Kevin Harvick calls Teresa Earnhardt a ‘deadbeat’ car owner
Quote selected text Published January 24th, 2007 in NASCAR News
Dale Earnhardt, Jr comes to stepmother’s defense
Kevin Harvick knows the odds of Dale Earnhardt Jr. leaving the company his father built for the company his father raced for are very long. But Harvick would understand if NASCAR’s most popular driver left Dale Earnhardt Inc. for Richard Childress Racing after the 2007 season if contract negotiations broke down. He can’t imagine how difficult it is for Earnhardt Jr. to work in a company where the owner, stepmother Teresa Earnhardt, seldom comes to the track.
“It’s hard when you have what I call a deadbeat owner that doesn’t come to the racetrack,” Harvick said during Tuesday’s visit to RCR on the second day of NASCAR’s 2007 media tour. “Richard [Childress] is one of the best owners in the garage. “You always see Richard Childress. You always see Chip Ganassi. All these owners, they all come to the racetrack. It’s not just a money pit that somebody says, ‘Well, I can make money off of Dale Jr. I can make money off of Dale Earnhardt.’ “
Harvick, who owns a Busch Series team, said race teams can’t be run from home. “You have to be at the racetrack and you have to play the politics of the sport and you have to be a part of your team and you have to understand what’s going on,” he said. “To me, from the outside looking in, it doesn’t look like that’s happening.”
Earnhardt Jr., at a dinner Monday night in Concord, said, “You’re killing me.” “That’s ridiculous,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “I don’t think there is a comment for that remark.” Earnhardt Jr. said with everything his stepmother has dealt with since the death of his father in 2001 on the last lap of the Daytona 500, “she had a full plate.” “We’re successful on the racetrack,” he added. “The people are in the right place.” Earnhardt Jr. said negotiations are ongoing for a contract beyond 2007, and he expects to settle in the next couple of months.
- Teresa Earnhardt questions Dale Earnhardt, Jr’s commitment to team, racing
- Waltrip says Teresa Earnhardt wouldn’t let go of #15 either
- Statement from Teresa Earnhardt on Dale Earnhardt, Jr’s departure from DEI
- DEI intend to re-sign Dale Earnhardt, Jr according to Gilmore
- Harvick ignoring Stewart’s phone calls
I’m not always a Harvick fan (though I do respect the work he does for animals) but
I have to agree with him here.
And Dale Jr.’s refusal to comment shows that he is better than Teresa and always will
be. He’s smart enough and mature enough and has enough respect for his dad to keep his
opinions to himself.
I’m still holding out for the Black #3, myself. It would be incredible to see that car
on the track again.
I hate to disagree with Harvick but I do. Its sweet Junior is defending Theresa but we all know she’s not the most involved owner in the sport. If there’s the possibility of any owner just wanting a money pit and making money off a name then wouldn’t her name be at the top of likely suspects? Junior should not say “we’re successful on the race track.” He should say “my team” because its obvious that DEI as a whole is not successful at the race track. Its not just driver, its money and resources from higher up which don’t seem to be managed as well as they should be.
I agree… Bring back the 3!
Harvick just wants JR at RCR! Which isnt a long shot!
I have to agree with my boy Harvick. If Teresa was in this for the love of racing she would most definitley be at the track more than she is.
All you have to do is look at Richard Childress and all the other owners like Harvick said and see how often they are at the track to watch their driver or drivers. Personally I don’t feel that she has what it takes to be a quality owner of a race team. But that’s just my opinion. No matter what I admire JR for sticking it out and who knows maybe someday in the near future JR and Harvick will end up being teammates. I sure do miss that #3.
Right on Harvick! Not a fan of him at all, but I think he’s saying what many people think. Teresa may have a lot on her plate, but so do a lot of other owners, yet they take the time to be at the tracks and support their drivers.
She is just a greedy, greedy Yoko Ono wannabe who cares only about herself and no one else.
Junior would be a lot better off without her around - so would the whole NASCAR community. It’s nice of him to try and defend her - just shows what a nice guy he is - but I can see through it. As long as he is under her thumb he’s going to defend her simply to keep as much peace with her as possible, but I’m sure he gave Harvick a pat on the back for speaking the truth - I know I would have!
harvick is an ass. its not his place to be commenting on the operations of another team. harvick always has and always be a trouble maker and i for one, enjoy seeing him wreck just as much as i like seeing kurt busch wreck.
I do like seeing Kurt Busch wreck…..him and his ole plastic surgery self!
