Jr trying to cheer up his crew.......Told them he can take a lot of crap but he worries about them. Told them not to believe what they read in the papers. Steve said when you got a family like mine you don't read the papers.
They're updating the FRFL now, and it looks like it's time to get a'draftin.
Didn't know if y'all had seen this article from USAToday:
SONOMA, Calif. — As Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s season continued to fall apart Sunday, the notion that he might not finish his career at Dale Earnhardt Inc., the team his late father founded, resurfaced.
Transmission problems contributed to Earnhardt's crash on the third lap of Sunday's Dodge/Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway. After his crew repaired his car, he returned to the race and finished 42nd, 22 laps behind the leaders.
That leaves Earnhardt 18th in the Nextel Cup points standings, 543 points out of first place, with 10 races left before the cutoff for NASCAR's playoff-style Chase for the Nextel Cup. Earnhardt must be in the top 10 in points or be within 400 points of the leader after the Sept. 10 race in Richmond, Va., to qualify for the playoff.
Earnhardt seemed frustrated with his team for giving him an unreliable transmission. "We need to not make these mistakes," he said in a radio interview.
It was hardly the first sign of unrest at DEI this season. In a major shake-up, Earnhardt and teammate Michael Waltrip swapped cars and crewmembers in the offseason. After finishing third in the season opener at Daytona International Speedway, Earnhardt went into a slump. His new crew chief, Pete Rondeau, was replaced by DEI executive Steve Hmiel before the May 29 race at Lowe's Motor Speedway.
DEI, founded by Earnhardt Sr. when he was driving for Richard Childress, is now run by Earnhardt's widow, Teresa. Earnhardt Jr. and his stepmother have had a rocky relationship. In an interview in Saturday's Orlando Sentinel, Earnhardt reiterated the notion that he might someday leave DEI.
Reached Saturday at the track, Earnhardt said he was simply restating his desire to drive for Childress "years and years" down the road. "Nothing's going on, I promise you that," he said.
Childress noted that Earnhardt was under contract to DEI through 2007. But should Earnhardt ever choose to leave DEI, Childress said, "He knows he's always got somewhere he can come and drive."