Dale Jr. Bids Big on Rick Hendrick’s Leadership to Fix HMS’ Darlington Woes

“What the hell happened to Hendrick Motorsports?” This was the flabbergasted reaction of The Athletic’s Jeff Gluck after the Darlington race. None of the four drivers in the stellar team could finish better than 17th, which was Chase Elliott’s finishing place. Kyle Larson followed in 19th place, William Byron finished in 21st place, and Alex Bowman lagged way behind in 31st place. This paints quite a grim picture for the team ahead of the playoffs – but Dale Earnhardt Jr. knows somebody will make it brighter.

Since 1984, HMS has picked up 14 Cup Series championships and 319 race trophies. This sustained excellence across four decades has mainly been due to the boss man, Rick Hendrick. Even as woes engulf HMS at the start of the playoffs, Dale Jr. knows that the 76-year-old racing magnate will do something.

Dale Jr. reveals his former boss’ special ability

A string of mishaps hit Rick Hendrick’s fold at Darlington. Chase Elliott lacked general speed and was forced to rally from a slow pit stop to tighten a wheel nut. William Byron also suffered a slow stop, and his team lacked execution. Kyle Larson encountered splitter damage on a late restart. The worst affected was Alex Bowman, who lost many track positions when his pit crew had an air gun issue and registered a 40-second pit stop. After these troubles, No. 5 crew chief Cliff Daniels, Vice President of Competition Chad Knaus, and VP and GM Jeff Andrews were all involved in a prolonged conversation. After all, they face a dire need of the hour – to retrieve their speed before the next playoff race.

According to Dale Jr., it will soon be done. The reason lies nowhere but the magnetic personality of Rick Hendrick, for whom Dale Jr. drove in the Cup Series. In a recent ‘Dale Jr Download’ episode, the former No. 88 HMS Chevy driver said, “Rick Hendrick has a unique ability to call everybody in on the carpet and ask for things to get better, and they always get better.” He added, “He just has a way of making everybody grab a little bit more gear, go dig a little bit harder…Nobody stays on top forever, and even the best teams will have really, really rough days. But I’ve been in that room after a race like that, and Rick will say what he has to say, and it’ll influence you to wanna go out there and make sure that you’re not the weak link.” 

Kyle Larson (+38) and William Byron(+25) are the safest with big cushions above the cutline. However, Chase Elliott(+9) and Alex Bowman (-19) have reasons to worry. However, Rick Hendrick may fuel the outliers’ motivation. Dale Jr. painted a picture of how HMS’ meeting went following Darlington’s woes, and Hendrick’s words stand out. “Imagine going into that Monday morning meeting…you put the big boss man in the room, and ain’t nobody talking. It’s quiet. He’s probably gonna say the first words in the meeting, and he’s probably gonna say the last words in the meeting. At some point, he’ll tell everybody to figure it out…He’ll challenge the engine shop, he’ll challenge everybody to make a gain. And he’ll have his information…the facts to back it up.” 

While Dale Jr. holds big hopes for Hendrick Motorsports, the drivers are feeling the pressure. That is because of two upcoming races.

Facing a strong rival

Since 2022, Hendrick Motorsports has won 38 Cup Series races. But during the same period, Team Penske has also clinched three consecutive championships. Hence, HMS’ problems during the playoffs are nothing new. With a revamped playoff schedule in 2025, Rick Hendrick’s drivers are feeling the heat. Up next is Gateway, a flat 1.25-mile oval somewhat comparable to the one-mile Phoenix Raceway, the venue for the title race. It has not been Chase Elliott‘s best track since Cup began racing there in 2022. At the track, he has finished 21st and 13th. “I don’t have a key to Gateway,” Elliott said. “I wish I did. Maybe I’ll find one when I get there this time.”

As for Kyle Larson, the No. 5 Chevrolet driver ran a tire test at the track this year. He believes that it should help him and his teammates overpower Team Penske. Larson said, “We had a great test at Gateway earlier this year, and that’s kind of led us down a different path with our short-track package here lately — and it seems to be better. I would say we’re still not anywhere close to Penske, and we’ve gotten closer to Gibbs, but we’ve gotten better, which is a plus…We’ve been really bad at Gateway but a little bit better at Phoenix. If we can be good at Gateway in the same ballpark as [Penske and Gibbs], that would give us some confidence going to Phoenix.”

Evidently, it is time for Hendrick drivers to get on a war footing. With Rick Hendrick’s guidance, they may bounce back to form by the next race and prove Dale Jr. right.