Dale Earnhardt Jr. has stated his desire for the Busch Light Clash to return to Daytona. Find out what Earnhardt had to say about it!
The Busch Light Clash is NASCAR’s opening race of each season, and while it doesn’t count toward the point standings, it still has significance. The Clash opens as a “teaser” for the NASCAR season and gives fans a preseason-like atmosphere. For the last three years, the sport has taken the Busch Light Clash to the Coliseum in Los Angeles, California.
However, one NASCAR Hall-of-Fame member believes the Busch Light Clash shouldn’t be in Los Angeles. In fact, it shouldn’t be anywhere except Daytona International Speedway. [autotag]Dale Earnhardt Jr.[/autotag] discussed this concept on his podcast, The Dale Jr. Download, and didn’t mince words.
“[The Clash] doesn’t need to be going around to all of these other race tracks,” Earnhardt said. “It doesn’t need to go to Mexico, it doesn’t need to go to Canada, it doesn’t need to go back to the Coliseum, it doesn’t need to go to your local short track.”
“It needs to go back to Daytona, it needs to be that tease, it needs to be pole winners. If it’s 12, 14 cars, I do not care. If it’s a 20-lap race and it lasts 15 minutes, I do not give a (expletive). That’s all it needs to be.”
Earnhardt firmly believes NASCAR should bring the Busch Light Clash back to Daytona, with recent reports suggesting the sport’s desire to take it outside of the United States to Mexico. NASCAR wants to expand its reach to race fans and compete internationally; however, it might be best for everyone involved if the sport returns to where the Clash began.
Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s future with NBC Sports is uncertain as his contract in the booth is up prior to the 2024 season. Will Earnhardt return?
The 2024 NASCAR season has yet to begin; however, a situation is brewing with NBC Sports. When the network returns in mid-June, Rick Allen, Steve Letarte, and Jeff Burton will lead the charge in 2024. [autotag]Dale Earnhardt Jr.[/autotag] is currently missing from that bunch. This is due to a contract that has not been signed yet.
Earnhardt Jr. talked about his NBC Sports contract on his podcast, The Dale Jr. Download, and mentioned if he wanted to keep broadcasting at this stage in his life. As of now, it appears the major hurdle will be securing a new contract with the network.
“My contract with NBC is up,” Earnhardt said. “It was up at the end of last year. I’m currently working through what that looks like for me. I definitely love being in the broadcast booth and want to continue doing that.”
2018 gave us the debut of @DaleJr as a full-time broadcaster at @NBCSports.
“We’ve had some great conversations with all of NASCAR’s TV partners. My home and my love is at NBC and I’d love to be back with them so we’ll see where it goes. But right now, I really don’t have a job in terms of broadcasting.”
Hopefully, Earnhardt and NBC can strike a deal because it would be a travesty if the partnership couldn’t continue. It would likely mean the former NASCAR driver would have an opportunity with FOX, Amazon, or Warner Bros. Discovery in 2025. While all those options would be good, Earnhardt has become an outstanding talent at NBC.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. appears to leak major NASCAR silly season news for the Cup Series in 2024. Find out what Earnhardt revealed!
NASCAR silly season is getting closer to a conclusion as the 2023 season has been completed. There have been several ride announcements, such as Josh Berry to Stewart-Haas Racing and Justin Haley to Rick Ware Racing. However, there are still two major seats open with the No. 10 car for Stewart-Haas Racing and the No. 16 car for Kaulig Racing.
Well, one of those rides might actually have a driver for the 2024 NASCAR season. [autotag]Dale Earnhardt Jr.[/autotag] talked about Kaulig Racing on his podcast, The Dale Jr. Download, and appeared to leak a big NASCAR silly season story as the driver of the No. 16 car in 2024 as yet to be announced.
“Daniel Hemric is coming back into the [NASCAR Cup Series] with [Kaulig Racing]. Ty Dillon is going over there to run the second car, and so, those cars struggled so badly at [Phoenix Raceway],” Earnhardt said. “It was not good. I think this is going to be a very difficult year on the Cup side for Kaulig.”
