DEI could switch to Ford or Toyota

Officials from Dale Earnhardt, Inc. confirmed Sunday morning at Talladega Superspeedway that the team is talking to two manufacturers in addition to Chevrolet about what brand of Nextel Cup cars it will run in 2008.

DEI executive John Story said Sunday that the team’s agreement with Chevrolet expires after 2007 and that DEI is actively talking to two other automakers, as well as negotiating a partnership with Robert Yates Racing. DEI also is looking to add a fourth Nextel Cup car in 2008 or ‘09.

“The only proposal we have for next year from a manufacturer is from Chevrolet," said Story prior to the Aaron’s 499. “We’ve talked to two other manufacturers, but I think we’re a long way from deciding which manufacturer we’re going to be with. Teresa (team owner Earnhardt) has a lot of loyalty to Chevrolet, we’ve been with them for a long time, she’s been with them for a long time. We’ll see where it goes, but our contract with Chevy does expire at the end of the year. … We’re going to do whatever is necessary to make our team, to make DEI the premier team, not only off the track, but on the track. We’re going to do whatever is necessary to raise our level of competition." More at SPEEDTV.com

[Editor's Note: Rest assured that Toyota would like nothing more than to get their hands on NASCAR's biggest star, but we doubt NASCAR would let that happen.]