It's Official Dale Jr. Leaving DEI....

[rabf1]

I think the Budweiser/Jr sponsorship is like the Gordon/DuPont ponsorship; its forever.

If he wants to win, Hendrick would certainly appear to be the best place to go.

[harvick#1]

if Jr wants to win, just ask Truex how to do it :

[MD24]

http://www.scenedaily.com/stories/20..._daily854.html

SCENEDAILY - 12:40PM ET TUESDAY JUNE 12, 2007 -

JR Motorsports has scheduled a press conference at its shop in Mooresville, N.C., fueling speculation that Dale Earnhardt Jr. will announe his future employer.
Earnhardt Jr. Is leaving the team his father founded, Dale Earnhardt Inc., at the end of the 2007 season.
NASCAR's most popular driver has said he will remain with Chevrolet, with Joe Gibbs Racing, Hendrick Motorsports and Richard Childress Racing widely believed to be the leading candidates to land Earnhardt Jr. in past weeks. Officials with Ginn Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing each said their teams were not involved in the news conference while a spokesperson for Richard Childress Racing said the team owner is out of the country on a hunting trip and that he is not expected to be back in the country tomorrow. A Hendrick Motorsports spokesman had no comment.
A call to Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s spokesman was not immediately returned.
Speed has announced plans to air the news conference live at 11 a.m. EDT.

[Cindy_AL]

HMS had no comment.... Hmmmmmm.....

I like the way that sounds. :

[dont_be_jack]

Ginn or RCR, it's going to be either one of those...

[muggle not]

Looks like HMS to me.

http://www.speedtv.com/articles/nascar/nextel/38004/
CUP: Earnhardt Press Conference Wednesday
Written by: Tom Jensen
Mooresville, N.C. – 6/12/2007

Junior: ready to set the stage for 2008?


Dale Earnhardt Jr. has scheduled a news conference for Wednesday at 11 a.m. at his JR Motorsports race shop in Mooresville, N.C. At that time, he will announce his 2008 plans, team spokesman Mike Davis confirmed.

After this season, Earnhardt will leave Dale Earnhardt, Inc., the only team he has driven for in his Nextel Cup career. Earnhardt announced last month he was splitting with DEI, largely because of strong personality differences with his team owner and stepmother, Teresa Earnhardt.

Earnhardt has made it clear that he would only drive for a Chevrolet team, one capable of winning championships. That has led to speculation he would move to either Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing or Richard Childress Racing, all of whom have won championships already. Ginn Racing has also been mentioned as a longshot.

Although team owner Rick Hendrick recently described the situation at Hendrick Motorsports as having “no room at the inn” due to already having four fully-sponsored teams, Hendrick’s name has emerged as a frontrunner in the Earnhardt sweepstakes, either with Earnhardt joining Hendrick or Hendrick providing support to a JR Motorsports entry.

A Hendrick spokesman contacted by SPEED said in an e-mail Tuesday morning, “We’re not going to comment on anything at this time.” Representatives from Gibbs, RCR and Ginn said they are not involved in tomorrow’s press conference.

Joe Gibbs Racing President J.D. Gibbs has repeatedly said he would welcome Earnhardt, but not his longtime primary sponsor, Budweiser, who has a longterm personal services contract with the driver.

The recent announcement that RCR & DEI are merging their engine departments indicated to many observers that is unlikely Earnhardt will sign with RCR, the team where his father won six of his seven championships.

Stay tuned to SpeedTV.com for much more on this developing story.

SPEED will broadcast the press conference live, with pre-press conference live updates beginning at 10 a.m. At 11 a.m. ET, John Roberts will host a special live edition of The SPEED Report, with Bob Dillner on site in Mooresville, N.C. The press conference is expected to last one hour.

At 7 p.m. ET, SPEED will present a special half-hour edition of The SPEED Report to summarize the day’s events.

[Chandler]

According to Jayski:

UPDATE 2: ESPN.com's Marty Smith reports: Dale Earnhardt Jr. on Wednesday will announce his intent to drive the #5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevy in 2008, multiple sources with intimate knowledge of negotiations told ESPN.com Tuesday on condition of anonymity. Hendrick Motorsports declined comment Tuesday, and e-mails and calls sent to Earnhardt's representation were not returned. Kelley Earnhardt Elledge, who has handled contract negotiations for her brother, declined to comment on the report. There was some speculation that the wheels are already in motion to plant Earnhardt in the #5 now driven by Kyle Busch before season's end, but Dale Earnhardt, Inc. president Max Siegel, contacted by phone Tuesday, discounted that scenario, saying Earnhardt would remain in the #8 through season's end. Sources said there are indications that Busch may not finish the year in the #5. Busch is under contract with HMS through the end of next season, and Hendrick had been working to sign the 22-year old driver to an extension. Jeff Dickerson, an attorney for Busch, told ESPN.com that "a lot of things may or may not occur. Out of respect for Hendrick Motorsports, we're not really sure what's going on yet. But we're trying. I don't think anything's changed yet. I can not tell you that Kyle is out of the #5 for 2008." Meanwhile, one potential scenario would be Casey Mears moving to the #5 and Earnhardt moving to the #25 currently being driven by Mears [Budweiser sponsored Hendrick and the #25 for many years]. It is unknown whether sponsor Budweiser will follow Earnhardt to Hendrick.(ESPN.com), the Associated Press is reporting similar news/speculatn.(6-12-2007)

[Old3Fan]

The deal is done. Jr. to Hendricks with a 5 year contract. No car number or sponsor as of yet. Kyle Busch was looking over the field for more money and approached Hendricks about letting him look around, Hendricks says Wheeeeeu!!! and the Shrub is on his way out. To RCR I bet. Kyle to RCR and RCR lets Teresa have the #3 and Teresa lets Hendrick have the #8. Jr keeps Budweiser as the major sponsor. Kellogs goes to Casey Mears in the 25 car. The end of the story