Pit Pass Radio

Hendrick Motorsports has officially become the New York Yankees of NASCAR. Yes, the rich do get richer. Does that mean that things always work out the way you want them to when you have it all? Of course not. The Yankees are certainly struggling this year and Hendrick Motorsports’ mega-star Jeff Gordon missed the Chase in ‘05.

The coolest thing about yesterday’s announcement to me was that you got to look ‘behind the scenes’ into a relationship that has been growing for many years. How many people knew the story about Earnhardt signing a ‘contract’ Hendrick had scribbled on a napkin back when Jr. was 15? Rick’s “I was scared of your Daddy…” line was priceless.

I am not now, nor have I ever been, a member of the Earnhardt Nation. That said, it’s refreshing to see something “out of the blue” like this come together to keep you excited about the future of the sport. These plastic drivers with stock responses every time a microphone is put in their face is for the birds. Without interesting characters involved it’s not nearly as fun to watch.

By the way, if I have to listen to another placid, politically correct interview with Kurt Busch (no doubt scripted by his anger management team) I may puke.

Hendrick Motorsports….the dream team of NASCAR, with so many questions still unanswered. What number? I keep thinking of the Bud commericial where “He changed his number!!!!”. Can you change an ‘8′ tatoo into a ‘5′? I don’t believe there is any way Teresa Earnhardt will give up the #8, but then again, I didn’t think the Hendrick deal would happen either.

Sponsor? I can’t see anything but a re-joining of Budweiser and Hendrick and the millions that come along with it. Funny, you hardly ever hear Jr. mention his major sponsor, even in victory lane. You do hear him over the radio during the race say, “Man, I could sure use a cool Bud after the race!” or, “Make sure you’ve got a cooler of beer iced down when this thing is over!”. I will be surprised if Budweiser lets Jr slip away.

Will we see the switch happen before the end of this year? It’s awfully early in the season to make this kind of announcement (although this kind of thing is slowly becoming the norm). If either driver’s Chase status seems in jeopardy, yeah I could see it.