"I was broke" - When Dale Earnhardt Jr. reflected on getting fired from his dad's car dealership

One of NASCAR's most popular figures, Dale Earnhardt Jr., once worked as a mechanic in his father's dealership before rising through the ranks of stock car racing. Despite working in his dad's shop, he was ultimately fired by a service manager.

After graduating from high school, Earnhardt Jr. and his half-brother Kerry worked at their father's dealership in Newton, North Carolina. Junior started out by changing oil and quickly learned various skills, eventually earning a promotion to 'Assistant Engine Guy,' spending three to four years at the shop.

Earnhardt Jr.'s time at his father's dealership came to an end after a new service manager joined the shop with ambitious plans to transform the setup. The manager asked all the employees to stay back for a meeting, but Dale Jr. rebelled by not attending as overtime wasn't being clocked.

When Junior returned to the dealership the following day, the service manager asked him to reconsider his commitment. He said in a past appearance on the Dan Patrick show in 2018:

"I came back the next day and he goes, ‘Take a couple days off and see if this job matters to you.’ And so long story short, I ended up getting fired from the dealership... I was broke. I didn't have a lot of money and it was a 45-minute commute to the dealership and back." [from 1:20]

Dale Earnhardt Jr. reflected on the conversation with his father, expressing frustration over his commuting expenses and questioning whether he should continue working at the dealership. Dale Sr. advised him to make a decision and commit to it.

"I called dad and said, ‘This guy’s sending me home to think about my job for a couple days and see if I’m really serious about it. I don’t want to drive all the way home and then you say get your butt back to work.’ And nobody’s gonna front the bill on the gas this is gonna take, so he said, ‘Actually go in there and tell the guy that you’re working or not working.’"

Dale Jr. said he gave the new service manager an ultimatum, stating he was "going to work or not." The manager fired him, marking the end of his time at his father's dealership.

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Dale Earnhardt Jr. on how getting fired turned into a blessing

Dale Earnhardt Jr. reflected that getting fired from his dad's dealership turned out to be a blessing in disguise. It allowed him to work on his sister's late-model cars, which paid significantly more compared to his time at the dealership.

Dale Jr. recalled that even his dad was surprised by the new manager's decision and immediately arranged for him to join the late model team.

"I ended up getting fired and drove home. And dad was surprised, he was like, 'I can't believe that guy fired you! He really fired you?' I said yeah, and he goes, 'Wow, okay, I'll put you to work on your sister's late model.' My sister raced and I said that's awesome." [from 2:50]

"I got a raise, I was making about 180 bucks at the dealership, and I ended up starting at Dad's place at around $300 a week. I lived right across the street. I'm working on race cars, that was a great move for me."

Dale Earnhardt Jr. was cutting his teeth in late models during the time, before making part-time Busch Series appearances in 1996-97. He made his full-time debut for DEI the following season, winning two consecutive titles in 1998-99.