Dale Earnhardt Jr. took a turn on ESPN’s "Pardon the Interruption" on Thursday night, and the discussion provided some memorable quotes for those convinced that stick-and-ball media simply has no understanding of how NASCAR works.
Tony Kornheiser, who famously (and mindlessly) hinted back in February that he thought NASCAR was fixed, backed well away from those comments, calling himself an "idiot" and noting that he knows nothing about NASCAR itself. Junior, who probably has to deal with more severe criticism while he’s picking up his dry cleaning, took the ignorance in stride.
But he did provide an illuminating look at how he views his fans, and how he compares his own fanbase to that of another beleaguered institution, the Washington Redskins. When asked if he was surprised that his fans continued to stick with him through all the lean years, he conceded that he was, in fact, impressed:
"The fans in this sport have surprised me since the first time I got here. They always surprise you with how dedicated and how knowledgeable and how plugged into the sport they are. But I can relate to that. Being a Redskins fan, I want to read everything I can every day about the Redskins: about every player, what’s he thinking, what’s their approach to the season and to this game, what the coaches are talking about. I want to know everything, and I care about their success. And when they don’t win, I’m upset and it ruins my week, but I’m not changing my passion for them. My passion’s as strong and will always be as strong, because that’s my team, man. So I can kind of understand how the fan is."
And without getting too hokey, that’s exactly the nature of fandom: you root for your guy, or your team, on the off chance that one day, things will turn in your favor. Junior Nation is enjoying some success this year, though it’ll probably be a long time before Redskins fans do. You want to feel sorry for a fan base, they’re it.
Earnhardt on PTI: Redskins-Junior connection; Kornheiser still an ‘idiot’
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