Dale Jr. makes feelings clear on NASCAR’s rule that ‘directly’ altered the Darlington race

Former NASCAR Cup Series driver Dale Jr., commented on the updated Damaged Vehicle Policy (DVP) rule and its effects which was seen for the first time in the latest Cup Series event at the Darlington Raceway. Speaking on his podcast, The Dale Jr. Download, Earnhardt Jr. discussed the moment of the race where Kyle Larson had his car repaired and was able to get back on-track after a crash.

During lap four of the Goodyear 400, Kyle Larson and Joey Logano were battling it out for 18th place when Larson exited turn two on the low side and crossed over an uneven transition on track, causing him to spin into the wall. After his #5 car was towed back to the garage, it was repaired, and Larson was allowed to re-enter the race with his mended vehicle.

The #5 car was allowed back because NASCAR adjusted the DVP rule this year. The original DVP rule was instituted in 2017, which stated that if the car had sustained a certain amount of damage or received the damage in a specific way, it wouldn't be allowed back into the race.

According to Dale Jr., the 2025 rule is something that he is in favour of, given that this is how racing in NASCAR was done for the longest time. The former driver also dismissed the concerns of critics who believe that allowing the car back after getting repaired is a new problem.

“No, this is not a new problem; this is the way, actually, it's been for 70 years, up until the DVP policy came into effect. Cars could get out there and do this all the time, and then if they weren't creating accidents like this, parts were falling off, and cutting tires, and all kinds of things were happening or they were just flat getting in the way and slowing somebody down and creating a battle for a position that would not otherwise have developed. I love it.” [27:05]

After the Hendrick Motorsports driver got back out on the track, he suffered another crash with just four laps to go, which ended his race once and for all.

Dale Jr. reveals his favourite generation of car that he got to drive

Speaking in a segment on his podcast titled '#AskJr', Dale Jr. is asked by a fan what his favourite generation of car is that he got to drive. For Earnhardt, the answer was simple: the Generation Four car, which he raced with in 2004. The JR Motorsports owner chose that specific generation of car due to its fiberglass body and how good it looked.

"I mean, that car from 2004. That was my best year. I think in terms of how the car felt, drove, I just like that car. It had a lot of downforce, a lot of grip, but it was all in the body. We had the bodies twisted up in a certain way that in traffic, it was still relatively decent. If you needed a little bit of downforce on the front, all you had to kind of do was get the headlight out; you could still kind of be directly behind a guy, but just kind of show the left front fender or the right front fender and get some turn. So, that was a great race car. A lot of fun, good looking, so probably my favorite," Dale Jr. explains. [1:26:15]

The 2004 season ended with Dale Jr. scoring fifth place in the championship standings, having won six races, scored 16 Top-fives, and achieved 21 Top-10 finishes driving for Dale Earnhardt Incorporated.