“20 Years From Now…” – Terrified Dale Earnhardt Jr Once Revealed Fear of ‘Accelerated Mental Decline’ Stemming From NASCAR Injuries Over His Career

In the 2022 NASCAR season, driver safety has been at the forefront of discussions. This has begun, ever since Kurt Busch had his accident at Pocono. In later races, Alex Bowman and Cody Ware also received some injuries after heavy knocks. On a similar note, Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa got a concussion in a game and came back a touch too early. In a 2021 interview, former NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt Jr spoke about his struggles with a concussion.

He said, “I am very much worried about what 20 years from now, looks like for me. We hear stories about other people that have dealt with CTE and had some bad things happen to them. They find themselves in places where they can’t escape and can’t fix it. I’m definitely nervous about how sharp will I be. Am I going to have like, this mental decline that’s going to be a little accelerated? All of us are going to have a decline of some sort, but it might be accelerated. My eyesight used to be perfect and I know that its going down, and my doctor is like, ‘You know, it’s probably something that got kickstarted sooner than normal because of your injuries’.”

READ MORE: “I Hate Gripping and Grinning and Making People Happy ” – Dale Earnhardt Jr. Shockingly Revealed His Disdain For ‘Forced’ Media Activities and Sponsorships In The Early Part of His Career

Dale Earnhardt Jr has some experience with concussion recovery

Back in 2016, Dale Jr missed the second half of the season after being diagnosed with concussion-like symptoms. It was quite a shame because he had been running pretty decently until the Cup race at Kentucky. The good news was that he was able to return to action for the 2017 season on a full-time basis. However, he then chose to retire at the end of the year, which was a bit lacklustre by his standards.

Since then, he is enjoying retirement, though he does make occasional one-off appearances in the Xfinity Series. This is largely thanks to his team, JR Motorsports, who let him compete in one race every year.

WATCH THIS STORY: “No Longer the Most Hated Man in the Room!” – Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr & Brad Keselowski Once Roasted NASCAR Awards Host Jay Mohr