Take 5: Five Takeaways From Martinsville Speedway

USA Today Sports

Take 1 – 2014 is a success for Dale Earnhardt Jr. despite not winning a championship.

Talladega was simply bitter for a lot of Earnhardt Jr. fans. 31 races after Earnhardt Jr. won the Daytona 500 and made the idea of a championship seem real, his run for the title was over. As his hopes for a championship came to an end many folks began to toss out the word disappointment and failure in regards to the 2014 campaign by the No. 88 team. One week later Earnhardt Jr. further proved why 2014 has been a success for his team. This season Earnhardt Jr. won the Daytona 500 (the biggest race of the year) and he won on two tracks that he has never won on before (Martinsville and Pocono). Aside from his four wins Earnhardt Jr. and his team have continued their recent trend of being consistent. This trend is one that began a couple of seasons ago and in 2014 it exploded because that consistency finally started turning into wins. The only negative about 2014 aside from not making it to the championship race is the departure of crew chief Steve Letarte at seasons end. With Letarte moving onto the next phase of his career one has to wonder if the No. 88 team will be able to maintain their 2014 success in 2015; if they are there is no reason not to believe that they will make a run for the title next season.