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2005 Season Final Points Standing 19th After First 26 Races 17th Earnings $6,284,577 Starts 36 Poles 0 Wins 1 Top 5 7 6-10 6 Laps Led 168 Lead Lap Finishes 19 Bonus Points 40 Races Led 7

2005 Performance Below is the ranking of the team on each type of track along with the driver's best finish. Track Type Ranking Flat Tracks 28th Best Finish 4th, Phoenix Intermediate Tracks 20th Best Finish 1st, Chicago Plate Tracks 7th Best Finish 3rd, Daytona (2) Road Courses 25th Best Finish 10th, Watkins Glen Short Tracks 9th Best Finish 4th, Bristol

The 2006 season will be better due in large part to the reunion of Earnhardt and cousin/crew chief Tony Eury Jr. The two were able to rebound for two top 10 runs late in the season and have undoubtedly learned a lesson in the value of chemistry.

The addition of Martin Truex Jr. in the No. 1 DEI entry should help with testing, info-swap and results, as well. Junior and Truex are as much friends as co-workers, so chemistry should not be an issue. The duo has run particularly well on the plate tracks in the Busch Series.

Expect Earnhardt to win a race or two and make a run at the Chase. His ability is unquestioned, and the DEI equipment has been a proven winner in the past. While there is too much ground to make up for a legitimate title run, Junior should contend on the plate and short tracks.

After the first 11 events, Earnhardt sat 11th in points with no victories, no poles and only five top 10s. After the spring Richmond race, Rondeau was shown the door and DEI Technical Director Steve Hmiel was asked to step in on an interim basis.

Hmiel was able to guide Junior to his only victory of the '05 campaign, but Earnhardt only averaged a 22nd-place finish under the watchful eye of the NASCAR veteran.

By the start of the Chase, the losing had gotten so bad that the organization decided it had the right guy in the first place and brought Tony Eury Jr. back as crew chief. Under Eury, Junior notched a top 5 in his first race but had little else to show. A fourth- and an eighth-place run late in the season gives the team some hope heading into what should be a very interesting '06 campaign.

• The Good: The only good thing about the season was admitting failure. Teresa Earnhardt's plan to swap teams bombed. Common sense finally overruled financial concerns, and Tony Eury Jr. was appointed crew chief.

• The Bad: The Bud crew led five laps on the plate tracks in 2005 compared to 216 laps in '04. Truly bad.

• The Ugly: The spin of teammate Michael Waltrip at Lowe's during the Coca-Cola 600 marked the low point of an already bad season.