Earnhardt Jr, Harvick could follow same path as Stewart

NASCAR is all about trends.  Many in the garage will take the copycat approach.  For example, in the late 1990’s, Joe Gibbs Racing hired Tony Stewart, and the young driver enjoyed one of the most impressive rookie seasons in NASCAR history.  Following Stewart’s emergence was the young gun craze.  He paved the way for other freshmen drivers such as Dale Earnhardt Jr, Matt Kenseth, Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, and Ryan Newman. 

From 2000 to 2006, it was not abnormal to see a rookie driver win races.  A few even contended for the championship, see Johnson in 2002 and Denny Hamlin in 2006.  Prior to 1999, a rookie had not won a race since 1987.  Since Hamlin’s first-year outburst, Juan Pablo Montoya is the only rookie to score a win.  No rookie has even come close to qualifying for the Chase for the Championship. 

Speaking of Montoya and trends; what about the open-wheel/international invasion?  Following Montoya’s entrance into NASCAR, Dario Franchitti, Patrick Carpentier, Jacques Villenueve, and Marcos Ambrose endeavored to become a successful NASCAR driver.  Ambrose is the only one remaining in the sport, and his roots are with off-road racing, not open-wheel.  American open-wheel stars such as A.J. Allmendinger, Sam Hornish Jr and Scott Speed are attempting to master the art of stock car racing.  While Hornish Jr and Allmendinger have displayed perceptible improvement since their rookie campaigns, both drivers are living proof of how daunting the transition is.

The point to the above rambling is this…when someone tries something unconventional in NASCAR, and it turns out to be successful, others in the garage take notice and feel as if they can accomplish the same thing. 

In this case, I am referring to the driver/ownership role.  It became a trend in the early 1990’s when Alan Kulwicki began to emerge as a weekly contender.  After he won the 1992 Winston Cup championship in his own equipment, other stars of the sport thought ‘if this boy from Wisconsin can do it, so can I’.  Darrell Waltrip, Bill Elliott, Ricky Rudd, Brett Bodine, and Geoff Bodine to name a few began their venture into ownership.

Because of the lack of success from those drivers, many steered clear of the ownership role for nearly a decade.  In 2005, everyone thought that Robby Gordon was out of his mind to leave Richard Childress Racing in order to build his own Cup operation.  In 2007, Michael Waltrip fielded three Sprint Cup teams.  Waltrip and Gordon enjoyed limited success early in their respective ventures, reaffirming to others that the driver/ownership deal is unsound. 

The same driver that set in motion the young gun trend could initiate yet another trend.  He left Joe Gibbs Racing in 2009 to become part-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing, a two-car outfit.  Many critics, myself included, felt as if Stewart was biting off more than he can chew.  With Stewart leading the standings after thirteen races, and his teammate Ryan Newman sitting in fifth, it is safe to say that his ownership venture is turning out to be a success. 

Make no mistake; other drivers are taking notice of Stewart and his achievements.  In the near future, some of his rivals are going to give the driver/ownership a crack.  Two drivers that stand out in my mind are Dale Earnhardt Jr and Kevin Harvick.  Both Earnhardt Jr and Harvick own competitive teams in the Nationwide Series.  The two drivers appear to have sound business minds.  Both drivers seem to be able to attract sponsorship. 

Earnhardt Jr hinted in the past that he would like to move his Junior Motorsports operation to the Sprint Cup level.  Junior Motorsports fields cars prepared by Hendrick Motorsports with Brad Keselowski as the driver.  If Earnhardt Jr were to take this leap, it may not be until his driving contract with Hendrick Motorsports expires.  Perhaps he would follow his father’s example.  Dale Earnhardt never drove a DEI entry in the Cup series.  He remained with Richard Childress Racing, and to my knowledge, he never intended to leave his long-time team. 

Kevin Harvick, Inc. fields two trucks in the Camping World Truck Series, and he won the 2007 championship with Ron Hornaday as the driver.  He also owns a Nationwide Series team driven by an assortment of drivers. 

Earnhardt Jr and Harvick are under contract with their respective teams through at least 2010.  Nevertheless, both drivers are suffering through dreadful seasons, and a change could be on the horizon.  We have seen sillier things happen during silly season.  If they do make a career altering decision, it would be one in which they would assume control of their careers, meaning that they would be the boss. 

Other drivers pondering the ownership role must remember that Stewart became a part-owner of an already established team.  He did not build it from scratch; however, he did revamp the managerial staff.