Earnhardt's sister has spoken with several teams
CONCORD, N.C. -- The car owners are calling and Dale Earnhardt Jr. is ready to listen.
In fact, NASCAR's most popular driver is enjoying the courtship part of free agency.
Earnhardt said Friday he's had preliminary talks with potential employers, and his sister has been prioritizing all of his options. He announced last week that he was leaving DEI, his late father's company, at the end of the season.
It's like trying to get a date with Jennifer Aniston -- if you see her, you've got to at least ask.
Dodge owner Ray Evernham, on the prospect of signing Dale Earnhardt Jr.
"It's really neat to get down to the core of some of these guys and understand 'em more," Earnhardt said. "It's a big new world out there. I'm really excited about my opportunities and the possibilities and what's going to be on the table and I'm excited about how the response has been from some of the owners.
"Their excitement really makes you feel appreciated and makes you feel necessary and like you'd be an asset -- which is a great feeling."
Earnhardt wouldn't reveal who he has spoken to so far, and said early discussions had yet to produce a clear favorite. But he's been surprised at how nice the owners have been.
"Some guys are such good guys that they'll give you advice on what to do regardless of how it affects them," Earnhardt said. "Some of these people actually just want you to be happy, which is awesome.
"It's been a long time since somebody's actually talked to [me] like that."
Clean-shaven after sporting a full beard all of last week, Earnhardt on Friday seemed to have relaxed after taking some time off following his announcement last week.
He said he's leaving DEI because he doesn't think he can win a championship there as long as his stepmother, Teresa, is running the organization. Contract talks were contentious, with Junior demanding 51 percent ownership before he walked away from the table for good.
Earnhardt said Friday that he has not spoken with his stepmother since informing her of his decision.
Although he had hoped to take the first part of the week to decompress, Earnhardt said he worked a little bit while making progress on his job search.
His sister, Kelley Earnhardt Elledge, also has spoken to several teams and has scheduled meetings with others as she negotiates her brother through the biggest free agency period in NASCAR history.
"We have all along said we would talk to everyone, specifically Chevrolet teams," Elledge said. "We have not eliminated any options at this point."
Elledge, who is Junior's business manager, said the focus is currently on top Chevrolet teams, followed by everyone else. Elledge said that fielding his own Nextel Cup team out of JR Motorsports, the team Earnhardt owns, is "a last resort."
Three of the top four Chevrolet teams -- RCR, Joe Gibbs Racing and Ginn Racing -- have indicated a desire to speak to Earnhardt. Only Hendrick Motorsports, winner of eight of the past nine races this season, has been silent on the issue.
Richard Childress, who fielded cars for six of the elder Earnhardt's seven championships, has indicated he will talk to Junior but said Friday he had yet to speak the driver or Elledge.
And Bobby Ginn, who took over a midlevel team last summer, said he plans to aggressively pursue the driver.
J.D. Gibbs, president of Joe Gibbs Racing, said last week that he'd like to talk to Earnhardt but indicated it might not be a good fit. JGR promotes a family values image, and Gibbs said the organization would have a hard time accepting Budweiser, Earnhardt's longtime sponsor.
Dodge owners Ray Evernham, Chip Ganassi and Roger Penske all have said they'd like an opportunity to sign Earnhardt, but acknowledge they are long shots because of Junior's loyalty to Chevrolet. Even so, they all are in line waiting to see if Elledge gets that far down the list.
"It's like trying to get a date with Jennifer Aniston -- if you see her, you've got to at least ask," Evernham said.
As he heads into Saturday night's All-Star race, Earnhardt wants to focus on the $1 million event.
But his DEI team is under scrutiny after NASCAR caught them with an illegal modification to the Car of Tomorrow last week at Darlington Raceway.
Earnhardt was docked 100 points, and crew chief Tony Eury Jr. was fined $100,000 and suspended for six races. He's appealing the severity of the fine, and will be allowed to work the All-Star race.
"I supported Tony Jr. and I was really proud of him," Earnhardt said. "I'm not proud of cheating but I was proud of him trying to give me every advantage he could give me, and that's what I want him always to do."
Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press
