2014 Driver Reviews: No. 8 Dale Earnhardt Jr.
After doing exit interviews for Sprint Cup Series drivers in 2013, we're turning the tables. We want the drivers to sell themselves. So here are the resumés for all full-time Sprint Cup Series drivers in 2014. Then, at the end, we'll provide a summation of the driver's season in 150 words or less.
Name: Dale Earnhardt Jr.
NASCAR Experience: 15 full seasons in the Sprint Cup Series. 23 wins. 1998 and 1999 Xfinity Series champion.
Most recent team: Hendrick Motorsports
Most recent season finish: 8th
2014 accomplishments: Four wins, the most in any season since 2004. 12 top fives, the most in any season since 2004 and 20 top 10s.
Most memorable moment: Joining Twitter. OK, kidding. Winning the Daytona 500 is pretty unforgettable. And if you're looking for a way to kill time at work, here's a condensed version of the race, which definitely lasted more than 51 minutes.
Though sweeping Pocono is pretty good too.
Strengths: Well, being the most popular driver in the Cup Series is a strength, right? And winning races again is a strength too.
2015 goals: Make sure that 2015 doesn't have a dropoff from Steve Letarte to Greg Ives. And get past the second round of the Chase.
FTM's Take: About the Twitter thing at the top: Perhaps Junior's most memorable off-track moment for the public is Twitter. Because he and Brad Keselowski are must-follows as they have unfiltered accounts with unique insights. For as much as was touted of the early adoption to Twitter for many in NASCAR, it can be hard to find engaging Twitter follows at times.
Yes, it's going to be easy to fret about the loss of Letarte in 2015, but what if Junior's success with Letarte was helped by their ability to let loose and have fun? There can be valuable carryover in that for Junior, who seems to be enjoying everything about life.
There may be an adjustment period with Ives, but we're going to go out on a limb and say we won't be worrying about the partnership come June and July. Junior's still in a great situation to contend for a championship if he can avoid the fate that befell him in the second round in 2014.
Previous reviews: No. 9 Carl Edwards, No. 10 Kyle Busch, No. 11 Jimmie Johnson, No. 12 Kurt Busch, No. 13 AJ Allmendinger, No. 14 Greg Biffle, No. 15 Kasey Kahne, No. 16 Aric Almirola, No. 17 Kyle Larson, No. 18, Jamie McMurray, No. 19 Clint Bowyer, No. 20, Austin Dillon, No. 21 Paul Menard, No. 22 Brian Vickers, No. 23 Marcos Ambrose, No. 24 Martin Truex Jr., No. 25 Tony Stewart, No. 26 Casey Mears, No. 27 Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 28, Danica Patrick, No. 29, Justin Allgaier, No. 30, David Gilliland, No. 31 Cole Whitt, No. 32 David Ragan, No. 33 Michael Annett, No. 34 Reed Sorenson, No. 35 Alex Bowman
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