Dillon has been mentioned as the “favorite” to drive the No. 16 Cup car but Earnhardt appears to have spoiled the news. It has not been announced yet but the former NASCAR driver is well connected to what happens in the garage area. For now, the NASCAR world will wait for Kaulig Racing’s announcement but it may have already been leaked.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. resumes his NASCAR driving career for the final time during the 2023 season in the Xfinity Series race Homestead.
[autotag]Dale Earnhardt Jr.[/autotag] hasn’t competed in more than one NASCAR race during a season since his retirement; however, that will change this weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Earnhardt will drive the No. 88 car for JR Motorsports as he tackles Homestead for the first time since the 2020 season when he finished in fifth place.
The JR Motorsports co-owner recently competed in the Xfinity Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway and finished in 30th place. However, Earnhardt was in contention and led 47 laps before a fire erupted in his No. 88 car. The race at Homestead has been planned for a while and the entry will be sponsored by Bass Pro Shops.
Overall, it is great that Earnhardt competes in NASCAR and hopefully, the racing world can see more of it moving forward. It is clear that Earnhardt is having fun on the race track and it goes even further. The NASCAR Hall-of-Fame member is competing for wins. Earnhardt is a bright light for sport and that will be on display again at Homestead.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. provides a big update on his driving future in NASCAR beyond the 2023 season after the Xfinity Series race at Bristol.
[autotag]Dale Earnhardt Jr.[/autotag] competed in his first of two NASCAR Xfinity Series races during the 2023 season at Bristol Motor Speedway and the actual competitiveness was more representative of the results. Earnhardt led 47 laps and only finished in 30th place due to a fire that erupted in his car. It was a disappointing end to a fun night for the driver of the No. 88 car.
The next Xfinity Series race for Earnhardt will be on October 21 at Homestead-Miami Speedway but what about after the 2023 season? The JR Motorsports co-owner spoke to the media about the idea of professionally racing forward. There will certainly be some happy individuals after hearing what he had to say.
“I could see myself running that (Late Model Stock) car long into my 50s if I wanted to because I wouldn’t care as much about how competitive I am,” Earnhardt said. “But here, this is the second highest level of NASCAR and I only want to race here if I think I can do it well and wouldn’t do it unless I felt like I belonged there.”
“I’ll run as long as I can. I like running one here and one there but certainly not until I’m 60 years old. I still feel young. I overachieved tonight in my eyes in terms of how I ran. I guess I gained some confidence to try to do one here and one there for a couple more years.”
It is a good thing that Earnhardt wants to continue racing after his full-time driving career ended in 2017. Everyone wins when the NASCAR Hall-of-Fame member decides to strap in behind the wheel of a stock car. Hopefully, this continues to be the case and everybody gets to see Earnhardt race in select events for several more years.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. will resume his NASCAR driving career at Bristol Motor Speedway as he races in the Xfinity Series event on Friday night.
[autotag]Dale Earnhardt Jr.[/autotag] retired from full-time racing in the NASCAR Cup Series at the conclusion of the 2017 season; however, that has not stopped the Hall-of-Fame member from competing for his own race team. Earnhardt has driven an entry in the NASCAR Xfinity Series since the 2001 season and that will continue this weekend.
The JR Motorsports co-owner will drive the No. 88 car for the organization in the Xfinity Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway. It will mark Earnhardt’s first start at Bristol since his retirement in 2017. The No. 88 car will be sponsored by Hellman’s and the paint scheme for the event has already been revealed.
Earnhardt’s best finish since his full-time retirement was fourth place at Richmond Raceway in 2018 and if the JR Motorsports driver can gain three more spots on Friday night, it would be one of the most memorable victories in recent memory.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. is every Commanders’ fan after Washington held on for a win over the Falcons.
NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt Jr. is one most famous Washington Commanders’ fans out there. Earnhardt, who grew up in North Carolina during Washington’s glory years, has been outspoken about his love of all things burgundy and gold.
The retired driver once explained how during races he’d often ask members of his pit crew the score of Washington games. Earnhardt has made trips to Washington games and training camp, while also working with the organization’s charitable foundation.
