by Darrell Waltrip

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He and I sat and talked for a long time, and I was very happy that I could be there to give him a hug and tell him that I cared about him. What he does is important to me, just as it is to a lot of other people. A few weeks ago, I wrote an article about how much respect I have for him. In his position, he handles himself well, and he cares what people think about him.

One of the most important things in his life right now is winning a Nextel Cup championship. I guess he won't feel like he's earned the title "Most Popular Driver" without a a championship or two to go along with it. In my book, he doesn't have to win another race or ever win a Cup championship. He's a classy kid. I'm proud of the way he's handled himself.

In addition to spending a lot of time with Dale Jr., I spokie with DEI president of global operations Max Siegel. You'll see those interviews Saturday (7 p.m. ET on FOX) before the race in Darlington. It was the first time that I had an opportunity to really sit down and talk to Max. He's a very intelligent, charming and engaging guy. I could see how he could certainly be the bridge between Teresa and Dale Jr. because he's very understanding and knowledgeable. I really enjoyed talking with him about what his role had been in this negotiation. In his case, it was too little, too late. If he had gotten to DEI sooner, he may have been able to avert some of the issues and problems that seemed to just fester, grow and get bigger. He didn't, and the end result is Dale Jr. is going somewhere else.

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Programs of the week Sunday, 3/22 on FOX 1:30 pm: Food City 500 This week on SPEED Friday, 3/20 Noon: Cup practice 1:30 pm: N'wide practice 3:00 pm: NASCAR LIVE 3:30 pm: Cup qualifying 4:30 pm: N'wide practice 7:00 pm: Trackside Saturday, 3/21 11:00 am: Cup practice 12:20 pm: Cup practice Sunday, 3/22 11:00 am: NASCAR in a hurry 11:30 am: NASCAR Raceday 8:00 pm: Victory Lane All times ET Race Trax: Updates, live results NASCAR on SPEED schedule

Where will Dale Jr. ultimately end up? That's the $64 million question. It would be a lot like Super Bowl champion quarterback Peyton Manning deciding that he was going to be a free agent. What NFL team wouldn't want a Peyton Manning? Well, who out there in the NASCAR Nextel Cup world wouldn't want a Dale Jr.? He's in the driver's seat right now> He's going to sit back, listen to what people have to say and see what they have to offer. Ultimately, it's not about money. This kid doesn't think about money. He's not one of those guys who does everything by how much it pays. He's in it for the love of the game. He's not like a lot of kids who care about what racing can do for them and don't really care about racing. Dale Jr. is not that way. He's motivated by results: wins and championships.

Where does he go to give himself the best chance to win a championship? Who will embrace him, love him and want him to be there? I only see two places: Richard Childress Racing and Hendrick Motorsports. There's certainly a longstanding relationship with Childress from the years his father spent with that company. It would make a lot of sense because Richard holds the key to the No. 3 car. If they want to run it, they can. If they don't want to, they don't have to. So it would make a lot of sense for him to strongly think about doing something with RCR. Richard's cars are very competitive, and Junior would be happy there.

The other option is Hendrick Motorsports. I have personal experience there. If he were to ask for my recommendation about where to go, I would lean heavily toward Hendrick. I know Richard would take care of Dale Jr. just like he was his son. So would Rick Hendrick,who would be a strong influence in Dale Jr.'s life and future. He would be with a group of guys, including Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson, and that may be the biggest problem. There may be too many egos for one house. I don't know how many stars one race team can handle. Rick and I went through this once before when we created the Dream Team, and it turned out to be a nightmare.

Hendrick Motorsports certainly has a good mix right now, and Rick may not want to mess it up. But he could provide Dale Jr. with all the resources, cars, motors and everything else that he might need if Junior decided he wanted to race for his own company, JR Motorsports. That's not what Junior wants to do, but if everything else failed, and he wasn't happy with what Childress and Hendrick offered, it would be a good fallback position to do his own thing. That way, you have 100 percent, not just 51 percent. That's another option.

I think Budweiser will do whatever Dale Jr. wants to do. He's done a lot for them. They'll continue to be his sponsor, no matter where he goes or what he does. I'm thinking there's probably still some logistics to work out as far as contracts go so there are still a lot of things that have to be resolved.

But the bottom line is Junior let it be known that he's looking for opportunities and options. It's a great position, and it will clear the air because he'll be a lot happier. Yeah, he's going through a lot of emotions, but now he can start to focus on the future. His team, sponsors and fans know what he's going to do. Everybody knows that he's not going to be back at DEI so what are we going to do next? What's our next move, and what's going to be the best move for everybody involved?

There's a lot to consider, including employees, friends and family. Dale's sister, Kelley, has been a real trooper and worked through all of the issues. She sat right beside Dale Jr. the whole time and advised and directed him. That's a great thing. My sister Carolyn has worked with me for 30 years. I'd be lost without her, and I can see the same thing in Dale's eyes. He would be lost without Kelley. I love that they're able to work together the way they do, think through things the way they do and come to conclusions and decisions the way they do. It will pay big dividends for him as he goes forward.

With a lot of options come a lot of unknowns. The more answers we have, the more questions we have. I was glad I was at the announcement to give a little moral support, and hopefully in my interview with him, you will see how sincere and emotional this decision was for Dale Jr. Is was not an easy decision. It did not come without cost, and he knows that. It's done, and now he can start to think about what he wants to do in the future. That's good for DEI, and it's good for Dale Jr. and his racing. We know what he's not going to do, and now we'll wait to find out what he is going to do.

The Earnhardt name is invaluable, and the image and legacy will live on. Teresa will be sure of that, and now that Junior left, I'm sure she'll be motivated to figure out what she has to do to fix DEI. If she's going to continue to be in racing and own a race team, she's got to fill Dale Jr.'s shoes with somebody. Not only does Dale Jr. have to look for a job. Now somebody can start looking at the opportunity to drive at DEI so it's going to be good for everybody. I look forward to seeing what the next episode is going to be.

It was an emotional day, but everybody got through it and handled it well. Now it's a new day, and that's what I told Dale Jr. Get a smile on your face. It's a new day. He's got a lot to look forward to. There are a lot of opportunities, and he's not in any hurry. It's May, and he's got all year long to decide what's going to be best for your future. I know he'll make the right decisions.