Dale Earnhardt Jr.has scheduled an 11 a.m. ET news conference at his JR Motorsports shop in Mooresville, N.C., during which he will announce his plans for next season, according to a team spokesman. Sources have indicated to NASCAR.COM that those plans center on Hendrick Motorsports, the most successful organization in Nextel Cup this season, with 10 race victories in 14 starts. Hendrick, with six total championships on NASCAR's premier series, would fit with Earnhardt's desires to drive for a contender and to continue to pilot Chevrolets. The Hendrick team also had ties to Earnhardt's late father, who shook down the first car the organization ever built, and was behind the wheel when team owner Rick Hendrick recorded his first NASCAR victory in a Busch race at Charlotte in 1983. Earnhardt Jr.'s car sponsor, Budweiser, also appeared on Hendrick cars in the mid-1990s.
Mike Davis, communications director for JR Motorsports, would confirm only that Wednesday's announcement concerned Earnhardt's plans for 2008 and beyond. A spokesman for Hendrick Motorsports declined to comment. Earnhardt and his manager, sister Kelley Earnhardt Elledge, have spoken with a number of unspecified team owners since the driver's impending departure from DEI was announced May 10. Three Chevy teams -- Hendrick, Richard Childress Racing, and Joe Gibbs Racing -- emerged as frontrunners, with Ginn Racing lurking as a dark horse. The contract of Hendrick driver Kyle Busch expires after the 2008 season, and The Associated Press reported Tuesday that Busch may have asked to be let out of his deal.
In a hotel with a finite number of rooms, it is clear that once it is full, no more guests can be accommodated. Now, imagine a hotel with an infinite number of rooms. One might assume that the same problem will arise when an infinite number of guests come along and all the rooms are occupied. However, in an infinite hotel, the situations "every room is occupied" and "no more guests can be accommodated" do not turn out to be equivalent. There is a way to solve the problem: if you move the guest occupying room 1 to room 2, the guest occupying room 2 to room 3, etc., you can fit the newcomer into room 1. Unlike a finite hotel, in an infinite hotel, being "full" in the sense that every room contains a person is not the same as being "full" in the sense that there is no space for another person.
No room at Hendrick for Junior; could that change?
By Jenna Fryer, The Associated Press
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Rick Hendrick wasn't lying when he said he has no room on his team for Dale Earnhardt Jr. Hendrick, the last big-time owner to comment publicly on Earnhardt's free-agent status, has spoken to NASCAR's most popular driver about his future. But with a full stable of drivers under contract, Hendrick didn't have a whole lot to offer. "I've talked to him about doing motors and cars if he wants to do this himself," Hendrick told The Associated Press. "But that's really all we've discussed. "Right now, I'm full."
C'mon, Mr. H, are you really claiming there's no room at the inn for a superstar such as Earnhardt? "There's no room at the inn," he firmly repeated. He's right. But that doesn't mean things can't change.
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