"I wonder when his name gets called at HOF": Dale Earnhardt Jr. pays tribute to Ray Elder’s foundation-building NASCAR contributions

Dale Earnhardt Jr. paid a heartfelt tribute to the late Ray Elder, who was one of the early legends in the sport, dedicating almost his entire career to the Winston West Series. Dale Jr. also feels that Elder should be included in the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

Ray Elder had monumental contributions to the Winston West Series. He won 47 races in the series, putting him second to the all-time best. He also won the championship a whopping six times between 1969 and 1975. As mentioned, he was one of the early legends of the sport taking part in a few Winston Cup Series races during his career too. Although he was never a full-time driver in that series, he did manage to collect two victories.

Recently, one of his old racing clips was posted on X, featuring the highlights from the 1971 Motor Trend 500. Elder remained competitive throughout the race at Riverside and managed to win. Reacting to the post, Dale Earnhardt Jr. paid him a tribute, highlighting his career in the series.

"Such a cool moment. Ray Elder, a regular in the Nascar West series would beat the big time Nascar teams at Riverside on this day. He would beat them all again at Riverside in 1972. Ray won the West Coast Nascar title 6 times! I wonder when his name might get called at the Hall of Fame here in Charlotte," Dale Earnhardt Jr. wrote on X.

Earnhardt Jr. also claimed that drivers like Elder had monumental contributions in boosting the popularity of the sport in the 1980s.

"His efforts in the burgeoning western division during the 1970s might seem marginal compared to the accomplishments of the more well known industry leaders from the east. But drivers like Ray created the very foundation that the sport would build upon during its explosive national growth through the 1980s and beyond."

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Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s team to field Ross Chastain and Shane van Gisbergen in select Xfinity Series races

JR Motorsports recently announced that the Cup Series Trackhouse Racing drivers Ross Chastain and Shane van Gisbergen will race in the Xfinity Series for the team in a collective of nine races in 2025. They will pilot the #9 Chevy.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. co-owns JR Motorsports with his sister Kelley Earnhardt Miller, Rick Hendrick, and LW Miller. The team currently fields four full-time cars in the Xfinity Series, which will be piloted by Carson Kvapil (R), Justin Allgaier, Sammy Smith, and Connor Zilisch in the 2025 season.