Dale Earnhardt Jr. Talks 2010 Season, Confirms Danica Negotiations

LAS VEGAS -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. jetted into Las Vegas Thursday to pick up his seventh consecutive NASCAR Most Popular Driver Award, but it was another driver -- Danica Patrick -- that quickly dominated the brief post-award interview session before he boarded his plane for the immediate return trip home to North Carolina.

Earnhardt confirmed that his sister Kelley Earnhardt Elledge -- a new minority owner in his JR Motorsports Nationwide team -- has been negotiating with Patrick about a part-time schedule in one of his Chevrolets. He said he was not involved in any talks.

"I'm not in the middle of it at all,'' said Earnhardt. "I don't get involved in the Danica deal in the negotiations at all, purposefully.''

Earnhardt characterized the situation as still being "in the negotiating stages."

"She wants to see what's up,'' Earnhardt said. "It'll happen when she wants it to happen.

"I haven't spent time with her. Whatever happens, she has interest and has talked to our company. Her and my sister are the only ones that have any dialog going back and forth.''

On Monday, Patrick formally announced a two-year deal to remain full-time in the IZOD IndyCar Series with Andretti Autosport, but said she would like to run a limited stock car schedule too, if possible.

When asked about a photograph on Patrick's Web site this week showing her in a JR Motorsports uniform, Earnhardt said, "I saw that,'' then added with a smirk, "You guys don't even need those kind of things to figure out what's going on a lot of times. But I can't help you.''

Earnhardt said his JR Motorsports is struggling as a company -- a common result of the rough economy -- and is still worried about funding his No. 88 Nationwide Series car full-time, as well as a second car for at least a partial schedule. He also revealed that his cousin, and former Sprint Cup Series crew chief Tony Eury Jr., joined his sister as new partial owners of the team. Up until now it had been a 50-50 venture with Earnhardt and his Cup team owner, Rick Hendrick.

"Looks like I'll be working with Tony Jr. again,'' Earnhardt joked.

Lance McGrew replaced Eury as Earnhardt's crew chief on the No. 88 Amp Energy Chevy this year in what was one of the major stories of the Sprint Cup Series season. Earnhardt said further changes are coming for next season, with personnel changes in several departments, including the engineering side.

Earnhardt was the only one of Hendrick's four Cup entries not to qualify for the 12-driver Chase for the Championship. Teammate Jimmie Johnson won a historic fourth consecutive Cup title, followed in the standings by fellow Hendrick Motorsports teammates Mark Martin and Jeff Gordon, to give the organization the first 1-2-3 finish in NASCAR history. They will be honored Friday night in NASCAR's swank Awards Banquet at the Wynn Las Vegas.

"It's a little bit bigger than tweaks,'' Earnhardt characterized his team's changes for 2010.

"But we didn't change the driver or crew chief so that's good and the pit crew has done a real good job. But if they're going to pull off pit stops in less than 13 seconds, like they did this year, they need to feel like they have a shot to win races.''

Even after recording the worst finish in the standings (25th) in his 10-year Cup career, it's apparent Earnhardt's famously loyal legion of fans are still behind him, handily helping him to yet another Chex Most Popular Driver award. And that's why he made the single-day, cross country plane trip.

Only Richard Petty and Bill Elliott have won more Most Popular Driver awards and Earnhardt is on pace to at least equal Elliott's record streak of 10 consecutive from 1991-2000.

"I turned in a video thank you a couple years back and I learned my lesson,''' an obviously humbled Earnhardt said. "If the fans are going to the trouble to click online every day and want you to win this award ... I understand how important it is to accept it in-person, not only to thank the fans but also to thank my family.

"It's hard to put words together to explain what the feeling is like. There's a big sense of, 'Did I earn this, did I deserve it?' because of my family name.

"My father gave me a helluva gift in popularity. My job has been to try to be an asset to the sport and maintain that gift and its integrity and the name my father has built, the respect it has.''