Earnhardt wants time to ponder his next move

DARLINGTON, S.C. -- If Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s telephone is ringing, he doesn't know it. These days, somebody else is answering it. With the aftershocks from his seismic decision to leave Dale Earnhardt Inc. still echoing throughout NASCAR's top series, the sport's most popular driver wants to take some time, lay low, and figure things out.

Earnhardt Jr. leaving DEI at end of season

In a news conference at his JR Motorsports race shop on Thursday, Dale Earnhardt Jr. announced he will leave DEI at the end of this season.

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"I would like to take a week or two to clear my mind a little bit, drink some beers, and have some fun. Get back to normal," he said Friday at Darlington Raceway. "I have felt about as un-normal as I possibly could the past few days. Lost a lot of sleep. So I want to relax and just clear my head and get a good football stance to go after this new deal that we're seeking."

One day after he announced his intentions to leave the team his late father founded when his contract expires after this season (watch video), Earnhardt said he had not spoken with any other car owners. He doesn't plan to have any substantial discussions about a new home "for another week or two," he said, leaving the NASCAR world to simmer slowly as the 17-time Nextel Cup race winner contemplates where he will ultimately wind up.

That means there was no deal signed overnight between Earnhardt and Richard Childress Racing, the team his father raced for, much to the chagrin of a few television affiliates which reported such a thing. Friday, Childress didn't deny that he wants to pursue the younger Earnhardt. But he also wanted to respect the driver's request for space.

"We will sit and talk, I'm sure. I'm hoping he's considering us. But I think right now, we'll just give him some time and space to do his own due diligence on the race teams he's looking at," Childress said. The elder Earnhardt drove for Childress for 17 seasons, winning six championships and becoming an icon in his black No. 3 car before he was killed on the final lap of the 2001 Daytona 500.

"Let me kind of tell you where I'm at," he added. "Dale Jr. just made a major decision in his career and in his life [Thursday]. Out of respect for Teresa [Earnhardt] and Dale Jr. in this situation, let's all give him some time to make the decisions he needs to make, and be fair. He's got a lot of tough decisions coming up in the direction he's going, and I just think it's fair that we all let him have some space and some time to kind of think about what he wants to do in the future."

That future isn't limited to RCR. Earnhardt has stated a desire to drive for a contending team and to continue to drive Chevrolets, requests that leave RCR, Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports as top contenders. Earnhardt is close friends with Denny Hamlin and Tony Stewart, drivers for a JGR squad that would like to eventually expand to a fourth Nextel Cup car.

"I love that kid," Stewart said, referring to Earnhardt. "I love him like a brother." (Continued)