Driving for Hendrick not a guarantee of more success (cont'd)

Schrader landed a ride with Hendrick beginning in 1988 and won four races in the next four seasons, but he went winless during a span of more than 150 starts. Still, his winning percentage at Hendrick is better than Casey Mears, Dale Earnhardt Jr. or Brian Vickers, and he finished in the top 10 in 47.57 percent of his starts, a figure higher than Kyle Busch's tenure with the team.

About the Hall

The Hall of Fame will bring NASCAR's history to life and preserves that history in the appropriate environments. The facility will allow fans to have the opportunity to relive the sport's greatest moments.

• More on Hall of Fame
• Special Coverage

Rudd won one race in each of his four seasons with Hendrick, finishing with a 3.42 winning percentage, slightly higher than his career average. Terry Labonte then took over and won 11 times in a six-year stretch, including capturing the 1996 championship. But his number steadily declined by 2000, and he recorded just nine top-five finishes during a span of 195 races.

From that point on until Jimmie Johnson appeared on the scene, Hendrick went through a succession of drivers that didn't live up to expectations. Ricky Craven, Wally Dallenbach, Jerry Nadeau and Joe Nemechek combined for a total of three victories in Hendrick equipment.

And since Johnson burst onto the scene, his teammates have had decidedly mixed results. Considered a rising star after winning the then-Busch Series championship in 2003, Brian Vickers won once in 113 starts. Talented open-wheel driver Casey Mears matched that in 72 tries. Kyle Busch was the next heir apparent and won four races in three full seasons, but he found much greater success with Joe Gibbs.

But if there's a parallel to Kahne, it could be Dale Earnhardt Jr. Kahne has won 11 times in 224 career starts, a winning percentage of 4.91. Including his time with Hendrick, Junior's career winning percentage is 4.86.

Earnhardt arrived at Hendrick in 2008, amid great fanfare and greater expectations. By any stretch of the imagination, Junior has been disappointed, and disappointing, in his time as a Hendrick driver. In 80 starts since moving over from DEI, he's won once and has finished in the top 10 on the average of three of every 10 races.

On the other hand, Mark Martin has won five times (a winning percentage of 11.63) in the car Kahne will inherit, which may bode well for the Washington native who will be 31 when he climbs into the cockpit as the newest member of the organization.

So which path will Kahne's future career take? Only time will tell. But even though Gordon and Jimmie Johnson have been two of the greatest success stories in NASCAR's modern era, it's impossible to predict whether Kahne will find his Hendrick experience to be a rocky road or smooth sailing.

Related:
• Norris: Hendrick gives us all sense of measurement
• Caraviello: Kahne provides Hendrick bridge to future