As racing’s most popular driver, Dale Earnhardt Jr. can’t escape the spotlight. But that level of notoriety also creates unrealistic expectations and unfair comparisons to his famous father, seven-time Cup champion Dale Earnhardt.

Although Forbes magazine estimated Earnhardt Jr.’s annual income at nearly $36 million, the one thing he can’t seem to buy is patience and understanding. His fans are becoming increasingly concerned about his lack of success at Hendrick Motorsports. His normally reserved, yet playful, persona has been replaced recently with guarded annoyance as he tries to absorb the criticism.

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His departure from Dale Earnhardt Inc. a year ago was hailed as a coup for car owner Rick Hendrick. But so far, combining the sport’s most popular driver and one of the sport’s most successful teams hasn’t produced the result everyone expected.

Including Earnhardt and Hendrick.

Earnhardt now spends as much time defending his race team, especially cousin and crew chief Tony Eury Jr. The more Earnhardt struggles, the more fans and media want to pin the blame on Eury. But Earnhardt – and Hendrick – remain adamant that Eury is the key to success, not the reason for failure.

“We haven’t run well, and it is obvious,” Earnhardt said. “It is OK for people to point that out because it is a fact. I put myself in this position. I’m willing to accept the ups and downs and the goods and bads that come with it. We haven’t run like we want to, like I think we should. It’s all right for everyone to point that out.

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“I have said it a hundred times, and it just doesn’t seem to make a dent, but the guy that I feel bad for is Tony Jr. [Eury] because he gets criticized so badly. You know how smart a guy he is. Truly know that he is a good mechanic and a solid crew chief. He just wanted to do this for a living, just like I do, but I’ll take the fall. I would rather be crucified than him.”

Compounding the frustration is that Hendrick forced Kyle Busch off the team to make room for Earnhardt. Busch has won 10 races for Joe Gibbs Racing since the split. Earnhardt has won one. And Busch is having a lot of fun with that.

“Well, I haven’t really paid attention a whole lot to the souvenir sales and stuff. I really don’t care about that stuff,” Busch said. “To me, I go out there to win races, to be No. 1 on the racetrack. That’s where I feel like I win, where my benefit is. I don’t think I would enjoy having the most fans out there. I actually like the way I am, the role I portray.

“And I think that there’s probably too much pressure on one guy’s shoulders who doesn’t seem to win very often. But for us, it’s a blast to go out there and do what we do.”

The Sprint Cup Series moves to the Texas Motor Speedway this week. It’s the track where Earnhardt won his first race in 2000. Now 34 and in his 10th season, the third-generation driver seems to be running out of time to win a championship. Only two – Bobby Allison and Dale Jarrett – won a championship after competing for 10 years at the Cup level.

Before Earnhardt can think about championships, however, he knows he has to get his Chevrolet up to speed. The switch to the Car of Tomorrow last season has been especially difficult for Earnhardt. An eighth-place finish last week at Martinsville, Va., was his best effort of the season.

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He’s led one lap all year and goes to Texas ranked 16th.

Hendrick called the entire group together last week to give a vote of confidence. He also promised to do whatever’s necessary to get the team turned around.

“We have been looking at that team, as we do every team, trying to make sure that we are doing everything that we can and we have the right chemistry, the right people and are performing to our potential,” Hendrick said.

“I couldn’t change anything. We are not in left field. I think there is a lot of pressure on him because of who he is, and there’s a lot of pressure on me because of him being here, and that’s all going to make us work harder. I have no intentions of making any changes. I have all intentions of making it better.”

Earnhardt’s problems have helped deflect attention away from Jeff Gordon’s 47-race winless streak. Gordon, however, has four top-five finishes in six races to lead the standings.

“There is a tremendous amount of expectations and pressures with being Dale Jr. as well as Dale Jr.’s crew chief,” Gordon said. “There are just not many guys in the garage area that could withstand that kind of crucifixion that comes along when things aren’t going well.”

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