He’s not your average fan.
So it’s no surprise he’s glued to the TV every Sunday afternoon, on the edge of his seat while he watches the Commanders.
Washington’s Week 12 game against the Atlanta Falcons once again came down to the wire. With under one minute remaining, Falcons quarterback Marcus Mariota drops back to pass and his pass is deflected by defensive tackle Daron Payne. Somehow, Washington cornerback Kendall Fuller comes away with the interception to seal the game. It was the Commanders’ sixth win in their last seven games.
Earnhardt was watching, but he wasn’t on the edge of his seat. He was in front of the TV. His wife, Amy, captured the video of Earnhardt seeing Fuller intercept the pass. Earnhardt jumps and turns around with a huge smile on his face and his arms in the air celebrating another Washington win.
“@Commanders gonna make a grown man cry,” Amy Earnhardt’s caption said.
JR Motorsports co-owner Kelley Earnhardt Miller says the team wants to race in the Cup Series. But it’s complicated.
JR Motorsports, Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s NASCAR team in the second-tier Xfinity Series, is seriously looking at how to make the jump to fielding a car in the top-tier Cup Series.
The team wants to go Cup racing, Kelley Earnhardt Miller, the team’s co-owner and Dale Jr.’s sister, told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio on Tuesday. But it’s still evaluating not only how to successfully do this, but also, and perhaps most importantly, when.
It’s no secret that it’s awfully expensive for teams to race in the Cup Series, and Dale Jr. has repeatedly said in the past the cost of entering the top series is largely prohibitive, particularly because of the 36-team charter system.
Speaking to SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, Earnhardt Miller echoed those sentiments and expanded on what it might take for JR Motorsports to join the Cup Series.
💭 "I don't think we'll be Cup racing full-time for 2023, that's for certain […] right now, our sights are set beyond that." 👀
— SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Ch. 90) (@SiriusXMNASCAR) June 28, 2022
She explained:
“We’re thinking about it every day. We’re working on it, feels like every other day. We do want to go Cup racing. We do believe that that’s a good spot for us. We want to stay in the Xfinity Series too, so what that looks like is certainly up for grabs. But we definitely are just trying to — the biggest barrier is that charter cost and just looking at the business model and trying to figure out sponsorship and trying to really make that leap.
“Because I think right now, we saw it last fall where there was a high demand for charters and a lot of conversations went on and a lot of purchases went on. And I don’t think there’s a lot of charters up for grabs at a reasonable cost right now.”
Extended through the 2024 season, NASCAR’s charter system has 36 cars that are guaranteed entries for every Cup Series points race and notable financial benefits. Teams can sell their charters as they like, but there’s a hefty price tag that comes along with them.
In 2021, Dale Jr. shared his thoughts on the charter system, reiterating that the price tag rumors are simply way too high. Last summer on his podcast, the Dale Jr. Download, he said he thought charters were going for $5 million or $7 million but had since heard “it’s north of $10 million.”
“JR Motorsports ain’t gonna be racing no Cup Series if that’s what the charters are going for,” he said in 2021.
Last month, Dale Jr. again addressed the state of the charter system and JR Motorsports’ potential for acquiring one during an episode of his podcast. While speaking with team owner/driver Denny Hamlin, Dale Jr. said:
“We have talked to every single person that is in the industry about this — about what is the options, what routes are there to take. That initial purchase of the charters isn’t the scary part. They are worth what they are, right? You’re buying something that you hope is going to continue to gain value. That’s great, right? I’ll invest that money if it’s going to be worth more tomorrow.
“But it’s not knowing the cost of racing and how much that’s gonna be, not knowing exactly how much sponsorship you’re going to have to acquire to offset that cost and not knowing what the new agreement’s going to be. I’m with Denny in feeling that the owners deserve a bigger piece of the pie. That’s the only way it’s going to entice people like me.”
And that’s the sentiment and strategy Earnhardt Miller expressed this week, as well. It’s all about timing, and much of that is related to NASCAR’s upcoming media rights talks, as its deal with FOX Sports and NBC Sports is set to expire at the end of the 2024 season.
