DEI is currently going through personnel changes.
It was not that long ago when Dale Earnhardt Jr, Tony Eury Sr, Tony Eury Jr, Steve Hmiel, and Ty Norris were all integral components of Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Starting in 2008, none of the before mentioned names will be DEI employees. Norris has moved on to Michael Waltrip Racing. Tony Eury Sr left the company a few months ago for a position at JR Motorsports, the company owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr himself. Dale Earnhardt Jr and Tony Eury Jr will become the faces of Hendrick Motorsports' 88 team. Hmiel has recently been hired by Chip Ganassi Racing as the competition director.
The core of the company built by the late Dale Earnhardt and Teresa Earnhardt has underwent a facelift. Max Seigel, President of Global Operations, and John Story, Vice President, are relatively new to the company. Mark Martin, Regan Smith, and Aric Almirola joined DEI when the company acquired Ginn Racing.
Dave Charpentier has been acting as the crew chief of the 15 team driven by Paul Menard. Effective following Thanksgiving, Charpentier will become the Technical Director. He will be more involved in the engineering aspect of the company. Doug Randolph, currently employed by Petty Enterprises, will become the crew chief of the 15 Chevrolet.
Longtime DEI employees Richie Gilmore and Rex Garrett will remain with the team. Gilmore is currently on medical leave due to a brain aneurysm.
Max Seigel assured fans that DEI is here to stay.
"Everything we hear, everything we read is all about how DEI is done. We're shutting down. It's just ridiculous. Quite frankly, we're sick of hearing it. DEI is here to stay. We're not going anywhere."
DEI has encountered much criticism as a result of the Teresa Earnhardt and Dale Earnhardt Jr fallout.
The four court cases filed against Bobby Ginn have been dismissed.
