Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Bowman in line to replace Earnhardt
Hendrick may look to go young to fill void in Cup Series
Dale Earnhardt Jr. will leave the building before 2018, this much is true.
Who will replace him at Hendrick Motorsports? This much is speculation.
Earnhardt’s departure will leave a void that ultimately must be filled, even if for all practical matters Earnhardt is irreplaceable as an iconic star of the sport. He moves the needle big time.
There’s popularity — named the sport’s most popular driver 14 consecutive seasons — and branding. Earnhardt’s sponsors have included Budweiser, Nationwide, Wrangler, Mountain Dew, Chevrolet, Drakkar Noir cologne, Kraft and NAPA.
But we all must move on, and he will leave the seat warm. So who’s next? Alex Bowman? William Byron? A wild-card entry in Carl Edwards?
Early handicapping points to Bowman, who filled in for Earnhardt Jr. in 10 of 18 races Earnhardt missed last season with concussion-related symptoms. Bowman, 24, wasn’t spectacular but he was steady. He posted an average finish of 19.7 in those races.
“I see Rick Hendrick going young,” said Steve Letarte, Earnhardt’s former crew chief and now an analyst with NBC Sports. “I do not think William Byron is the answer in 2018. Hendrick understands that drivers need to mature.
“We have already seen the struggle of Daniel Suarez this season, who is the Xfinity champion, perhaps getting moved up a little too quickly. That can be a detriment to a driver’s career . ... I think Bowman is the perfect guy. I don’t mean a five-year contract, maybe a one- or two-year deal.”
Bowman, who joined Hendrick Motorsports in 2016, has competed in 81 Cup races.
Of course the most appealing and intriguing pick is Edwards, the former Joe Gibbs Racing driver who surprisingly stepped away — but didn’t officially retire — just before the season.
“Congrats to @DaleJr on one helluva run,” Clint Bowyer tweeted last week. “I didn’t think they would announce Carl’s return till end of year though? Hmm!”
It’s best to leave it at that — internet speculation and hijinks. Edwards reportedly has no interest in the job, nor has Hendrick Motorsports reached out to him.
It goes back to Bowman, who is under contract with Hendrick but does not have a ride in the Cup series this season.
Although the final word will belong to owner Hendrick, Earnhardt says he would embrace becoming part of the process.
“They probably have everybody in the world telling them what they ought to do and they don’t need me, but if they ask for it I’m certainly wanting to be involved in that,” Earnhardt said at Richmond over the weekend.
“I want the team to have more success . ... Every offseason is a chance to be better than you were the year before. It’s an opportunity to make those personnel changes and those hard decisions. It’s a chance to do it — the things you can’t do in the middle of the river, in the middle of the season.” We’ll see which way the river flows in 2018.
Needing a Talladega
boost: Earnhardt always has been solid at Talladega. That’s a good thing because the No. 88 team definitely needs a pick-me-up, looking up from 24th in the standings.
Earnhardt had a solid run at Richmond until teammate Jimmie Johnson got in his crosshairs inadvertently. Earnhardt finished 30th.
“We were probably going to finish anywhere around 10th to 15th today, not all that awesome. But ... we just had such terrible luck,” Earnhardt said.
Earnhardt is a six-time winner at Talladega, a run that includes a record four consecutive victories from 2001 into 2003.
Penske’s Wolfe out: Paul Wolfe, crew chief of the No. 2 Ford driven by Brad Keselowski, will sit out Sunday’s race at Talladega. The Team Penske group will keep things on hold as they await a final-appeal hearing scheduled for Tuesday relating to postrace penalties following the Camping World 500 at Phoenix Raceway.
Team engineer Brian Wilson will handle Wolfe’s duties in his absence.
This will mark the second race Wolfe has missed since his three-race suspension; he also was fined $65,000. Keselowski and his team were docked 35 driver and owner points, respectively.
If the ruling Tuesday goes against Team Penske, Wolfe will have to sit out another race.
Worth noting: Keselowski is the defending champion of Talladega’s spring race.