASCAR, particularly if Earnhardt can pull off his third Daytona 500 victory. He’s not ready to call himself a favorite, and thinks he’ll have his hands full with the Joe Gibbs Racing group — Kyle Busch, Hamlin, Matt Kenseth and Daniel Suarez — and Penske drivers Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski.
“Watching the last several plate races, I think the Gibbs guys have the market cornered on the favorite,” Earnhardt said, referring to races in which cars have engine restrictor plates to control speeds. “The Penske guys are really strong. So I think it’s their race to lose. The Hendrick cars are going to be up there trying to mix it up.”
NASCAR is under heavy scrutiny because of sliding attendance and television ratings, plus the new title sponsor deal with Monster Energy came in at a fraction of what NASCAR was looking for when it began shopping the naming rights almost two years ago.
NASCAR had no offseason television advertising, and the organization was even the subject of a critical examination in the Wall Street Journal.
NASCAR has countered with a JGR announcement that Hamlin and FedEx have signed long-term extensions with the team, while Team Penske locked in Logano and Shell-Pennzoil through 2023.
“People are talking about the health of the sport, and this is a watershed moment,” team owner Roger Penske said of an extension that took nearly a year to complete with Shell.
FedEx and Shell-Pennzoil are major sponsors that spend something close to $20 million a year to brand the race cars and market to the NASCAR audience.
“This is a very positive story in our sport, to see the commitment of a very large company like Shell and Pennzoil are and for them to be able to sign up with this team really makes a statement for not only where Team Penske is, but for where NASCAR is as a sport,” Logano said.
Problem is, NASCAR doesn’t yet know exactly where it is.
NASCAR will launch an advertising campaign today called “Ready. Set. Race.” A crash-filled 30-second TV ad was revealed Saturday to promote the 500.
In an effort to add excitement to the racing, all events will consist of three segments this year. It means the Daytona 500 won’t exactly be a 500-mile race of attrition, but will be cut into three parts. There are points on the line for each segment, giving drivers incentive to race hard for the entire race, and one final long push to the checkered flag.
It’s a risky move for NASCAR, but one embraced publicly by drivers. Some fans, particularly longtime watchers, are horrified at the gimmicks, but a rising crop of young drivers is eager to give it a try.
“I think you have a group of guys coming along that are going to put their signature on this sport,” said team owner Chip Ganassi. “The sport’s gone through some changes. We’re looking at a new format. Some of us older guys, when they talk about changing the format, we look at each other, ask questions. These young drivers, they go, ‘OK.’ It’s kind of no big deal to those guys.”