A Celebrity Enters, A Fan Favorite Exits | The DawgHouse

      There appears to be a HUGE change at Hendrick Motorsports soon. According to jayski.com, it appears there is a chance that Danica Patrick could be driving a Hendrick car next year. But that's not even the biggest part of the story. What's bigger is the car she'll likely drive: The #88 currently held by NASCAR's most popular driver, Dale Earnhardt Jr.

      This doesn't mean Jr is done with Hendrick. If this does happen, Earnhardt would move to an expanded JR Motorsports operation. JR Motorsports, Earnhardt's own operation, runs in partnership with Hendrick and would then be stepping up from Nationwide to Cup. There have been rumors that Hendrick has had conversations with Brad Keselowski about the possibility of moving to Cup. Since Hendrick has no more teams to add, it seems that Keselowski would have to drive for JR Motorsports. Now he might have a teammate.

      According to Jayski, " [It] is not clear how far along any Patrick-IMG-Hendrick negotiations have gone, but sources tell mikemulhern.net that the Patrick-Hendrick deal is very close to being a 'done deal.'" How about that? If this happens, it could signal the downfall of Junior Nation and Earnhardt Jr himself. Being outed by a woman who has only won one IRL race? That's embarassing, especially for a man with the last name Earnhardt. It is no secret that Dale's tenure at Hendrick has been a disappointment. If this happens, it could go from disappointment to disaster.

     So, how would Danica preform in a Hendrick car? Well, not any worse than Dale Earnhardt Jr. Something has to be wrong for Junior. He has the best equipment in NASCAR, yet has 1 win in 2 years with the team. At DEI, it looked like Tony Eury Jr was a genius and that it would always be Tony and Dale working together. At Hendrick, Eury has became the scapegoat and now is working with research and development. As hard as it is for some diehard Junior fans to understand, it is his fault for his struggles, and it may cost him a ride in the #88 car.

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