An emotional moment unfolds on Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s show as Donnie Rives recalls the 2001 Daytona 500

Dale Earnhardt Jr. recently sat down with his father, Dale Earnhardt Sr.'s best friend Donnie Rives and the two discussed the day an unfortunate crash led to his death during the Daytona 500. Rives said that on the fateful day, he immediately sensed something was wrong.

Rives first came to know the Earnhardt family through Ralph Earnhardt, whose memorable 'Earnhardt grin' left an impression on many who knew him. He recalled times spent bird hunting with Ralph and the racing insights he imparted.

Talking about the day Senior died on Earnhardt Jr.'s podcast, "Dale Jr. Download," Rives said he was watching the race at home. When the crash occurred, he felt an instinctive dread that something had happened to Earnhardt Sr. Recounting the heart-wrenching events on the podcast, Rives shared his emotional response to the incident:

"After the race... I said Dale is bad. I said real bad. I'll just... I just knew it, yeah. And about 30 minutes (later), I got a call from Daytona. They said... 'He didn't make it.' And I already had that feeling - I mean, yes! Come over me."

Discussing how he coped with the loss of his best friend, Donnie Rives said:

"It's gonna happen to everybody. The only way... to handle it, yes. If you know the Lord Jesus Christ is your personal savior. I mean, that's... the only thing."

Earnhardt Jr. and Rives further shared heartfelt memories of Dale Sr., reflecting on their time with him and his remarkable skills as a deer tracker.

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Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Donnie Rives want to meet Dale Earnhardt Sr.

During their conversation on "Dale Jr. Download," Donnie Rives expressed a deep longing to reunite with Dale Earnhardt Sr. one day.

"I think about him every day. I’d be doing something and think you better not be doing this. You know. Don’t do this. Don’t do it that way. I pray that I get to see him again. It’ll be totally different," he said.

The conversation stirred memories for Dale Jr. as well, recalling the profound impact of his father's passing. He resonated with Donnie’s sentiments, also hoping for a reunion.

“When dad was gone, it was a gut punch. You didn’t know what to do next. You didn’t know how you could do anything next, and the only way you could pull yourself together and be able to move forward and carry on in this life is to believe that you would see them again. That’s what’s in store. I think that really helped me,” he said.