Earnhardt Miller continued to SiriusXM NASCAR Radio:
“[We’re] just trying to make that pencil out and make it work and figure out when that right time of entry is, and you’ve got the next couple of years with the TV contract coming down and all those kinds of things. Just it’s like, when’s the right time to strike? And so that’s just really what we’re trying to work through and figure out.
“Right now, we’re focused on re-signing our guys for Xfinity for next year and re-signing our sponsors, and then if we have the opportunity to do some Cup racing and kind of put our toe in the water and kind of see. I don’t think we’ll be Cup racing full time for 2023 — that’s for certain, unless something amazing happens and something really awesome falls out of the sky. But right now, our sights are set beyond that, and we’re just really trying to figure it out and make it pencil.”
So obviously, it’s unclear if or when JR Motorsports will join NASCAR’s top series. Maybe it’ll start with a handful of Cup races in 2023 before expanding, or maybe it’ll jump in right away with a charter and a full-time car in 2024 or beyond.
But at least now NASCAR fans and JR Nation know the team is seriously eyeing the Cup Series.
“Jimmie could surprise a lot of people,” Dale Jr. said about the seven-time NASCAR champ’s first Indy 500.
Jimmie Johnson is ready for an incredible ride when he makes his Indianapolis 500 debut Sunday behind the wheel of the No. 48 Carvana/American Legion Honda for Chip Ganassi Racing.
Sure, he’s started 18 races and won four on Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s iconic 2.5-mile oval in the NASCAR Cup Series. But the IndyCar Series is a totally different, and faster, beast at the mammoth venue.
The seven-time NASCAR champ’s old racing pals — Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Danica Patrick, who are both part of NBC’s Indy 500 broadcast team — have confidence in Johnson and high hopes for his first Indy 500 and only second IndyCar oval race.
“I think Jimmie could surprise a lot of people,” Earnhardt said Tuesday during an NBC press conference call.
“This whole month, he was able to have so much time with the car and the team at the facility, sort of move beyond the enormity of the moment. I know that’s going to be nearly impossible when he walks out on the grid for the race to sort of be beyond the enormity of the moment or the weight of it. I really think Jimmie could do really, really well.”
Earnhardt also pointed to Johnson’s strong sixth-place finish in his first IndyCar oval race at Texas Motor Speedway in March as a possible indicator of how he could do Sunday.
Johnson — who retired from NASCAR at the end of the 2020 season and was an IndyCar rookie in 2021 — has done fairly well with fast practice speeds throughout the last couple weeks, plus a couple small mistakes in there. During the two-day qualifying last weekend, he had a solid four-lap average speed of 231.264 miles per hour and will start 12th.
“He did a tremendous job, which, honestly for me — I’ve known Jimmie for a long time and [we’re] good friends — I would expect nothing less,” said Scott Dixon, Johnson’s Ganassi teammate and the 2008 Indy 500 winner. “This is definitely more on his wheelhouse, something he feels more comfortable with, outside of the other part of the season where he’s still learning a lot.”
Even though Johnson’s IndyCar oval experience remains limited, Patrick said “he’s going to have a great chance to have a good day.”
232.398 MPH.@jimmiejohnson is the fastest rookie so far in his first #Indy500 qualifying attempt.
After his 12 races last season, all on road and street courses, and five so far in 2022, he has so much more familiarity with the car now to help him in the Indy 500, she said. That includes everything from the steering wheel and tools inside the cockpit to pitting, restarts and how to pass.
“He seems to be happy and excited,” Patrick told For The Win. “My dad was just saying [Monday] night that he was watching qualifying with his dad, and his dad was like, ‘He’s just having a blast!’ So he’s really just having fun, obviously — fun at 240 miles an hour.”
“Indy cars are not stock cars,” she continued. “So there’s a lot that can go wrong. But I think the fact that he’s done Indy cars for so long now and run so many races and has so many miles, I think really does prepare him for this next step to doing ovals and being here at the Indy 500.”
