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Dale Earnhardt Jr. once opened up about his decision to retire from the NASCAR Cup Series despite not winning a championship. According to the then 42-year-old driver, the milestones he achieved on the track were already ‘way more’ than he dreamt of.
Earnhardt Jr. is a former NASCAR Cup Series driver who won 26 races in the premier series including two Daytona 500 victories in 2004 and 2014. He was voted the most popular driver for 15 consecutive seasons and named one of the stock car racing league’s 75 Greatest Drivers.
In a report by Autoweek, Dale Earnhardt Jr. said retiring without a Cup championship didn’t bother him as his goal was just to make it to the big league.
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"At a very young age, all I wanted to do was to be able to make a living driving cars […] I didn't set goals. I didn't dream of winning championships, Daytona 500s, or working with one of the best owners in the business. I just wanted to be able to do it,” the North Carolina native said.
The now 50-year-old driver added he already accomplished more than he dreamt of, saying:
"I've accomplished way more than I ever dreamed, way more than I ever thought I would accomplish. So I'm good on that front."
Dale Earnhardt Jr. also touched on the success of his father, Dale Sr., who won seven Cup Series championships, the most in NASCAR history. Junior admitted it was difficult for him and other sons to replicate the success of their fathers. Thus, he didn’t set goals at a young age but wanted to make a living driving cars.
The 26-time Cup race winner retired from the premier series after the 2017 season. He drove for the now-discontinued Dale Earnhardt, Inc. (DEI) team from 2000 to 2007 before moving to Hendrick Motorsports.
Outside the Cup Series, the driver had found success in the Busch Grand National Series, known as the Xfinity Series today. He had a back-to-back championship run from his rookie year in 1998 to 1999.
Today, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is still involved with the sport as a team owner for JR Motorsports in the Xfinity Series. His last race as a part-time driver was at Bristol Motor Speedway where he finished seventh.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. is going back to racing in the returning No. 8 Budweiser car
Dale Earnhardt Jr. announced he would return to racing in the Late Model series starting next month. He will drive the No. 8 Budweiser car, which would also return to the racing scene after almost two decades. The car will run the iconic Bud King of Beers paint scheme.
For the uninitiated, the driver piloted the Budweiser-sponsored No. 8 Chevrolet for DEI from 1999 to 2007. He switched to the No. 88 Chevy after joining Hendrick Motorsports in 2008.
In a statement, Dale Jr. said:
“It is an incredible opportunity for me to be able to reunite with Budweiser, and the No. 8. Budweiser and I had some great memories with that iconic scheme and number. We’ve always supported each other over the years. It’s going to be really special for me to be able to represent that brand on the racetrack again.”
Junior is set to officially debut the returning No. 8 Bud car in the Late Model Stock Car Series at Florence Motors Speedway on November 23.
