No on No. 8? No surprise to Earnhardt Jr.

DAVID POOLE, dpoole@charlotteobserver.com

Saturday, Aug. 18, 2007

BROOKLYN, Mich. -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. said Saturday he figured all along that his stepmother, Teresa Earnhardt, wouldn’t let him have the No. 8 when he goes to Hendrick Motorsports.

“I knew that this was the way it was going to be,” Earnhardt Jr. told NASCAR Scene. “I've been in these negotiations with the same person before and they never work out in your favor.”

Earnhardt Jr. declined comment on Friday, but did speak to a small group of reporters after Saturday’s first practice.

Earnhardt Jr. said his sister and business manager, Kelley Earnhardt Elledge, and Dale Earnhardt Inc president Max Siegel worked hard to make a deal for the number he’s used throughout his Nextel Cup career.

“Max tried to make it work and trying to talk to Teresa and get some sense into her,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “But she either feels too personal about the number, or the rift between me and her or whatever is too personal. I can totally understand if I was in her shoes, I would be inclined to probably keep the number myself.”

Earnhardt Jr. said Teresa Earnhardt, the chief executive officer at DEI, wanted Earnhardt Jr. to relinquish the number back to DEI when he was done with it. He was willing to do that. But she also wanted a part of the licensing revenue off the number, and that wasn’t something he was willing to do.

“When I walked away from DEI, I wanted no ties whatsoever,” he said. “If I was to get the 8 and allow Teresa to still have control over it, I would still have to deal with it. That is not what I wanted. I have to let it go.”

Earnhardt said he has considered other options and is considering a number with an 8 in it – “some 80s and things like that.” He said he will be involved with the design of how the number appears on his car and will build a new brand identity with that.

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