Jr. v. JJ

Jimmie Johnson has won four consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Championships. Dale Earnhardt Jr. has won a single race in the past two years. Each driver’s car was on display in the fan zone at Daytona International Speedway for the Coke Zero 400 on Saturday, July 3. Dale’s car had a line of people three deep wanting to take a picture with the machine while Jimmie’s enjoyed the affections of about three casual fans, me included.

The scene was a stark illustration of the relative draw of these two men. The junior Earnhardt is by far the most popular driver in NASCAR. Johnson has his followers but does not even sniff the love of his royally monikered teammate. Why is it that one of the most successful drivers in the history of the sport is a relative failure in the battle for the hearts of the NASCAR nation?

Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s pedigree is second to none. His father, Dale Sr., is arguably the greatest driver in the history of the sport, a status that (along with his general demeanor) earned him legions of fans. This seems like an easy explanation. Jr. inherited his father’s fans. But Kyle Petty – the offspring of the winningest driver in the history of the sport – never enjoyed this kind of love. The same can be said of Ned Jarrett’s son Dale Jarrett. Something different sets Jr. apart. Dale Jr. seems like a guy you would work with on a construction site. You can imagine sharing a peanut butter and jelly and complaining about your wife with him. He cusses profusely on the radio and sometimes on camera. He is not afraid to criticize his fellow drivers. He says things like, “we run good today.”

Jimmie Johnson on the other hand grew up in a trailer park in California. If ever there were a story of hard work and perseverance - the kind NASCAR fans tend to appreciate - it’s JJ’s. Yet most race fans do not know this because Johnson has chosen not to play up his past. He rarely cusses, rarely raises his voice, and rarely says anything critical of his team or fellow drivers. He is a PR dream. Johnson is always professional, signs every autograph with a smile, and dominates a sport that just does not get dominated. He says things like, “the car handled well today.”

Still, there is something magnetic about Earnhardt and something equally repulsive about the four time champ Johnson. It comes down to sincerity and authenticity. NASCAR fans appreciate authenticity. I think that is one of the many things that attract us to the sport, the characters. Race fans expect more than championships. We want to genuinely like our driver. Junior seems like a real person. Jimmie’s act seems forced. It feels like he is burying his roots, almost as if he is ashamed of where he comes from. Race fans see through that kind of thing. It may not be fair. Jimmie Johnson probably has a perfectly good reason for creating his public persona. But NASCAR, like life, is not always fair.