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Q & A with Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Little E strives for consistency
Posted: Friday May 12, 2000 01:48 PM
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Dale Earnhardt Jr. was a little surprised that his first Winston Cup win happened so soon. Bob Rosato |
Dale Earnhardt Jr., winner of two Busch Series Championships, is touted as one of NASCAR's upcoming stars. CNNSI.com caught up with Little E and asked him about his future, career and what it's like to beat his dad. CNNSI.com: Are you amazed by how popular you are with fans?
Dale Earnhardt Jr.: I don't really know. I don't think it's necessarily my popularity. I don't see myself as popular. I think when a race fan comes to get an autograph, it's just a novelty. I think the popularity stems from Budweiser, NASCAR, this car being in an odd place and causing this much attention. You come out here and you think, 'How many of these people standing on the street know anything about racing?,' but they come up and they'll really surprise you. It's pretty cool. I'm surprised, not amazed, just surprised how many people follow the sport and individuals like myself. CNNSI.com: Speaking of popularity, NASCAR continues to gain new fans. Where do you see the sport headed in the upcoming years?
Earnhardt Jr.: I don't know. They're talking about adding three more races -- that's impossible. It's almost to the point of being ridiculous. With that many more races it's just gonna become more expensive. I make money as a race car driver but I don't have to pay for that race car. But my daddy, as a car owner, isn't making any money, he's spending more money. Honestly, he doesn't make any money. It's kind of aggravating to watch and see that, knowing that one day he's gonna be done with it and I'm gonna be owning that team. And by that time man, it'll probably cost $60 million a year to run a race team at the rate things are going. I liked things the way they were. CNNSI.com: So how much does sponsorship mean?
Dale Earnhardt Jr.: It's a necessity. Anything less than what we have and anything support-wise less than what we have, we wouldn't be able to compete, we wouldn't be a competitive team. CNNSI.com: You've made the transition from the Busch Series to Winston Cup. How do the two compare?
Earnhardt Jr.: There are a lot of differences. They're not even close to each other. The Busch Series is really laid-back and easygoing -- no pressure. We just had a lot of fun, and it didn't matter if you won, and it didn't cost us much. NASCAR is really expensive. There's pressure to win all the time and perform. It's not as enjoyable because there's so much on your shoulders. It's like Sports Illustrated telling a sportswriter to write something for The Wall Street Journal on investments. He'd be totally clueless. It wouldn't be any fun because he'd have to bust his his (butt) to do a decent job and that's what it's like on the Winston Cup circuit. You get used to it, but you have to work so hard to do a decent job that it becomes less fun. The fun factor would go down quite a bit. CNNSI.com: You mentioned recently that one of the biggest adjustments between the two circuits has been the difference in the cars. Have you adjusted to your new car?
Earnhardt Jr.: We're getting a little better. When we first started driving them I was like, 'What in the hell is wrong with these cars?' They drove (poorly). I was so impressed then by the Busch Series because the cars drove so easy, they didn't have a lot of power and the down horse package was adequate. And then you get into one of these (Winston Cup) cars and they really pushed real bad, had a lot of horsepower and you couldn't get them to turn. Then we went to Michigan with a new generation-whatever tire Goodyear had and then turned sideways and crashed into just about every corner. The crew and I were like, 'Can we get a happy medium here?' So now I think we're getting that. The new car (is great). CNNSI.com: What's it like to compete against your dad?
Earnhardt Jr.: When I first started competing against him it was really fun. Now it's kind of wearing off; he's just another guy. But when you beat him it kind of makes the ride home uncomfortable. I mean, it doesn't matter to me whether I beat him or not. He beat me so many damn times at everything for so many years I got kind of used to it. In Japan, that first race with him, I had to beat him there. But from here on out, he can beat me as many times as he wants. CNNSI.com: Now that you've established yourself on the circuit, is he still giving you advice?
Earnhardt Jr.: Yeah, pretty much. We went to Texas (for the DirecTV 500) and he gave advice there, but then we've gone to other places to race and he hasn't talked about it too much. It just depends on what kind of mood he's in I guess (laughs). CNNSI.com: It took you just 12 races to get your first Winston Cup win (DirecTV 500). Does it feel good to get that first victory under your belt?
Earnhardt Jr.: Yeah, I didn't expect that to happen so quickly. It's kind of a surprise to me, as it was to everyone else I guess. We look like we're in a position to get some more. We were running pretty good last week (at the NAPA Auto Parts 500). CNNSI.com: What long-term goals have you set for yourself?
Earnhardt Jr.: I haven't set any (laughs). I'd like to win a bunch more races, I'd like to win as many as I can. One or two championships would be nice. I think traveling, doing neat things like (autograph sessions), they' re kind of goals of mine. Like I have a goal to go to Hawaii before I die and I want to do that. I'd like to go to Australia, Europe, I'd like to go to a Formula One race as a spectator one time. Those are the kind of goals I have. And racing cars will allow me to get to those places. Those are some of the goals I have outside of just winning races. CNNSI.com: Before getting into racing, who did you follow? Who did you like, besides your dad of course?
Earnhardt Jr.: (Laughs) I liked Daryl Waltrip because of how good he was in front of the camera. He was funny as hell. He had a weird sense of humor. Also David Pearson and Bobby Allison. They were all great. CNNSI.com: Looking way in advance, when all is said and done, how would you like your fans to remember you?
Earnhardt Jr.: Granted, we all want to win races and championships. Hmmm, what a good question. Let me think about it. We all want to be considered one of the best drivers. I would like to be considered one of the best. But I would be more honored if I was considered one of the more entertaining drivers -- if everything that I did was interesting, understood, interpreted well, on and off the race track, whether it be an interview or any lap or race that I ran. I'm always pretty honest, which will get you in a little bit trouble sometimes but it gets you more credibility, which is probably best. I mean, I've told a few white lies in my life. But that would be it. I just want to be considered as entertaining, honest and genuine. It's going to be hard to be considered one of the best because the best have been so good.
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