"I'm not going to be held accountable": When Dale Earnhardt Jr. drew a clear line with Amy regarding his phobia

In 2015, Dale Earnhardt Jr. announced his engagement to his then-girlfriend Amy Reimann in Germany. Later, the NASCAR driver revealed that his fans had been putting pressure on him to propose to her.

Interestingly, Earnhardt also discussed a phobia he had been grappling with in the months leading up to the engagement and how it played a role in his decision to pop the question.

Speaking about his fans pressuring him into it, Dale Earnhardt Jr. said:

"The people we interact with on Twitter are, 'When are you going to do it? Pop the question already.' She gets it more than I do: People telling her all the time I need to put a ring on it. When I turned 40, it really ramped up. People are like, 'Man, your time is running out. Amy is a good girl, what are you waiting for?'"

As for his phobia, Earnhardt Jr. claimed he finds jewelry "creepy" and forbids anyone else to wear it when around him.

While this phobia of his could've made the ring aspect of the engagement complicated, Earnhardt Jr. spoke about how he and Amy had an understanding.

"We've talked about it. I'm not going to be held accountable (to wear a ring) and she can do whatever she wants. I figure if we ever get to that step in life, I owe her that much. I'll have to put up with (her wearing a ring). But I'm free of all my obligations in that regard," he described.

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Dale Earnhardt Jr. defended his wife Amy from speculations around his NASCAR retirement

After his engagement in June 2015, Dale Earnhardt Jr. got married to Amy Reimann at the start of 2017. Interestingly, within months, Junior announced that he'd be retiring as a full-timer from NASCAR.

This led many to speculate if his wife who pushed one of NASCAR's most celebrated and popular figures out of the sport. However, Dale Earnhardt Jr. clarified those rumors once and for all in his book which was released in 2018.

“As my time out of the racecar was extended, and as rumors about my retirement started getting louder, a lot of people spoke up. They had a very hard time dealing with it all. They looked for something or someone to blame ... anyone who tried — and might still try — to blame Amy," he wrote.

Earnhardt Jr. further revealed that, contrary to rumors, it was his wife who was setting his alarms every morning and dragging him out of bed to exercise. He credited Amy for setting up a gym in his garage and acting as his "personal trainer-turned-drill-sergeant" for up to three hours a day.

The Hendrick Motorsports driver added that his wife was always aware of his love and passion for racing and that she would never be the person who would 'get in the way of that.'