Dixon, the six-time IndyCar champ and now five-time Indy 500 pole winner, set the record for fastest pole speed in the race’s history with a 234.046 miles per hour four-lap average. Dixon, teammate Alex Palou and Rinus VeeKay also combined for the fastest front row in Indy 500 history.
Jimmie Johnson with Scott Dixon and Tony Kanaan during practice for the 2022 Indy 500. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
So a traditionally fast race could reach even higher speeds this year, and that has Earnhardt a little on edge, knowing how competitive and intense Johnson is.
“I’m a little bit nervous because he seems to be pushing to the max,” Johnson’s former Hendrick Motorsports teammate said. “Every time he’s on the track, it’s like he is on the edge. Nobody’s going to reach out and tell a seven-time champion, with all the success he’s had in his career, what to do, how to drive, how to approach anything.”
Earnhardt said he hopes Johnson has a great experience regardless and a finish he can be proud of, but he continued expressing his concern.
“I am full of anxiety that he’s going to push, push, push too hard, and somehow that might put him in a bad situation,” Earnhardt added. “He’s gotten so, so close a few times already this month to some bad situations. But he’s a pro. You trust that he knows what he’s out there doing, understanding the limits of the car.”
NASCAR fans are already calling these the best throwback paint schemes this year.
Ahead of the NASCAR Cup Series’ Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway on Sunday, teams and their drivers are revealing their old-school paint schemes, which are part of the throwback tradition of this race weekend.
It’s a chance for drivers to celebrate their own racing roots, honor previous drivers of their cars or pay tribute to legends of the sport. And while several teams have some great looks for their cars this weekend, it’s likely none will top the duo of Trackhouse Racing’s two cars, driven by Ross Chastain and Daniel Suárez.
For their throwback paint schemes, Chastain’s No. 1 Chevrolet and Suárez’s No. 99 Chevrolet, with the help of sponsor Coca-Cola, will celebrate Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Dale Earnhardt Jr. with an homage to the cars the father-son duo raced at an exhibition event at Japan’s Twin Ring Motegi on November 22, 1998. Though it was an exhibition race, it was the first time Earnhardt Sr. and Earnhardt Jr. competed in Cup cars against each other.
In that race, Dale Sr. was behind the wheel of his iconic No. 3 Chevrolet, while Dale Jr. was in the No. 1 Chevrolet. Both were sponsored by Coca-Cola too. And Chastain’s and Suárez’s throwback paint schemes are nearly identical to the Earnhardts’ rides from 24 years ago.
NASCAR fans, and specifically Earnhardt fans, are sure to love these looks when they hit the track Sunday. And Dale Jr. loved it too when Trackhouse co-owner and founder Justin Marks unveiled the schemes to him recently during this week’s episode of the Dale Jr. Download podcast.
“The No. 1 almost takes my breath [away],” Earnhardt told Marks. “It’s the car. When you do throwbacks… it’s really unique. It’s almost like an eclipse when you can do the sponsor, the colors and the numbers in right font and everything. That’s the car.
“And you’re in a unique position to include both cars, so it’s such a special thing. I don’t know if you’ll ever have that all come together like that again.”
Referenced in both the podcast episode and clip above, the Earnhardts’ race in Japan is infamous for what happened after: Dale Sr. threw a shoe at Dale Jr. As we’ve previously written, the pair got into it a little bit on the track, and things escalated afterward in their trailer.
As Earnhardt Jr. explained to then-podcast co-host Tyler Overstreet in 2017:
“It went right by my head though – very close. I was looking down untying or tying my shoes, and it came by at a high rate of speed. It would have hurt if it had hit me.”
“Do you think that situation would have escalated if he had connected?” Overstreet asked.
“I know his aim ain’t that great, so I think his intention was to hit me because it came pretty close. But God, man – if it’d had hit me, then we would have both been pissed. That wouldn’t have been good.”
But regardless of flying shoes, Trackhouse’s throwback paint schemes for Darlington this weekend are fantastic, and NASCAR fans raved about them, with some declaring them the best paint schemes of the weekend already.
