Dale Jr. speaks bluntly about issue of track promotion

DAYTONA BEACH - As NASCAR's biggest star, Dale Earnhardt Jr. can say what he wants.

During Thursday afternoon's session at NASCAR media day, he did.

Junior once again took track promoters to task for demanding more of the drivers' time to promote races.

And this time, he didn't hold back.

"Somebody said that the track owners were complaining that the drivers are negative toward them," Earnhardt said at Daytona International Speedway. "That's not true. ... We're constantly going, constantly doing things every week for this guy and that guy to help racetracks.

"[Expletive], we were in Daytona for the fan-fest thing. I read off 20 [expletive] scripts about selling tickets. ... They gotta take a little responsibility for themselves."

When told of Earnhardt's comments, NASCAR CEO Brian France acknowledged that drivers and promoters have to do more — and said that it's necessary.

"My opinion is, everybody's gotta do more," France said. "... A number of drivers have said, 'I'm going to try to do more with my fan base, try to get my Web site more interactive.' Little things and big things.

"I just hear a general sensitivity that our sport does have to the economy."

Earnhardt's annoyance with track promoters started long before media day.

Early in the offseason, the promoters at Memphis Motorsports Park offered Earnhardt free ribs for life from the track-sponsored barbecue restaurant if he raced in its Nationwide race.

Earnhardt wasn't pleased that the track didn't ask him if it could use his name.

He also was annoyed it gave its track-sponsored barbecue restaurant a plug when his real favorite Memphis barbecue is a different restaurant called Rendezvous.

Other tracks like Texas and Las Vegas have pulled similar stunts without consulting Earnhardt.

Then track promoters from Speedway Motorsports Inc. held a roundtable meeting recently, during which they said they'd like to see drivers do more to help sell tickets.

"We categorically don't support the SMI position that drivers aren't doing enough," said Robin Braig, president of Daytona International Speedway, which is owned by the International Speedway Corporation. "In fact, we just enjoyed all the top drivers on their own nickel come down to preseason thunder when they didn't have to and help us sell tickets. ... We do not agree that the drivers need to do more.

"They're carrying more than their share right now."

Earnhardt thinks the real problem is how much it all costs.

"People aren't [not] coming to the racetrack because the drivers don't give a [expletive]," Earnhardt said. "People are not coming to the racetrack because it's expensive to do it."

Earnhardt pondered a suggestion for track owners that he thought might help lower hotel prices and encourage fans to attend races.

"I was thinking the other day they oughta build their own hotels," Earnhardt said. "That way they can bring hotel prices down and control the hotel prices in the region."

Ticket sales for races are down at nearly every racing venue in America.

The Daytona 500, which takes place in nine days, is still not sold out.

Because of that, track owners and promoters have lowered prices for some tickets and tried unconventional forms of promotion.

For example, with no testing to bring fans to Daytona this preseason, several drivers, including most of last year's Chase drivers, attended a fan-fest. Drivers spent a few hours signing autographs for fans, speaking to the media and doing promotional video spots for various tracks.

"The drivers do pitch in, the drivers do kind of go that extra mile and we're willing to do more," Earnhardt said. "It's very easy to sit down and shoot a [expletive] 30-second commercial these days. I can do it at home. We got that NASCAR tech center where we can do live teleconferences for a [expletive] hour.

" ... We can push all we can push, but they gotta get a little more creative.

"They can't expect people to come back and spend that kind of money in this economy."

"We're constantly going ... for this guy and that guy to help racetracks. #&$%!, we were in Daytona for the fan-fest thing. I read off 20 #&$%! scripts about selling tickets."

"People aren't [not] coming to the racetrack because the drivers don't give a #&$%!. People are not coming to the racetrack because it's expensive to do it."

"The drivers do kind of go that extra mile and we're willing to do more. It's very easy to sit down and shoot a #&$%! 30-second commercial these days. I can do it at home."