Earnhardt’s victory working exactly as intended (3rd Update)

UPDATE #3 A reader writes, Dear AR1.com, So when is IndyCar going to learn from NASCAR's playbook, or are they just dumb? If they had any brains, Marco Andretti will win this year's Indy 500 and Mario Andretti will plant a big Andy Granatelli kiss on his cheek in Victory Circle some 45 years after Mario's win. It will be heart wrenching. The crowd and the media will go wild. And the next year Graham Rahal will magically win the Indy 500 and Christie Brinkley will sit on the pole. American's love a feel-good story. Mordichai Rosen, Los Angeles, CA

02/25/14 FS1's Trevor Pryce said, “Everything is perfect at this point for NASCAR. … Even if you’re not a NASCAR fan, we all know Dale Earnhardt Jr." The Wall Street Journal’s Jason Gay: “Sometimes it’s great to have the upset, but sometimes it’s great when your superstar delivers." "Crowd Goes Wild," FS1

02/25/14 In Miami, Greg Cote wrote Earnhardt's win likely had NASCAR officials "high-fiving inside their soundproof suites." It is "good for the business of NASCAR." Earnhardt, Gordon, Tony Stewart and Jimmie Johnson are "still the big-four drivers to casual fans, and none bigger" than Earnhardt. He is to his sport what Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson "in the hunt are to the PGA Tour." There is "no substitute." MIAMIHERALD.com

02/25/14 Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s victory in Sunday's Daytona 500 "might mark a watershed turnaround" for NASCAR, which "still is battling lagging TV ratings and attendance," according to Nate Ryan of USA TODAY. NASCAR now "gets three consecutive days to showcase its 10-time most popular driver in national media outlets turning attention away from the Winter Olympics for the first time in more than two weeks."

Driver Jeff Gordon said of Earnhardt's win, "The world is right right now. That is a sign that the NASCAR season is going to be a good one." Ryan notes Earnhardt will have "many high-profile opportunities to maintain the momentum."

He started yesterday on ABC's "GMA" and finished it on CBS' "Late Show," with "many talk show spots in between." Earnhardt will be "omnipresent today on ESPN and make publicity rounds" in L.A. and Austin. His "mainstream appeal might have casual fans talking, too." USA TODAY