"This might not make sense to people": When Carl Edwards stepped away from racing to prioritize family and health

NASCAR driver Carl Edwards, who drove full-time in the Cup Series until his retirement at the end of the 2016 season, was aware that his decision to leave the sport might be strange to others. Speaking to the press in January 2017, Edwards announced that he would be stepping away from competing in the top tier of stock car racing for his own reasons.

During the announcement, Edwards said:

“I think it’s the right thing to do, as confusing as this whole thing might be. This might not make sense to people.” [via the New York Times]

The former Joe Gibbs Racing driver's first reason was that he was satisfied with everything that he had achieved in the sport. During his tenure racing full-time, Edwards secured 28 wins, along with 124 Top 5s, and 220 Top 10 finishes.

His other reason was that he wanted to spend time with his family. At the time of his retirement, the driver and his wife, Katherine Downey had been married for eight years after they had tied the knot in January of 2009. The couple also have two kids, Annie and Michael, who were 6 years old and 5 years old respectively during the end of Edwards' career.

Lastly, Carl Edwards chose to walk away from the sport at the age of 37 because he was still healthy at the time. The driver chose not to say that he was retiring because he wasn't sure at the time about his future.

“I hope you’ll accept that I just don’t really have all that figured out yet. To me, that’s O.K. I’m at peace with that. I know if you lay out those three reasons, it adds up. Life’s short. You’ve got to do what your gut tells you. I have a feeling I’ll find something,” he mentioned.

At the end of the 2016 season, Carl Edwards placed fourth in the standings, falling 33 points behind the championship title winner Jimmie Johnson.

"It opens the book": Carl Edwards on getting inducted into the Hall of Fame

Carl Edwards does his signature backflip after winning the NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Nashville Superspeedway - Source: Imagn

On February 7th, 2025, Carl Edwards will be inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame. The former Roush Fenway Racing driver was selected to be a part of the Hall of Fame in May last year. Speaking to the press after the announcement, the 45-year-old discussed how his induction has allowed him to look back at his career and express his gratitude for his time competing in the Cup Series.

In a Zoom interview with the media in June 2024, Edwards said:

“It doesn’t close the book. What it does for me, and I didn’t expect this at all … it opens the book. It makes me remember and realize and put into perspective what I was just trying to describe imperfectly, I’m sure. It’s how much went into this, how much energy was put by all the guys that worked on the cars, built the cars, sold the sponsorship, the media, the fans, everyone. And I got to be in the driver’s seat."

"I got to be, live my greatest, wildest dreams as a kid. It’s not something that I did, and it’s done. This sport lives on, the spirit of everyone’s striving and trying to be the best they can and competing, and I’m so grateful to have been a part of it while I was,” he added [via NASCAR].

Carl Edwards will be joined by Ricky Rudd and Ralph Moody as part of the 15th class of the Hall of Fame, as the three will be inducted at a ceremony in Charlotte, North Carolina next month.