NASCAR Notebook: Fans may tune in to see Earnhardt anyway

¦How well will this year's Chase for the Championship play on television?

That may well depend, ironically, on how well Dale Earnhardt Jr. does, even though he’s not in the official Chase.

As NASCAR’s biggest headliner, Earnhardt carries an unenviable burden. And the Chase will also be his last 10 races with the team his father built.

At least Earnhardt could provide some punch here this weekend at New Hampshire International Speedway.

“We led the most laps (in July) and finished fourth, so we certainly have shown we can take the car of tomorrow to the front,” Earnhardt said.

“We’re all frustrated and let down by not making the Chase. But we can wash that bad taste out of our mouths by running wide-open and grab a win or two in the last 10.

“There’s no way we can keep running up front and not have the breaks go our way at least once. It’s bound to happen. But even if it doesn’t, we’re going to close out the year with integrity.”

¦ It's been a long time coming, and Budweiser people probably won't be thrilled, because they're expecting to lose Earnhardt after spending millions promoting him in the red No. 8. But car owner Rick Hendrick last night said he would be revealing Earnhardt’s new sponsor and car number for 2008 in a news conference in Dallas next Wednesday.

One of the potential sponsors for Earnhardt is Pepsi’s new energy drink Amp, a caffeine-ladened Mountain Dew.

¦ Jeff Burton and the rest of the Richard Childress drivers have struggled recently, although all three teams made the Chase. So,Jeff Burton realizes, “We need to step it up a bit.

“The way we have been running, we need to improve. But we are prepared. Instead of going into the Chase and sputtering through it, I want to go in and be a force.”

¦ The Chase for the Championship isn't the only chase going on the next 10 weeks.

Since NASCAR guarantees the top-35 in the season-ending standings a spot in the field for 2008's first five races, that battle back in the pack bears watching, too, because it could determine who is safely in the Daytona 500 and who is in danger of missing the sport's biggest event.

Brian Vickers, 38th, is one of the men in that Chase.

¦ After leading the 2006 tour in victories, Kasey Kahne has fallen off the radar this season, and he’s still trying to turn things around. A second at Bristol three weeks ago is his best finish. And team owner Ray Evernham, who just finished a partnership deal with outsider George Gillette, may not have had his eyes on the ball this season.

So what can they salvage?

“Track position is critical at New Hampshire, so in the final 100 laps some teams will gamble on two tires as a trade for track position,” Kahne said. “If we can handle in the corners, that will be key. When the car doesn’t handle in the corners at New Hampshire, you’re in for a difficult day.”

Elliott Sadler, Kahne’s teammate, isn’t that optimistic: “We’re in a chase, but not the chase for the Cup. We’re chasing a solution to handling issues with our Dodge. We just haven’t been able to pinpoint how to make our car of tomorrow handle in the corners for an entire race.”

¦ NASCAR and Goodyear engineers are following up this week's car-of-tomorrow testing at Talladega with a special Daytona 500 tire test at Daytona International Speeday next Tuesday and Wednesday.

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