Where's the love?

Dale Earnhardt Incorporated has an open ride. DEI has a talented young driver who has been flying up the Busch series point standings in the past month. It would seem like a perfect fit. Yet, rumors have it that Paul Menard will not be moving to the #15 in 2006. Does this make sense?

Simply put, it only makes sense if DEI feels they can get a young driver with Nextel Cup experience. DEI has been rumored to be interested in Brian Vickers, Casey Mears and even Matt Kenseth. Yet all of these drivers are under contract for 2006. The #15 car has been a big time cash cow for DEI in spite of Waltrip's lack of consistent success. Paul Menard has the benefit of bringing a sponsor with him, Menards. He also has shown recently to be one of the top drivers in the Busch series. Just look at his last ten races. He has 9 top ten finishes, with the only miss being an 12 place finish at Pikes Peak. In those 9 top ten finishes he has 3 top five finishes and an average finish of 6.8. In comparision in Waltrip's last 10 Busch races he has an average finish of 23.4! Waltrip has competed in a lot fewer Busch races than Menard but the disparity between their recent results can only go to improve Menard's Nextel Cup outlook. Menard has only started two Nextel Cup events in his career both at Watkins Glen. However, in both of those races he started in the back of the pack and worked his way into the late 20s. In fact in 2005 he finished ahead of Waltrip due to Waltrip being knocked out of the race.

DEI should give Paul Menard a one year shot to show them something in Nextel Cup racing in 2006. Should he fail there will no doubt be available drivers to step into the #15. Looking at the Silly Season landscape, Menard maybe DEI's best hope for 2006.