#8-Dale Earnhardt Jr. nearly started laughing Friday and said, ‘Nah,’ when asked if it was really possible he could drive a Ford next season. Dale Earnarhdt Inc., which is in negotiations with Earnhardt Jr. for a contract extension and also must sign a new dale with Chevrolet, has had preliminary talks with other manufacturers and also has talked about a possible merger with Robert Yates Racing. But Earnhardt Jr. couldn’t see himself driving anything but a Chevy. As part of his negotiations with DEI, he wants majority ownership of the team. “We’ll be driving Chevys, I’ll promise you that,” Earnhardt Jr. said following qualifying Friday for the Crown Royal/Jim Stewart 400.(SceneDaily.com)(5-5-2007) UPDATE: The latest on the Dale Earnhardt Jr. saga: The Robert Yates NASCAR brand will remain a Ford brand, even in any merger with Dale Earnhardt Inc., according to sources familiar with the Yates-DEI negotiations. However Earnhardt, who has been the heart of DEI, insisted he will be in Chevrolets again next season, no matter what. Those two facts make the DEI-Yates negotiations peculiar, particularly since Earnhardt has been negotiating a new contract with DEI owner Teresa Earnhardt, with Dale Earnhardt Jr. demanding controlling interest in DEI. If DEI officials are negotiating a possible switch to Ford, then Earnhardt would clearly appear to be not involved with those talks. Which would mean if Yates and DEI do come to terms, it would almost certainly be a Yates-DEI merger without Earnhardt in the mix. There has been rampant speculation the past few days that Earnhardt may be moving to either Richard Childress’ Chevy team or Rick Hendrick’s Chevy team.(Winston Salem Journal)(5-7-2007) UPDATE 2: Before he hit the track for the official test at the Lowes Motor Speedway, #Dale Earnhardt, Jr. told PRN’s Garage Pass there was no news on his contract talks with Dale Earnhardt, Incorporated. As for DEI talking with Robert Yates about a possible merger with him and Ford, Junior had this to say, I haven’t been asked about it. I haven’t been asked if I would or wouldn’t. I haven’t been part of those discussions with Yates and I don’t even know what those entail or when those happened or what they’re about or what the mechanical parts and pieces are that they’re discussing. But I like Chevys and I’ve got a great relationship and rapport with all the guys over there. Obviously that’s where I’m staying.,BR> Q: What would it take for your to drive a Ford? A: Take a big ol, big ol pile of money! But I don’t think that’s out there. Q: So, are you saying everyone has his price? A: There’s a price on everything but I don’t think that pile of money¦I don’t think that kind of money is out there, he joked.(PRN’s Garage Pass Radio Show)(5-7-2007)
