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With speculation running rife over what Dale Earnhardt Jr. will announce in tomorrow's press conference at JR Motorsports, rather than adding fuel to the guessing game fire let's look at some of the possibilities and what they may well entail as far as those silly little sidebar issues known as "racing" and "competitiveness" are concerned.

First, a quick summary of all currently expressed expressions.  Earlier today, the Junior-to-Hendrick or in essence satellite team thereof rumor was examined.  Next up is the report that Junior and Martin Truex Jr. are going to drive for Junior's own JR Motorsports, with technical assistance (most likely engines and possibly chassis as well) being build by Hendrick.  This would mean rather than signing on with an existing Hendrick satellite, Junior's decided to create one himself and drive for it as well.  As a side note worth noting, the Busch team JR Motorsports currently runs buys its engines from RCR, hopefully before anyone drops a part into them (a little reference to Jeff Burton's woes at Richmond).  So with the backdrop set, let's meander through the different possibilities:


•  Junior is signing directly with Hendrick.  Casey Mears is sent packing, and the #25 car is once more a Bud can.  Extremely doubtful.  Rick Hendrick doesn't boot drivers without both due cause and giving them a full chance, which Mears has not yet had.  Certainly he wouldn't mind having Junior in his stable.  But not this way.  And no, he's not going to dump Jeff Gordon or Jimmie Johnson or Kyle Busch.  Scratch this one off the list.

•  Junior is going to sign with a current team being serviced by Hendrick.  As mentioned, already covered.

•  Junior is going to do what the second report today says and ramp up JR Motorsports to Cup level with heavy reliance on Hendrick engineering.  An interesting idea.  Marc would get dibs on calling it, or at least putting it out there as what ought to be done.  However, even with Hendrick doing the heavy car-building portion of the lifting, getting things going in less than a year and expecting to be able to assemble a championship contending team... that's a lot to bite off.  Michael Waltrip Racing, anyone?

•  Junior announces he's not going back to DEI but hasn't signed with anyone for 2008.  Oh goody, let's drag this thing out even longer.

•  Junior signs with Richard Childress Racing.  Certainly the sentimental choice, and RCR has turned itself around the past few years into a championship contending outfit.

•  Junior signs with Joe Gibbs Racing.  Credit to 4ever3 for suggesting this hitherto unmentioned possibility.  One thing's for certain: with Junior and Tony Stewart in the house, there'd never be a dull moment at any JGR press conference.


Ah well.  Who knows.  Maybe the press conference is solely for Junior to announce his sister Kelley is expanding her scrapbooking store.  We'll all find out together tomorrow.