Junior steps from shadow and looks to blaze own trail

Dale Earnhardt Jr. stepped out of the shadow on Thursday and now embarks on becoming his own man. Not Dale Earnhardt's son. Not the face of Dale Earnhardt Inc. Not Driver 8.

Detractors contend Junior made it to the Cup Series on his father's coattails, that his popularity is a byproduct of his father's fan base, that he's not a lot of things his father was -- all that now takes a back seat to Dale Earnhardt Jr. the driver, the businessman.

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Earnhardt will succeed or fail, as he has for the past 265 Cup races, on his own merits. And he hasn't been a slacker during his NASCAR career: Since joining DEI in 1998, Junior has 17 Cup victories, an all-star race win, two Busch Series championships and 22 Busch victories.

Only now the legacy of DEI won't be looming over his shoulder. "It is time for me to move on," he said. "The time for me to compete on a consistent basis and contend for championships is now."

Junior was clear: The decision to leave DEI is about his driving future. He's 32 years old and deftly made mention that his father was that age when he made the move to Richard Childress Racing before the 1984 season.

Earnhardt Jr.'s options are plentiful (but not in the No. 8 car; Teresa Earnhardt owns that number):

• Drive for one of the three top Chevrolet teams -- and he will drive a bowtie in 2008:

Hendrick Motorsports -- Already has four drivers, the maximum allowed under NASCAR's impending limit, with four-time Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon, defending Cup titlist Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch and Casey Mears.

Joe Gibbs Racing -- Three-driver stable with two-time series champion Tony Stewart, Denny Hamlin and J.J. Yeley.

RCR -- Also has three drivers: Jeff Burton, Kevin Harvick and Clint Bowyer -- and the No. 3.

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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Money, Junior said, is not a priority. Contending and winning Cup championships is what he wants. "It's not the guy who gives me the biggest paycheck. It's the person I feel like will allow me to accomplish what I want to in my career, on the race track, in this shop itself," he said. "There's some things you can't get with money -- peace of mind and satisfaction in what you do everyday."

• Drive for a second-tier Cup team.

Ginn Racing -- Based on the success of Mark Martin, Ginn is the front-runner ahead of Haas CNC, Morgan-McClure and Hall of Fame Racing.

Martin is a part-time driver, sharing the car with Regan Smith, with teammates Joe Nemechek and Sterling Marlin. Haas has Jeff Green and Johnny Sauter, while Morgan-McClure and HOF are single-car teams, though open to expansion.

• Drive for JR Motorsports.

This would be the worst-case scenario but in play nonetheless because the thought of JRM to run the Cup Series in '08 hasn't been dismissed.

"I believe our first choice would be to drive for another top, competitive team," business manager Kelley Elledge Earnhardt said. "Our last choice would be to form our own Cup team. If that was necessary, that would be what we would do."

Thursday's announcement may have come as a shock to some, but Dale Earnhardt Jr. is still his own man. He still has hopes and dreams. The only difference now is that after the 2007 season he will be a free agent and won't be driving the family's flagship car in '08. He has stepped out of that shadow.

Gentlemen, start your bidding.

The opinions expressed are solely of the writer.