Harvick Needs To Mind His Own Bussiness, What Goes On At DEI is Between the people that work there what jr and Teresa are going through is between them i think its not as bad as the media is putting it, Its nice to see jr definding Teresa that shows that he cares for her. If Harvick dont have nothing good to say about people he needs to keep his mouth shut thats why some people cant stand him i myself likes kevin but he just needs to keep his thoughts to his self
I am on the fence with this…. I agree with Kevin on one side. A owner
should be at the track… but on the other side, I wouldn’t refer to her
as a “dead beat”. She helped build DEI too… It wasn’t all DALE building
that team alone. And think back, when Dale was alive, she was at the track
often. Remember? Does anyone remember that? And think about how you would
be if you lost your spouse at the job they loved. Some people take longer
to heal than others, and some never heal. I guess I am not really on the
fence, I am on her side with this. Sorry Kevin. Chill out.
And NO to seeing the #3 on the track. Let it rest.
Go 43! I love you Bobby!!!
Catherine
Hmm…….does anyone think that John Menard thinks Teresa is a dead beat? lol…………
To look at it you have to look at it from everyones point of view, Though harvick should of probley kept his mouth shut in this situation, he does bring up a good point. But he isn’t the only one in garage that believes this, I am sure there is alot more about what jr, thinks about this than we believe. I am also sure he is alot more hurt about what Tresia said that he has let out. I am in agreement with harvick. and not by a bias thought either. But, unless somthing like this happens you don’t even here about Tresia Earnheart. If she is as involved as you people think then were is she all the time. You have to be involved on an everyday basis. Look at the other teams, there owners are everywere there teams are all the time. From RC, to Rick hendrick. Cause when push comes to shove, they have the final say, I mean look she won’t even show up to the negotiations with Dale Jr. How interested are you if you won’t even show up to keep him there. If I was Dale I would cut my ties and be moving on and be takeing this as an insult.
I have to agree with both sides. I completely agree with Harvick’s statement, but he doesnt have the right to come out and say that. Its a family fight and Jr and Teresa may have been at odds, but they will stick together if someone from the outside makes a comment like that.
I think with Harvick saying that and Jr sounding upset and defending his step mom, it hurt the chances of Dale going to RCR. But I completely agree with Harvick. No matter where he goes, Go Dale!
This Angela Patterson is my next wife. lol.
Does anyone see a pattern with Theresa? She shacked up with (at the time) the most promising and soon to be most successful NASCAR driver (I know Gordon exceeds him in race winnings now, but no one will exceed him anytime soon in total merchandise profits) and now she’s hooking up with the 41st richest man in America? She finds time for that but can’t be at the track….
Before long , she could have 2 step sons racing for her. lol. Heifer!!!
I agree with him. He was just making an observation from his side. It means that her non-presence at the races is visible to everyone. If you owned a team or something wouldn’t you want to go and see were the money is going? As for Junior defending her, I feel he’s just getting fed up with this being such a big and wants doesn’t want this to get anymore out of hand.
harvick needs to quit talkin out of his ass and think about what he says…..teresa was trying to get big e to retire before he passed away and i agree she had enough to deal with with the loss of her husband to come to a track and be reminded of him somewhat….and i also might say that 98%of women and racing dont mix….she definately has what i takes to be an owner but dei is always competetive whether shes there or not just like jr said and that was cool that he did stick up for her yet their relationship hasnt been the best either…i know harvick is in big e’s car pretty much but he aint dale he never will be the only person that can follow his footsteps is his son….harvick is nothin but a unsportsmanlike preick jersk or whatever u want to call him but i dont like him…
he’s a prick and a jerk*
GO HARVICK!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am a diehard Harvick fan and what he said is
exactly true. He should be entitled to his opinion. Many people have said
shit about him over the years so why can’t he say anything about anyone
else? Personally, I think that Teresa sucks as an owner and that it’s
absolutely ridiculous that people want JR to race the black #3. JR would
be horrible for RCR and would be a horrible teammate for Harvick. I’m
pretty sure they don’t care much for each other. Seeing JR in the black #3
would be an insult to Dale SR. JR is not his daddy and will never amount
to what he was.
Harvick races the same way Dale SR did and does alot of the same things he
did, so how can you call him a prick and a jerk? Was Dale considered a
prick and a jerk? I don’t think so.
And what kind of male chauvinist pig are you saying that almost all women
don’t mix with racing? Wow you’ve got some nerve there buddy.
Ashleigh, dale sr was not exactly the most loved driver out there.
