NASCAR's ruling sparks clash of opinion between Dale Jr. and TJ Majors: “I don’t like it”; “He’s got great credentials”

NASCAR's Open Exemption Provisional ruling invited divisive opinions from Dale Jr., and his podcast co-host and spotter TJ Majors. The former expressed that bringing aboard Helio Castroneves is great for the sport while the latter was clear about his disagreement.

NASCAR introduced the OEP to expand the sport's horizons into other disciplines. With that, the four-time Indy 500 and three-time 24 Hours of Daytona winner Castroneves finalized his debut NASCAR attempt in collaboration with Trackhouse Racing.

Even though it would surely attract the IndyCar buffs eager to see how the legendary open-wheel racing driver would perform under NASCAR's fray, TJ Majors conveyed his disappointment. He highlighted how the 'Greatest American Race' could result in a setback due to the OEP.

"I don't like it because this is our biggest race of the year and this starts your season," Majors said via Dale Jr. Download. "You put a guy, I'm not saying he can't do it, but (if) he makes a mistake and.. (the field would crash, resulting in a dismaying race weekend)..I'm fine if he races his way into it."

Castroneves has a guaranteed spot in the Daytona 500 and his qualifying outcome won't affect his entry in the crown jewel race.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. had a starkly contrasting view, emphasizing the benefits of allowing the IndyCar legend in the 500-mile race. He gave the example of IROC legend AI Unser Jr., who made a Daytona 500 start for Hendrick Motorsports in 1993, and the crowd buzzed with excitement on seeing a driver of another discipline compete in NASCAR.

"I like provisional, I miss a 43-car field, I wish we still had provisional, I think that would be a good thing, I don't hate the provisional idea...there's a lot of folks that love Helio, I think the dude's a great guy, he's got the credentials, and he'll be a good media story, he'll be a great interview all weekend, there will a good buzz around what he's trying to accomplish or people who love IndyCar specifically will be tuning in and paying attention," Dale Jr. said.

It's worth mentioning that any 'world-class' driver can contest in a NASCAR Cup Series race. However, if a former NASCAR driver desires to do so, they must fit the sanctioning body's 'elite' requirement.

Dale Jr. makes his feelings clear about Mike Wallace's competitiveness amid Daytona 500 disappointment

Mike Wallace applied to pilot MBM Motorsports' #66 entry in the season-opener Daytona 500. He was allowed to participate in the 500-miler but was later snubbed by VP of competition, Elton Sawyer.

Wallace has three wins at the Daytona International Speedway, the 2000 Truck Series, the 2004 Xfinity Series and the 1994 ARCA Menards. However, the sanctioning body deemed his candidature ineligible due to inactivity, as his most recent competitive race on an intermediate or larger race track was in 2015. His overall ultimate NASCAR race was in 2020 for JD Motorsports.

Nonetheless, Dale Jr. believed in Mike Wallace's capability to tame the car at Daytona. He iterated that the 65-year-old former driver was so skilled that he could maintain a car, not worthy of running in the top 15, in the top 15.

"He was always in the top 10 late in the race. When he would run that 4 car for McClure, he would take that car that probably didn’t belong in the top 15 and be there all day, right? He was a competitive racer at Daytona and Talladega. I don’t think it’s out of reach, or I don’t think it’s tone-deaf to see him out there trying to go compete and now when I read this quote, I’m like, yeah, that’s good motivation," Dale Jr. said.

Do you think NASCAR was right in refusing Mike Wallace the opportunity to run in the 2025 Daytona 500?