Do you think..............?

Question

Do not get me wrong, I love both Dale Sr. and Dale Jr...........but do you think that Dale Jr. has gotten to be a bigger name in news and in the public eye from what his daddy was? I know Sr was a big part of the media and always around everywhere you looked, but seems as if Jr may have passed him on that. Please dont give nothing negative, Im a huge Jr and Sr fan just askin a question.

Answer 1

Well, I know a lot of haters will say he's only famous because of his daddy, but that's a statement made out of jealousy and envy. If people who said that had any brains and maturity and good sportsmanship they would be man/woman enough to admit that sure, his name might be Earnhardt, but JR has made himself famous. No matter how much someone hates him, he is a good driver and he has skills, he hasn't gotten famous n popularity from his dad, he got it himself. if he was no good, they wouldn't want him .

Answer 2

I would have to say yes, because the media is involved in nascar like never before. Now Jr is doing commercials for all kinds of people, and you cant see a Nascar promo without Jr. I also think his popularity comes from his entrance into Nascar too... I am not a Jr fan at all, but you had to favor him a little after his father passed, and then Jr came in and had the success that he had, and is still having.

Plus hes a hit with all the female nascar fans! lol I dont see many women in their 20s wanting Sr like that...

Answer 3

I think he is bigger for many reasons.

1. The sport has grown from leaps and bounds.

2. In 2001 when Sr. past, sponsors paid 4 to 6 million which leads to less sponsor/driver appearances. Now it's 6 to 8 million per team and sponsors want more coverage of their driver. Back then sponsor's stayed with the team when a driver left. Now sponsor's leave with the driver no matter what team they go to.

3. Back in 2001 it was mostly TNN. Now all the bigger networks wants Nascar, which leads to more media. Abc, Nbc, Espn, Fox

There has been Budweiser sponsored driver's before, but Jr. hits the age group that Bud needs. Sr. did alot of commercials, was in videos, and songs wrote about him before his death. Sr's sponsor was focused on automotive and Jr's focused on entertainment. Even if Sr. wasn't his dad he would still be more famous then most because of his sponsor, age, talent, looks ect.

Answer 4

I am not so into who can make a bigger media splash as I am who can get into the winners circle or top 5 the most. Dale Sr. was deffinatly much better than Jr. in this area. I watch for success and team effort. jr has struggled with this and I think he is on a rebound...if only Terresa would let him and his team be the best they can be. As if she ever drove at 180mph amongst 43 other top tallented drivers..lol.

Answer 5

Yes, Junior has gotten a bigger name off the track. By that I mean, Dale Earnhardt (Sr.) is a legend in racing to be sure and he, along with Jeff Gordon and ESPN helped bring NASCAR to the masses, but as others have pointed out, there is more media coverage and mainstream tie-ins than in Sr's day. The NASCAR fan base is bigger than ever and covers a much bigger demographic. Having Budweiser as a sponsor has introduced NASCAR to hundreds of thousands of new race (or at least Junior) fans, not to mention hanging out with rock stars, being in music videos, etc. There is a whole new generation of fans who never saw Sr. drive so they may not understand his legacy, but Junior is about their age (the target demographic for marketers). He is good-looking and single so female fans love him/lust after him.

Junior has rock star status. Many people who know nothing about NASCAR or racing know two drivers--Junior and Jeff Gordon. All one need do is look at your local discount store. Most of the NASCAR merchandise is Junior or Gordon, along with some Tony, Jimmie, and Kasey (and a few others depending on the store).

So, it isn't about performance on the track as much as events off the track. The sport has evolved into a new phenomenon that is much different from 10 or more years ago. Many of Junior's fans are from today's connected world, not pure race fans or "old school." Some of these people would not have been fans of NASCAR or racing as it was in Sr's. day.

Answer 6

I have noticed that a lot of Sr. fans like Jr. because they don't want to let go of Sr., but Jr. deserves the coverage he gets. For instance, I seen an older lady cry at the site of Jr's. car and she said, "Oh poor baby, losing your daddy so young!" So to answer your question yes, part of it is from his daddy, but we all have to admit Jr. is worth talking about, we have seen him grow as a driver in front of us!

Answer 7

Yes. Jr. is in no way what his dad was as a racecar driver.. after Sr. died the media, fans, ect. just wanted to keep the Earnhardt legacy alive, Yes Jr is a good driver, but he is nowhere near the driver his dad was and, in my opinion, there are many drivers in nascar more talented than him and they get little media attention because they are not an earnhardt or look the way Jr. does..

Answer 8

No way. Look at the years and years that Sr. was in the media (and in the points!). NASCAR just gets more coverage now than it did a few years ago, but Jr. is nowhere near the fame that Daddy had (has). He's got a long way to go to match the legend.

Answer 9

Yes, he has gotten bigger than his dad. Mainly because the sport is watched more today than back then. Not only that, just his namesake is a legend in itself and there are expectations put on him by the public now that his dad is gone. He is one of the best drivers out there today. The marketing today also has a lot to do with his high profile.....How many commercials have you ever seen Sr in??

Answer 10

Great question, they're each their own man but today is a different age and I think you're right on this, Jr has passed his Daddy when it comes to media coverage.