True that Dale Sr wasn’t the most loved driver but he definitley had the biggest balls when it came down to it in the end.
hi everyone
i like Angela Patterson too
check this out
dale jr. is dei,
teresa ownes it runs it and will destroy it
dale jr. will keep racing weather its for dei, jr motorsports. rcr
i dont think he would have people saying they would not want him to drive for them any where
jr will be fine no matter what
teresa has enough money and if jr leaves menard will own dei in two years
screw that gold digger
Comparing Harvick to Dale SR.? Are you F-N kidding me?! All I can say about that! Harvick meant well by his comment, not his place to say it publicly. Harvick and SR. hahahahahahahahahaha
Yeah Harvick and Sr are no comparison to each other. Sr was one of a kind and there will never be another like him. That is why the #3 car should be retired and no one else drive it because the best driver that ever raced was the last one in it and it should stay that way. I’m a big Jr fan but no one deserves to drive the #3 car after the LEGEND himself kicked ass in it!!! That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!!!
kevin needs to learn to keep his mouth shut .and do his job and that is to drive a race car
kevin needa to learn to keep his mouth shut and do his job .that is to just drive a race car. if he would do that he could be one of the most popular drivers in nascar and win some titles
Its no fun if the drivers race and don’t talk. There would be no drama. Also, why ask someone to shut their mouth when they’re giving an honest opinion? Harvick is Harvick. He’ll never be Dale.
I’d only like to comment on Theresa’s absence from the track.
I am a widow of a former racer fan, he owned and raced for 10 years.
After he passed it is just terribly hard to go to the track.
Everywhere I look I see him! Everywhere I look I expect him to come walking
over to me. Everyone I meet there knew him, yet they don’t mention his name.
Unless you’re a widowed person you won’t undertand,
it’s too hard for you to even empathasize or
imagine —-perhaps to believe that if you speak of your partner’s demise before they’re
passed it’s bad carma or morbid. But we all die and it’s not always easy to just
pick up the pieces and “get over it” as the rest of the world thinks it is. It’s hard and
life will never be the same….and it’s easy to understand if being at the track is
just too hard for her to do. It has been for me and it’s nearing 7 years now.
It’s easy to critisize when your feet aren’t in those shoes!
I’m backk………..
Harvick is Harvick. There will never be another Dale Sr., Harvick is just one of those little west coat punks
(jimmy johnson, jeff gordon - you might as well throw the busch’s in there too - they are from vegas). He does do
a lot of good things for the NASCAR community, but I’m still not a fan.
mary, i sympathize deeply with your loss and please accept my condolences. However, I venture to say that the
situations are not exactly the same. Teresa is still the owner of DEI. She should support her drivers. Period.
Not bad mouth them in the press. And by supporting them, I don’t mean banging their daddies. If you are not able
to run the business as it should be ran (i.e. supporting your drivers) then you need to give it up and find
another position. It’s just like any other job, or anything else in life. A paycheck is a paycheck, it will
spend the same no matter who signs it, but it builds morale to give support and present a united front. This will
build a stronger team. Strong teams win championships. Ask Jack Rousch or Richard Childress or Rick Hendricks.
Look, this argument about her not wanting to go to the track
because of Dale’s death and not wanting to be reminded of it? I
would consider that a fully legitimate reason, except for one
thing. Mr Menard. Obviously she’s starting to move on, so she
needs to get her ass to the track and start actin as a proper car
owner, because I really don’t wanna see [[in my opinion]] the
greatest man ever’s dream for his son go down the drains because
she’s messin around with her responsibilities for god knows what
reason. I agree with the viewpoint that even though it’s documented
they bicker frequently, Dale Jr stood up for her cuz they’re still
family and they still both care for Dale Sr, so they try to make it
work when they can. Should Harvick have expressed his opinion in
public? To me, absolutely. There’s enough oppression in this
country without people havin to keep their track shut when they have
an opinion. Other people are welcome to bash it, but saying he
shouldn’t of said it is ridiculous to me, everyone’s entitled to
their opinion. And Angela you nailed it on the head, if she can’t
do her job, let somebody else instead o bein stubborn or whatever
one would want to call it. Jr’s gonna go where he’s gonna go, but
even if he DOES leave DEI [[and it doesn't fall apart because of
that]], Theresa shouldn’t be runnin things if she’s gonna act like
this. As far as Harvick being compared to Sr goes, there will never.
EVER. be another Dale Earnhardt, ever. However, I think all they
were saying is that he’s an aggressive driver who sometimes pisses
people off with his on-track antics, which we all know Dale did as
well. To Mrs Tupper, I’m sorry for your loss, I truly am. And it
obviously wasn’t a spouse I lost as I’m only 18, but I lost two
friends to the same car accident, and yet I still purposefully
visit the tree where they perished, because ignoring the situation
doesn’t make things any better. Especially when you’re not
fulfilling your responsibilities in the process.
Well said!!!!!!!