Do you recall Dale Earnhardt Jr’s last Cup Series race? It was the 2017 finale in Homestead Miami. And while it was just a P25 finish, Junior enjoyed every bit of it. At the end of it, he was surrounded by fans as he cracked open a beer with his crew members for one final time on the pit lane.
It was the end of an era. End of the legendary Earnhardt legacy in NASCAR. Junior remained with just 26 Cup wins and was without a title. But that wasn’t the thing he was upset about; it was not being able to compete there again. However, what kept him sane were his plans of coming back for one-offs and still staying connected to racing.
And since 2017, Dale Jr has been running at least one race per season in the Xfinity Series. Or a few in his own CARS Tour. Still, there will come a time in his life when he will no longer take the wheel of a racing car. And that’s something Junior cannot fathom.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Was Reminded of a Touchy Topic
Racing is more than just driving a car. It’s about the whole atmosphere, the competitiveness with fellow drivers, and the camaraderie with the crew.
How Junior, after his final Cup race, had said, “I just wanted to make sure I shook every hand of every guy on this team. A lot of these guys have been with me for a lot of years. They have been there for me even when I couldn’t be at the racetrack with them.”
And the thought of not having the opportunity to experience this again is something that makes Dale Jr upset. So, in the recent episode of “Dale Jr Download”, he had invited NASCAR veteran Todd Bodine for a chat. And they were discussing Bodine’s final days in NASCAR.
That’s when Junior spoke about his own thoughts on the subject. He said, “Not racing or stopping something that you have done all your life, and wanted to do all your life, is such a difficult thing. And I still deal with that today. I still have no idea. I can’t imagine how heartbreaking that’s going to be. To know for sure that I’ll never get to drive another car in
competition.”
And surely not just Junior, but no fan of stock car racing wants that day to come. But it’s inevitable. But he’s 50 now, and he’s still got several years of racing in him. Let’s hope that before his last racing day comes, Junior comes to the Cup Series for a one-off in that iconic #8 Budweiser car.