Where will Junior be next year? We have our guesses...

It’s been hard out there for the Juniors this week. What with Dale Earnhardt, Jr.’s announcement to leave DEI and Tony Eury, Jr. being slapped with a big fat fine, things have been difficult at the center of the Red Army.

We’ve all heard by now and made our own speculations and postulations about where we see Junior landing. Let’s talk about some of the choices.

Hendrick Motorsports: It has a winning tradition and championship drivers in Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson. Kyle Busch has had a pretty good season so far. Always-the-bridesmaid Casey Mears is almost relegated to an R&D season in the 25 car. Rick Hendrick has been supportive of his drivers and is very visible on track and off. He may not be at every race, but his presence is felt.

The cons to HMS? Well, bring back Casey Mears. Hendrick hired him only last year, and we’re not even a quarter of the way through the season yet. Hendrick doesn’t tend to make snap decisions, and I feel it is unlikely that Mears will be shown the door at the end of the year to make way for Junior.

Richard Childress Racing: RCR is the obvious favorite, for obvious reasons. He is practically family. RCR’s program has definitely grown by leaps and bounds, and the Busch teams it fields are also top notch. Childress has said himself that he would love to have Junior on his team. He certainly has room for him, and having a buddy in Kevin Harvick, a little brother type like Clint Bowyer and the older, wiser brother figure of Jeff Burton would certainly be stabilizing forces for Junior.

Why wouldn’t Junior want to go straight to RCR? For one thing, he doesn’t want to mar his father’s legacy there. He’s now said countless times that he doesn’t want to just jump into the famous #3 and wheel it around for years on end. Some fans, though probably not most, would be disappointed if he didn’t immediately bring the #3 out of retirement. He wants to make his own mark before doing anything related to the #3 car.

Joe Gibbs Racing: There are pros to JGR; after all, it is a championship-caliber team. There is a spot open and a good friend in the form of Tony Stewart. Unfortunately, that’s about all the pros to JGR. Coach Joe Gibbs has said when asked if they would accept Budweiser as a sponsor that it would be “hard” to bring in an alcohol company to the JGR fold. The JGR stable has always tried to partner with companies that would likely have a positive image, something family oriented. It is possible that JGR wouldn’t pursue Junior for the reason that Budweiser would almost certainly come with him as a package deal.

Ginn Racing: Ginn threw its hat in the ring a few days ago and made bold statements about its yen to add Junior to its mix. Team owner Bobby Ginn certainly has the funds to make it happen, and the team has also shown itself to be a contender with Mark Martin. Regan Smith has also shown some promise, but with Martin purportedly adding more races, Martin will likely be a big drawing point if Junior considers the team. Working with Martin would likely prove beneficial for Junior, and if anything else, he can play racing video games with Matt Martin.

There aren’t too many negative points for Ginn Racing. It is a very new, or at least in the rebuilding stage, team. Bobby Ginn has shown a commitment to the sport that many have commented on as being zealous, focused and pro-driver. Perhaps Junior could find a spot in this cozy team and bring more attention and funds to the little team that can.

Penske Racing and Evernham Motorsports have also bandied around the idea of competing for Junior’s favor. Both have openings in their teams, but the first strike is simply the car make. Junior has laughed at driving Fords, and he has said he wants to stay with Chevrolet. No doubt Chevy wants to keep him too.

It will be a silly season, indeed. It has started early, folks.

Now, part two of why it’s been a hard week. Tony Eury, Jr. was suspended for seven races total (this weekend’s All-Star Race and the next six points races) and fined $100,000 for illegal brackets that mounted the COT wing to the #8 car at Talladega.

When the story first broke, I believe (and I could be remembering wrong, so don’t quote me here) the headline on the popular NASCAR news aggregator Jayski.com asked, “Sabotage on the #8 car?”

Interesting thought.

It is going to be rough at DEI for the rest of the year, no doubt. Junior will have to focus on getting deals signed and sealed while keeping concentration on the #8 car and how to best drive it each week to go out on top.

I do wonder if any of the television commentators or journalists covering the sport will refer to Junior as a “lame duck” driver. Last year, it was all they could call Elliott Sadler, Casey Mears and Dale Jarrett. Do you think because it is Junior he won’t be labeled with that ugly title? Only time and lots of TV and print coverage will tell.

Until next week, enjoy the All-Star Race!

Have a question or comment for Samantha Maynard? Email it to samanthamaynard@sportsgrumblings.com.