If not for five blown engines, Dale Earnhardt Jr. would be racing for a Nextel Cup championship in this final season driving for his late father's company.

Instead, three failures in the last seven races - including one with six laps to go Saturday night at Richmond - knocked NASCAR's most popular driver out of the Chase for the championship.

"We broke another motor, and they seem to fall apart when they plug 'em into my car,'' Junior said. "It's just really frustrating.''

It's also more than a little suspicious to his legion of fans, who have wondered for weeks if this was sabotage on the part of his stepmother.

After all, his relationship with Teresa Earnhardt "ain't a bed of roses,'' and Junior's impending split isn't exactly amicable. They've publicly feuded since December - he claims she's been unreasonable during negotiations and he's bolting for rival Hendrick Motorsports at the end of the season.

The squabbling has been so intense on so many issues - most recently Teresa's refusal to let Earnhardt take his beloved No. 8 with him to Hendrick - that the idea that she would intentionally derail his season wouldn't surprise anyone. And because the DEI motors never even seem to sputter under the hoods of his teammates, it's actually believable.

But DEI officials call the entire idea is preposterous.

"I can assure you that's not the case,'' general manager John Story said Monday. "We understand that there might be a natural assumption that because he is leaving, the team would say 'Who cares? We are not going to try for him.'

"But if anything, it's the other way around. We tried hard to get him in the Chase. We wanted him to win a championship. We always said that would have been the most appropriate way for him to leave DEI.''

Of course, DEI is going to say that. And conspiracy theorists will forever be convinced Earnhardt was the victim of an intricate and evil plot to punish him for his betrayal.

It sounds awfully good. But it's probably not true.

Sure, seeing Junior fail might bring a slight smile to Teresa Earnhardt's face, but it would be one of the most foolish business decisions she could possibly make.

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Since the Chase was launched in 2004, making it has been the standard for success. Those good enough to compete in the 10-race title hunt had a good year. Those not involved immediately go to work figuring out what went wrong.

Keeping Earnhardt out wouldn't have hurt him. He's leaving anyway, and he's repeatedly said that although winning a Cup title for DEI would have been nice, he's comfortable with the effort he's put forth and will walk out the door with his integrity intact.

And if anything, missing the Chase can be viewed as a luxury to Earnhardt. He's now free from the stress and pressure that the Chase provides, and he can relax and race for wins over the final 10 weeks of the season.

But the fact is, DEI needed Earnhardt in the Chase for the health of the company and to support Martin Truex Jr. in his first run at a title. Truex is in, has been for weeks, and he's one of only two drivers who won't have a teammate in the field.

Hendrick and Richard Childress both have three drivers in the chase, while Joe Gibbs and Jack Roush have two each. To think that Teresa would be so spiteful that she'd jeopardize Truex's chances makes little sense for a company she fought to keep control of.

But Story knows the allegations are out there - the same thing happened in May after Earnhardt said he was leaving and Truex promptly took off on the track.

"We didn't go in there overnight and put all the cars from Dale's shop and put them in Martin's shop,'' Story said. "That's not the way it happens. And, what people don't consider is that (Earnhardt) has run as well or better than (Truex) over the last six to eight weeks. He just doesn't have the finishes to show for it.''