Newsmaker: Dale Jarrett

Unlike many of the other veterans in the Nextel Cup Series, Dale Jarrett isn't thinking about retirement.

The 1999 series champion feels his Robert Yates Racing team is still good enough to contend for a title, especially since the new Chase for the Nextel Cup format opens the door for 10 drivers to compete for the championship during the final three months of the season.

Jarrett, who tested at the Daytona International Speedway last week in preparation for the Feb. 20 Daytona 500, talked about his future -- immediate and long-term -- during a press conference after posting the fastest speed in the first three-day session.

Question: What are your thoughts about the retirement plans of Mark Martin and Rusty Wallace?

Jarrett: Both of those guys have had great careers. They've meant a lot to this sport. The only thing aside from losing two good friends out here that are my age and we have things in common to talk about would be the questions that come at me now about when I'm going to retire because we're basically the same age. My answer to that is I started later than they did, so I'm going to try to drive a little longer than what they are, but I wish them both the best in their last year. When you see that happening to two good guys, and obviously Terry (Labonte) is cutting back, too. Those people have meant a lot to this sport and you'd like to see them have a lot of success here to go out on a good note.

Question: You were outspoken against the Chase for the Nextel Cup format a year ago. What are your feelings now?

Jarrett: I'll be talking a different tune than I was last year. I'm not sure if this is the chair, but it was in a place similar to this last year when I was totally against it and expressed those feelings. Myself and others. That changed after we saw what was going on with it -- the amount of exposure that it brought to our sport, the attention, the excitement. Those races, starting probably at race 15 of the season through that 26th race, were just incredible. There was as much excitement and pressure there as what I ever remember racing for a championship when I won in '99 and racing for championships a few other years. It was just amazing. How could you argue with something? I wasn't part of those last 10 races as far as racing for the championship, but how can you argue with something that came down to the final lap of the final race and having any one of three guys having a chance to win the championship? My hats off to Brian France and George Pyne and those people that made that most difficult decision and make that huge change -- to have the foresight to see that that type of finish could be a real possibility. I think it's great. I'm literally for it now. I think that it's brought a level of excitement to our sport that we haven't seen in a long time. The coverage that everyone got in those last 10 races was just amazing. I don't know if they have any changes planned, but if it's anything like that, I'll be for that too probably.

Question: At 48, how would you describe your driving skills?

Jarrett: Obviously, something has to change there as time goes on, but I'm not sure where that comes in. I think that it may be different with different people. As far as myself, I think that physically I'm definitely in better shape than when I started this back in my 30s. That part of it I'm not concerned with. I still see well and I still enjoy this so much that I don't think there's any part of me physically that is keeping me from winning races or competing weekly in a good way. I'm not sure when that will come. I'm sure there will be something that will make that light go on in me that says, ÔOK, it's time you stopped doing this.' I think that certainly there is a lot to be said for experience when you get to be this age that you can maybe look at things and do things a little bit differently. I think, as much as anything, you hear people talk about the rigors of the travel and all the appearances we have to do, so I've taken a little bit different look at that and tried to approach it a little differently and try to make my schedule more friendly to myself and my family to where it doesn't wear on me physically in that respect. If anything is going to wear on me physically, I want it to be the actual racing itself. I don't see that there's anything that these young guys that are 20 and 25 and 30 years old, they're great race drivers and very good talents, but I don't see anything that makes me, because I'm 48, physically not be able to do the things that they can do. Hopefully, my experience comes in somewhere along the way that will allow me to do things as well if not better than what they can.

Question: How difficult is it to determine whether it's the car or the driver when there's a decline in performance?

Jarrett: That's the $64,000 question, I guess. You try to figure that out, and I'll use a word that always creates a debate, but for lack of a better term, when an athlete gets at this time of his career you start wondering what it is, in particular, this sport. Obviously, if it's a football or baseball player or a basketball player you kind of know that because as much as those are team games, you can see that it's your skills that may be declining. Here, we have that factor of team and car, so you're trying to determine which it is in that respect. Now is it the fact that I'm not being able to relate to changes in this sport as much, so I'm not being as effective as a driver? Maybe it's not that my skills have deteriorated, it's just that I'm not able to give the feedback that I need to with the way the cars have changed, the tires and all that. That's something you have to weigh on. You think a lot about it. I think a lot more about that now than I ever have, obviously before. In knowing when is going to be that right time, I think I've made this statement before. A lot of people have to make it on their own, and it will ultimately be my decision, but I have three very good people in my life that I feel can help me make that decision at the proper time if I'm not able to see it clearly myself. And those would be my car owner, Robert Yates, who has become a great friend to me and someone that I know is totally up front and honest with me and me the same way with him, so we have that type of a relationship. My father, who we discuss everything about my life, so I know he won't hesitate if he sees something there. And for those of you that have met my wife, Kelley, you know that she's very candid and has never hesitated, and won't hesitate, to let me know, because she, just like myself, doesn't want to see me go down that other side.

I've been very fortunate in the many years I've been in this sport to be associated with a lot of good people and teams and have a wonderful career, and I don't want to slide down that other side. So I think that I can rely on those people and hopefully know when that time is here.