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Yesterday tested the Earnhardt Nation. Our favorite son had a fast car and he still finished 24th due to broke suspension parts and loose lug nuts. This follows the race at New Hampshire where two flat tires runed Dale Jr’s day.

This puts Junior in 10th place, 34 points behind Chase leader Kevin Harvick. If you read me regularly you know this is where I find the good news in the past race. I have searched and I did find a couple of slivers of information to brighten our day. The 88 was fast – real fast. The other good news is; we are only three races into the Chase and we have six tracks coming up where Dale Jr has had success.

Next week is Kansas where Junior finished second in the Spring. Then we go to Charlotte. You remember Charlotte? It was where Dale Jr ran out of gas on the last lap while leading and finished seventh last Memorial Day weekend. After that is Talladega. If you don’t know about Talladega and the Earnhardts you are reading the wrong blog. I’ll give you a hint, if Kannapolis is ground zero of the Earnhardt Nation, Talladega is our vacation home. Last time Sprint Cup visited Alabama Dale pushed Jimmie to victory with what looked like the fastest car on the track. After that it’s Martinsville, Junior finished second there in April. After they visit Virginia it’s  Texas – the place where Junior won for the first time in both Nationwide and Sprint Cup. Then in the season’s next to last race NASCAR goes to Phoenix where Junior has won twice.

So you see, we may be down but not out. It may seem dismal but there is a lot of racing to do. Remember even with tire, suspension and lug nut problems Earnhardt fans can take comfort in the fact the last three races has shown the 88 team can put a championship caliber car on the track and that’s the hard part. We know we have a driver capable of winning and our team is basically the same team, Chad Knaus called on to pit the 48 when the championship was on the line, last year.

So it’s not time to give up it’s time to stand up and Cheer Dale Earnhardt Jr to a championship.

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Believe it or not New Hampshire made me happy. Dale Jr may have only finished 17th but it was still encouraging. His car was far better than where it finished. Junior even said he thought he had a chance of winning. Remember Junior is a driver who is brutally honest in post race, about his car, so when he says he thought it may have been a winning car, you should believe him.

Two flat tires are not good but what was good was the show of horse power and handling the 88 demonstrated. I even took comfort from the fact Junior didn’t curse the tires. He knew, on a relatively flat track, camber was the culprit but it was also needed to make the car turn. Just facts, not excuses was how I took it.

Dale Jr now sits eighth in the standings a drop of three places. Even that is not as bad as it sounds. Only five drivers have more points than Junior. Two more have the same amount – Kyle Busch and Kenseth. Dale is listed as eighth because Kenseth and Ky Bush hold tie breakers over him. So in all actuality the 88 is tied for sixth – 26 points behind Tony Stewart.

If Stewart keeps winning the points aren’t going to matter any way but that’s unlikely. What does matter more at this juncture, with eight races to go, is the drivers ahead of Junior. The less drivers he has to catch, obviously the better. Mathematically a driver within 375 points can still win. Not probable but possible.  But if  JR stays in the standing eighth to eleventh (sorry Denny) it’s going to be hard to out point that many drivers. But sitting in sixth he has a chance in the next few weeks to climb a few spots. Maybe get into fourth by Talladega. Passing Edwards and Keselowski shouldn’t be too bad. ESPN’s favorite racer, Cousin Carl’s time to choke is about here. Then there is BK, whose crew chief makes idiot calls and gets lucky. I think luck is about to swing away from the Two, like it has a habit of doing to everyone who relies on it.

That leaves Smoke, Harvick, Jeff Gordon and Dale in the top four and the House the Earnhardts Built next. With the new restrictor plate rule, increasing horse power, look for Dale Jr to capture past magic and break his winless streak at Talladega. Where else could it possibly be better?

Then it’s four races and four drivers fighting for a championship. The son of a legend against the man who drives for his father’s old team and a two time champ and a four time champ.

Could NASCAR wish for anything better?

The only thing I wouldn’t discount is the 48. Johnson may have stumbled but people who win five championships never fall and I wouldn’t be surprised if our hero still has to contend with his stable mate before this Chase is through.

No matter, if I am exactly right or a tiny bit off, I still look for this to be a great Chase and Dale Earnhardt Jr to be right in the middle of it.

So buckle up and hang on – you won’t want to miss it!

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