Has Rick Hendrick Finally Had Enough?

[SMOKEN14]

From Jayski
More rumors on #88 crew chief change UPDATE: a reliable source tells me [Sports Illustrated] that Tony Eury Jr. won't be the crew chief of the #88-Dale Earnhardt Jr. as of Dover this weekend. Whether that actually happens or not remains to be seen, but the two weeks in Charlotte made it obvious both driver and team need a change.(Sports Illustrated)(5-26-2009)
UPDATE: Team owner Rick Hendrick, who has previously said he doesn't plan to make changes to Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s #88 team, wasn't as definitive on Tuesday. "Could it change?" Hendrick said Tuesday following a meeting with NASCAR officials at the Research and Development Center. "We're talking about things. We're going to make decisions as the days go by, but we haven't made any decisions as it stands now." Earnhardt Jr. finished 40th in Monday's rain-delayed Coca-Cola 600. Hendrick did not specifically address breaking up Earnhardt and crew chief Tony Eury Jr. But in the past when discussing changes he made it clear that wasn't a consideration. He wasn't so clear on Tuesday with Earnhardt 19th in points, 203 behind Mark Martin for the 12th and final Chase spot. "We're always concerned when we have a car not run well," Hendrick said. "We're always meeting and trying to figure out how to make it better. We've got to come up with a plan and we've got to work toward that. We thought we had a pretty good plan coming to Charlotte. I was fairly pleased with the All-Star race and thought we would do better Sunday. We weren't."(ESPN)(5-26-2009)

[20forLogano]

well, we know the driver isn't going to be changed so I guess they are hoping someone else can at least get them running in the top 15.  Fatback would be a nice fit.

[SMOKEN14]

well, we know the driver isn't going to be changed so I guess they are hoping someone else can at least get them running in the top 15.  Fatback would be a nice fit.

I was thinking Switch Tony JR With Tony SR  at least Dale JR shouldn't cry too much

[smyler]

What has fatback been doing lately?  Is he still in the garage for anybody?  He sure made Bobby look good. 

[skool]

I was thinking Switch Tony JR With Tony SR  at least Dale JR shouldn't cry too much

See, thats the thing I wonder about. How much Jr will whine if there IS a switch. Will he man up and try his best, or will he take it personally and get a big chip on his shoulder and still do bad from lack of even trying to communicate?

If there is a change, this could be a defining moment in Jr.'s career.  I mean, let's face it..........if his name wasn't Dale Earnhardt, Jr., he'd be just another of your average Ryan Newmans, Matt K, or Greg Biffle type of guy. A guy with a few cup wins and a potential threat at any race, but not your mega-superstar status that comes with his name.  As of late, he's been more of an Elliott Sadler type.

[just a fan]

I am in no way a Hendrick fan and will not support any of his drivers, but it will be interesting to see if he has a set big enough to make the tough call. I think he has no choice but to tell Jr he tried it his way and it didn't work, now we are going to try another direction. Either Jr gets happy with it or he finds another ride. As far as swapping Tony Jr and Sr----He has already had both and the results were no different.
Maybe it is time for everybody to realize that Earnhardt Jr is a mid pack driver no matter what team he drives with. Put him in the 18, 48, 24 or 99 and he is still mid pack.
Reality sucks sometimes.

[20forLogano]

I was thinking Switch Tony JR With Tony SR  at least Dale JR shouldn't cry too much

Tony Sr already ate that pudding and he said NOOOO frickin way he wants to be in Cup with Junior again.

[20forLogano]

I am in no way a Hendrick fan and will not support any of his drivers, but it will be interesting to see if he has a set big enough to make the tough call. I think he has no choice but to tell Jr he tried it his way and it didn't work, now we are going to try another direction. Either Jr gets happy with it or he finds another ride. As far as swapping Tony Jr and Sr----He has already had both and the results were no different.
Maybe it is time for everybody to realize that Earnhardt Jr is a mid pack driver no matter what team he drives with. Put him in the 18, 48, 24 or 99 and he is still mid pack.
Reality sucks sometimes.

I think Moody said it perfectly on Sirius today.  Junior needs to take a step back and say, "ok, Rick Hendrick has all of these championships on his mantle and I have......  Maybe I should do it Rick's way and realize my way is WRONG."

[DougS]

I think Moody said it perfectly on Sirius today.  Junior needs to take a step back and say, "ok, Rick Hendrick has all of these championships on his mantle and I have......  Maybe I should do it Rick's way and realize my way is WRONG."

Was listening to that on my way home and couldn't agree more.

[south jersey girl]

I mean, let's face it..........if his name wasn't Dale Earnhardt, Jr., he'd be just another of your average Ryan Newmans, Matt K, or Greg Biffle type of guy. A guy with a few cup wins and a potential threat at any race, but not your mega-superstar status that comes with his name.  As of late, he's been more of an Elliott Sadler type.

at least Matt K has won a cup championship

[skool]

at least Matt K has won a cup championship

LOL  oh yeah!  I forgot about that!    Sorry, take matt off my list!

[Fathead]

Jr.=Biffle.   I agree with that assesment.   

[Tyyrus]

What has fatback been doing lately?  Is he still in the garage for anybody?  He sure made Bobby look good. 

You might have something there MCSwain was a good motivator , even made Mike Waltrip look competitive lol !

[CodeBlueEMT]

 It's a done deal:

 New crew chief for Dale Jr.: Hendrick Motorsports today named Lance McGrew as interim crew chief of the #88 Sprint Cup Series team of driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. beginning with the June 7 event at Pocono Raceway. Team manager Brian Whitesell will lead the team this weekend at Dover. "Our performance hasn't been where it should be," said Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports. "It's impossible to pin that on any one factor, but a change is the right decision at this point. We have a plan in place, and we're going to move forward with it." Whitesell and Rex Stump, Hendrick Motorsports' lead chassis engineer, have been assigned to support McGrew on a full-time basis. Whitesell, who won two of seven races as Jeff Gordon's interim crew chief in 1999, will join McGrew and team engineer Tom Stewart on the #88 pit box to assist with race strategy. "We're going to put our full resources toward improving the situation and winning races," Hendrick said. "It's going to be a collective effort that includes all of our drivers, all of our crew chiefs and all of our engineers. Everyone in our company will be involved on some level." Tony Eury Jr. will move from the crew chief position into a key role with Hendrick Motorsports' research and development group.

[20forLogano]

lets see if this makes a difference.  They took the cars off the hauler last night and put the HMS setup in the car.  Guess Junior had been doing their own thing.