The Intimidator’s ready for another run

Mike Harris

Thursday, Dec. 16, 1999 | 11:49 a.m.

Perhaps it's just wishful thinking, but Dale Earnhardt is sure he can win another championship in 2000.

Earnhardt, who'll be 48 when he begins the new season at the Daytona 500 in February, won the last of his record-tying seven Winston Cup titles in 1994. He hasn't come close since.

But three victories in 1999 - the most for The Intimidator since he had five in 1995 - a maturing relationship with his crew chief and some setup changes have Earnhardt believing he has at least one more championship run in him.

"Our team really came together as '99 went on," said Earnhardt, seventh in points last season. "Kevin Hamlin and I got real comfortable working together, and our team just kept looking better and better and better.

"I've had confidence in myself all along. It was just a matter of getting the pieces back in place." I think we've made a lot of changes that needed to be made. If we didn't make those changes, we weren't going to win."

Those changes include new personnel and modifications to his Chevys.

"Richard Childress and myself have made some important innovations on our cars," Earnhardt said. "You've got to be closer to the edge than ever to win. That means sometimes you go over the edge, and I don't mean driving, either."

Childress, Earnhardt's team owner for 16 seasons and six of his seven championships, is just as confident that his driver and team can again be in the title chase.

"Our people have been working together for a while, and they have built some real good chemistry," he said. "Add to that the fact that I believe Dale Earnhardt can still win week in and week out, and you have a chance at that eighth championship."

The 1999 showing by Earnhardt was inconsistent, not the way to win championships in NASCAR's top division.

In 34 starts, Earnhardt had only seven top-fives and failed to finish seven times. But he did have 21 top-10 finishes.

"I'll tell you the biggest thing we have to change," Childress said. "It's our qualifying. As competitive as the teams are now, making it handle to come from the rear every week is just too hard."

It wasn't always that way. A bad starting position once was fairly easy to overcome. But with Dale Jarrett, Jeff Gordon, Bobby Labonte, Mark Martin and Tony Stewart running up front virtually every week, it isn't so easy anymore.

Earnhardt's days of consistently coming from the back are over.

"We can race with them every week, but even if you can get to the front, you have to use up the car and the tires to do it," Childress explained.

He is looking for more on qualifying day next year.

"Nobody can hit it every week," he said. "We just want to improve to 75 percent. That's what can make us a contender."

One problem for Earnhardt, who also owns a team, is the possible distraction of his son, Dale Jr., moving up to Winston Cup next season.

Little E has caused tremendous excitement by winning two consecutive Busch series championships to earn his shot at the big time with Dale Earnhardt Inc. But the elder Earnhardt knows he can't let the youngster's trial by fire detract from what he's trying to accomplish in the waning years of his career.

"He's not going to be a distraction to me unless he's competing against me for a win," Big E said. "I pay the bills for DEI, and those guys over there do their jobs. My job is to drive that black No. 3."