Earnhardt Jr. is in final year of contract with DEIBy David Newton
ESPN.com
MOORESVILLE, N.C. -- Negotiations to re-sign Dale Earnhardt Jr. with the racing organization his father built could be completed within 30 to 45 days, according to those close to the situation.
Earnhardt Jr.
Kelley Earnhardt Elledge, who is handling negotiations for her brother, gave no indication that an agreement to keep Earnhardt Jr. at Dale Earnhardt Inc. for many years would not happen.
"The idea is that that company would be left to the children, and we want to make sure that there is a formidable business left there and we can take on for our generation and then our children and then on and on," said Elledge, who is recovering from recent surgery that temporarily stalled talks.
"It's very important to us. It's just a matter of us getting on the same playing field and where we are.''
Elledge, speaking Tuesday at the grand opening of JR Motorsports' new Busch Series and late model facility, said the key issues remain at least 51 percent ownership of the company so Earnhardt Jr. would have control over organizational decisions as well as the licensing and branding of his name.
Elledge, who expects to have a prominent role at DEI, said resources have not been up to the level of other top Cup organizations. She noted that Earnhardt Jr.'s cup team has come to JR Motorsports to use equipment not at DEI.
"The biggest reason we want ownership in the Cup program is so that we can direct it to where we feel like it needs to go," Elledge said. "It is no secret that that business has not been at its maximum potential.
"There hasn't been someone solid in the business putting the resources back into the race team. Just for them to even come over and use our pull-down plate … that's a resource that they don't have that major teams have.''
Elledge said DEI's recent hiring of Max Siegel as president of Global Operations was a step in the right direction.
"He's seen the need for it,'' she said of resources such as the pull-down plate. "He's like, 'You know, you shouldn't be going to JR Motorsports to be doing this.'
"They know what they need. They have got a three-year plan of what their capital expenses need to be. It's just a matter of timing now of getting that in place. They lack resources."
Elledge said Earnhardt Jr. wants the company to be sound so he can drive 10 or 12 more years.
"We've got to get on the race track and win and get competitive and win championships,'' she said. "We have to have a situation that provides that for him."
Elledge said she's been in constant contact with Siegel since her surgery two weeks ago. Although the recovery period is four to six weeks, she said that will not affect her ability to negotiate.
"I sat down with him last week,'' she said of Siegel. "We're there. We're continuing. It is important to all of us. It is important to get it all wrapped up."
Because Earnhardt Jr. also must renegotiate his deal with Budweiser and there are business deals that must be settled for 2008 on both ends, Elledge said an agreement must be reached by June.
And while she said talks remain positive, she said there's no agreement in principal.
"We've entertained all of the ideas of all the family, the kids . . . we've entertained all kinds of different things,'' Elledge said. "We just keep throwing things out on the table. There is no breaking point except a day, a timeline.
"Max and I are very honest with each other. It's like at some point, we've got to get to 2008. They do with sponsors and teams and drivers and we do. So at some point, the breaking point will be time. I'd say 30-45 days."
Elledge gave no indication that the sometimes tumultuous relationship between Earnhardt Jr. and his stepmother, DEI owner Teresa Earnhardt, has been a stumbling block.
She said Teresa has been on the phone with her almost daily to check on her condition since the surgery.
Elledge hopes when all is said and done that DEI will be the kind of family business that her father intended it to be.
"It's what our dad started,'' she said. "It would be great if we could be involved and help mold it to where it feels it needs to go for Dale Jr. to maximize his potential as a race car driver."
David Newton covers NASCAR for ESPN.com. He can be reached at [email protected].
ESPN.com
MOORESVILLE, N.C. -- Negotiations to re-sign Dale Earnhardt Jr. with the racing organization his father built could be completed within 30 to 45 days, according to those close to the situation.
Earnhardt Jr.
Kelley Earnhardt Elledge, who is handling negotiations for her brother, gave no indication that an agreement to keep Earnhardt Jr. at Dale Earnhardt Inc. for many years would not happen.
"The idea is that that company would be left to the children, and we want to make sure that there is a formidable business left there and we can take on for our generation and then our children and then on and on," said Elledge, who is recovering from recent surgery that temporarily stalled talks.
"It's very important to us. It's just a matter of us getting on the same playing field and where we are.''
Elledge, speaking Tuesday at the grand opening of JR Motorsports' new Busch Series and late model facility, said the key issues remain at least 51 percent ownership of the company so Earnhardt Jr. would have control over organizational decisions as well as the licensing and branding of his name.
Elledge, who expects to have a prominent role at DEI, said resources have not been up to the level of other top Cup organizations. She noted that Earnhardt Jr.'s cup team has come to JR Motorsports to use equipment not at DEI.
"The biggest reason we want ownership in the Cup program is so that we can direct it to where we feel like it needs to go," Elledge said. "It is no secret that that business has not been at its maximum potential.
"There hasn't been someone solid in the business putting the resources back into the race team. Just for them to even come over and use our pull-down plate … that's a resource that they don't have that major teams have.''
Elledge said DEI's recent hiring of Max Siegel as president of Global Operations was a step in the right direction.
"He's seen the need for it,'' she said of resources such as the pull-down plate. "He's like, 'You know, you shouldn't be going to JR Motorsports to be doing this.'
"They know what they need. They have got a three-year plan of what their capital expenses need to be. It's just a matter of timing now of getting that in place. They lack resources."
Elledge said Earnhardt Jr. wants the company to be sound so he can drive 10 or 12 more years.
"We've got to get on the race track and win and get competitive and win championships,'' she said. "We have to have a situation that provides that for him."
Elledge said she's been in constant contact with Siegel since her surgery two weeks ago. Although the recovery period is four to six weeks, she said that will not affect her ability to negotiate.
"I sat down with him last week,'' she said of Siegel. "We're there. We're continuing. It is important to all of us. It is important to get it all wrapped up."
Because Earnhardt Jr. also must renegotiate his deal with Budweiser and there are business deals that must be settled for 2008 on both ends, Elledge said an agreement must be reached by June.
And while she said talks remain positive, she said there's no agreement in principal.
"We've entertained all of the ideas of all the family, the kids . . . we've entertained all kinds of different things,'' Elledge said. "We just keep throwing things out on the table. There is no breaking point except a day, a timeline.
"Max and I are very honest with each other. It's like at some point, we've got to get to 2008. They do with sponsors and teams and drivers and we do. So at some point, the breaking point will be time. I'd say 30-45 days."
Elledge gave no indication that the sometimes tumultuous relationship between Earnhardt Jr. and his stepmother, DEI owner Teresa Earnhardt, has been a stumbling block.
She said Teresa has been on the phone with her almost daily to check on her condition since the surgery.
Elledge hopes when all is said and done that DEI will be the kind of family business that her father intended it to be.
"It's what our dad started,'' she said. "It would be great if we could be involved and help mold it to where it feels it needs to go for Dale Jr. to maximize his potential as a race car driver."
David Newton covers NASCAR for ESPN.com. He can be reached at [email protected].
