“We’ve rode the horse to death.” Chase Elliott’s shocking comments about the Darlington weekend’s historical event had a reason. In place since 2015, the Throwback Weekend at the egg-shaped circuit has witnessed teams using up every paint scheme imaginable. From the Intimidator’s Bristol exploits to Carl Edwards’s Texas runs, the schemes have all appeared. However, that reason was hardly enough to convince diehard fans and Cup Series veteran Dale Earnhardt Jr. After all, NASCAR rests heavily on a pillar of nostalgia. The 76-year-old sport has seen generations of drivers, fans, and other workers laugh and cry through race finishes – and what’s better than the Darlington way?

When Throwback Weekend first became a reality ten years ago, there was a solid response. Teams and sponsors bought into the idea, eager not to get left out. 32 teams participated in the inaugural retro weekend, and that number rose over the years. Last year, Chase Elliott paid tribute to Dale Earnhardt Jr himself on his No. 9 UniFirst Throwback Chevrolet. The paint scheme was a tribute to the much-celebrated 2014 Daytona 500 win by the veteran, and Elliott, admittedly, was proud of it. “It is honestly a huge honor for me,” he said. However, a year later, the two NASCAR entities are at opposite ends of an argument.

In a recent Dale Jr Download episode, Dale Earnhardt Jr said how he was shocked at first. Chase Elliott, William Byron, and Bubba Wallace’s opinions about an overused Throwback idea flabbergasted him. “I was kind of taken aback that anyone wouldn’t be on board… Why are we having this conversation? This is sacred, hands off! Nobody poo-poos on the throwback weekend.” Drivers like Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski also defended this practice for fans’ sake, but Dale Earnhardt Jr also did not overlook the overarching reason behind Busch’s comments.

Team sponsors who pay millions of dollars on car schemes do not want to change their branding for a nod to essentially another company. Dale Jr continued, “I didn’t think about some of the challenges that the landscape presented to the sponsors… It was lost on me, I guess, that some of these partners might have just a couple of weekends a year where they’re a three-race sponsor or a five-race sponsor and they’re like, ‘Whoa, I don’t want to change all my stuff up for this race. I want my logo as it appears with my colors for the car.'”

Hence, Only some of JR Motorsports’ drivers participated – Carson Kvapil paid tribute to Jamie McMurray, Sammy Smith to Tony Stewart, and Connor Zilisch to Buddy Baker. But Justin Allgaier stood out, holding no scheme. Dale Earnhardt Jr confessed about how he did not like that as well: “It’s a while that the 7 did run one. When they do run one, it’s a throwback to something company-related, not NASCAR or even motorsports-related. I would never love those deals.”

Junior’s passionate views about Throwback Weekend are clear. But as he conceded to sponsorship concerns as well, he suggested a change.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. on evolving with the times

Well, the points made by Chase Elliott and others are valid. Overused paint schemes and sponsorship concerns about trademarks can create problems. So why not expand the reach of the costume party theme? The Darlington Raceway weekend already sports other features alongside retro paint schemes. These include a throwback parade from the Darlington town center to the track and a “NASCAR Alumni” gathering of retired drivers and old stock cars on display – all of which fans love. What is more, in a poll recently conducted on X with more than 5,000 voters, 81 percent said they wanted to see Throwback Weekend remain as-is. So NASCAR needs to evolve its throwback approach a little bit.

That is what Dale Earnhardt Jr observed on his podcast. “If you want to bring a paint scheme, design, or a wrap that has a throwback, that’s embraced. But also shift a little bit of focus on some of the vintage cars that show up…We got some Richard Petty cars this year, Wood Brothers car…Maybe there’s better focus on it being a trip through the Hall of Fame, and not so much about who did best in terms of the scheme.” Interestingly, even Craftsman Truck Series driver Rajah Caruth pointed out something similar. He said that Darlington could just be a “retro weekend” with “old-school type schemes and apparel, not necessarily throwing back to a specific scheme since there is not an infinite amount of them.”

Evidently, Dale Earnhardt Jr wants to retain Throwback Weekend with full fervor. Even if that means tweaking it to adjust to the times and sponsorship needs, he is all for the retro spirit.