“It’s been heck of a year”: Dale Earnhardt Jr. opens up on ‘wanting to be on a racetrack’ as he looks back on 2024 

Although Dale Earnhardt Jr. will not return next year for his annual one-off appearance, he is certainly going to miss wheeling his No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevy. The NASCAR Hall of Famer has been driving the iconic car every year since his formal retirement in 2017.

During the 2024 NASCAR Awards at the Charlotte Convention Center, a reporter asked Dale Jr. what 2024 had taught him, given his upcoming stint with TNT and Amazon Prime in 2025 as a broadcaster, whilst stepping away from the shoes of a driver. The 50-year-old millionaire replied,

“It's been a heck of a year, man. We went to three countries I've never been to in Europe. Went to Mexico three times. We've been all over celebrating other people's milestones, other people's birthdays, and celebrating a little bit for ourselves. We've done some things with the kids as well. It's been fun.” (0:18)

However, for the veteran racer, the real fun is when he straps himself to the driver’s seat. Staying away from the racetrack is not what he prefers.

“Nice to have that time, but I don't prefer it,” Dale Earnhardt Jr. further stated. “I certainly want to be at a racetrack and I'm looking forward to sort of things shifting back toward a little bit of what I'm used to in terms of getting back in the broadcast booth and having some time and some weekends at the racetrack.”

Nevertheless, Earnhardt Jr. will drive the famed No. 8 Budweiser car in the 2024 South Carolina 400 at Florence Motor Speedway tonight. However, whether he will race throughout the remainder of the offseason is not known as of now.

“There’s not many long races in the Late Model Stock ecosystem”- Dale Earnhardt Jr. feeling “excited” about lengthy Late Model feature

Besides the annual Snowball Derby, not a lot of Late Model races are above the 200-lap range. Notably, the Dirt Late Model Dream which was held at Eldora Speedway in June was just a hundred laps long. The ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville was 200. Therefore, when Dale Earnhardt Jr. heard that his upcoming Late Model race was going to stretch 250 laps, he was thrilled.

“It’s a 250-lap race. I’m really excited about that,” Earnhardt said (via On3). “There’s not many long races in the Late Model Stock ecosystem. There are 56 cars currently signed up to enter this race for 36 spots. These are some of the best of the best Late Model Stocks in all of the Southeast/mid-Atlantic region. Trying to even make this race will be an accomplishment.”

As of now, 56 drivers are vying for the win. NASCAR Cup Series full-timer Josh Berry who drove for Stewart-Haas Racing in 2024 and will join Wood Brothers Racing next year, will compete alongside Dale Jr. Caden Kvapil, brother of Carson Kvapil who is expected to take over the No. 1 JR Motorsport machine in 2025, is also one of the contenders.

“When I was thinking about running this race, I believed in my mind if history proved correct, every car that came would be able to race. They probably wouldn’t get more than 40 entries. But it’s at 56 right now and counting," Dale Earnhardt Jr. added.

Practice begins at 11:45 am. Fans can enter the grandstands from 3:30 pm onwards. The most-awaited event will not air on a national television channel, so fans can watch the race exclusively on FloRacing from 6 pm onwards.