A memorable Junior year

Dale Earnhardt Jr. knows his chances of winning the Nextel Cup hinge on how he runs today at Phoenix International Raceway.

Third in the Chase for the Cup, 78 points behind leader Jimmie Johnson, Earnhardt needs a strong finish in the Checker Auto Parts 500 before the season finale next week at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Florida.

But whether he gains his first championship or not, NASCAR’s most popular driver also knows that 2006 was a turning point.

Call it maturity or merely getting older -- Earnhardt this year has demonstrated that he is now comfortable, and confident, of his place in the sport in which his late father, a seven-time champion, is still revered.

For the first time since he arrived in the Cup series full-time in 2000, “Junior” is hearing widespread praise for his tenacity and perseverance in races where he’s had an ill-handling car or, as was the case last week in Texas, when he was ill himself but kept driving to finish sixth and stay in the Chase.

“Those are the comments I’ve never heard before,” he told the media Thursday night. “Personally I’m very proud of what I’ve been able to do in the car.”

Earnhardt, in turn, praises his team -- led by crew chief and cousin Tony Eury Jr. -- for giving him good cars nearly every race.

“I really can’t believe the quality of my team,” he said. “I really thought I had them pegged. I didn’t anticipate the cars being consistent every week.”

The way Earnhardt, 32, carries himself now also gets notice. The same driver who was fined $10,000 for swearing on national television after an emotional win at Talladega, Ala., in 2004 now tends to be the voice of reason and endorses the importance of NASCAR’s rules.

Last month at Talladega, for instance, he was leading on the last lap when Brian Vickers sparked a crash that sent Earnhardt and Johnson sliding into the infield and gave Vickers the win.

Earnhardt’s legion of fans, as always draped in clothes and caps displaying his red No. 8 Chevrolet, were livid. They booed Vickers and some tossed debris on the track. But when Earnhardt emerged from the car, he apportioned no blame and chalked it up to a “that’s racing” incident.

He starts fourth in today’s race on Phoenix International’s one-mile oval, and needs to close the points gap substantially before Florida if he hopes to win the Nextel Cup.

“I’m in a good position to try and snatch the title away from Jimmie and those guys out in front,” he said. “I really can’t hold anything back. With two races to go you really have to throw it all out there.”

His meeting with the media Thursday night preceded an appearance at a casino in Scottsdale for his main sponsor, Budweiser. Earnhardt arrived wearing an unbuttoned, long-sleeve dress shirt over a white T-shirt, bluejeans and white sneakers.

Listen to Earnhardt speak, and it’s evident that he’s spent considerable time pondering his role in NASCAR, his father’s legacy and the importance of racing in his life.

At one point, the oft-asked question arose of how he compares with Dale Earnhardt, who died at 49 when his black No. 3 Chevrolet crashed on the last lap of the Daytona 500 in 2001.

“I don’t think you can really compare anybody to him, as far as being a driver,” Earnhardt said. “My dad was just able to do things with the cars that seemed to defy what logic was. He was a persona, you know, with the black car and the ‘intimidator’ style and all that stuff.”

“I’m an easier book to read I guess than he was,” Earnhardt continued, his speech slowing as he appeared to weigh his words. “He was sort of mysterious and, you know, dark.”

In any case, the standard set by his father was “a pretty high one, and I don’t have any problem trying to follow that,” said Earnhardt, whose 17 Cup victories include two here in the desert.

And winning the Nextel Cup?

“It would be huge for me, it would be awesome for the sport,” he said. “There’s no denying that we have a large group of fans that support us that would enjoy going to work and having that ... to brag about for the rest of the winter.”

Even if he falls, Earnhardt expects another chance.

“If not this year, then next year,” he said. “We’re a lot more determined and tougher. I think that will mean in next year’s preview that people will have us picked pretty high to win the championship, whereas in the past we were just sort of an afterthought.”

james.peltz@latimes.com