Earnhardt roots with Hendrick deep

MOORESVILLE, N.C. — When Dale Earnhardt Jr. needed career advice, he turned to Rick Hendrick. When his grandfather suffered a stroke, it was Hendrick who made arrangements at the hospital. When his sister had a cancer scare, Hendrick stepped in to find a specialist.

And when Earnhardt needed to find a new team, it was a no-brainer. He landed with Hendrick, announcing a five-year deal Wednesday to join the elite team in 2008.

In many ways, they need each other.

This could be the partnership that helps Earnhardt finally win the championship that has eluded him during his Nextel Cup career.

More importantly, it could help fill an aching void that both have lived with since tragic accidents killed Earnhardt's famous father and four members of Hendrick's family, including his only son.

"I don't want to take his father's place, but I think we offer something that both of us are missing," Hendrick said. "It's not that he's looking for me to be his dad, or I'm looking for him to be my son.

"We have a common bond that we both lost somebody ... so there's something there."

That bond played a large part in Earnhardt's decision to choose Hendrick Motorsports over all the other suitors he had in the frenzied five-week push to sign NASCAR's most popular driver.

He could have chosen Richard Childress, who fielded cars for six of the late Dale Earnhardt's seven championships. Or he could have gone with Joe Gibbs, who as coach of his beloved Washington Redskins left Junior awe-struck during their meetings.

"There wasn't a wrong answer," Earnhardt said.

But as he fretted over his decision, constantly weighing the pros and cons of each offer, Hendrick always stood above the others.

The two have known each other since Junior was a little boy, and his daddy gave Hendrick his first NASCAR win in a 1983 Busch Series race. He was close to Hendrick's son, Ricky, before he and nine others were killed in a 2004 plane crash, and he'd seen how Hendrick treats his employees the same way he treats his family.

He watched as Hendrick allowed his maternal grandfather, Robert Gee, to continue working at HMS long after he was physically able.

When he turned to Hendrick following his May 10 decision to leave DEI, it just felt right. DEI officials did not immediately respond to a phone call for comment.