“Could Be My Last”: Dale Jr Reveals Considering Permanent Exit From Racing Despite Hesitant Desires

Usually, around this time of the NASCAR Cup Series season, fans get to see Dale Earnhardt Jr on the TV screen on the NBC broadcast panel. However, this time around, Dale Jr won’t be making his appearance to call the Cup race. He will be back in the booth next year for 10-point-paying races with Amazon Prime Video and TNT. Luckily, the fans will be able to catch a glimpse of their favorite NASCAR star back on the racetrack instead at Bristol in the Xfinity Series.

Ever since retiring from full-time racing in 2017, Dale Earnhardt Jr has run a couple of Xfinity Series races and Late Model races. Moreover, with no commitments this year with the NBC broadcast, fans were hoping the Jr might opt for more races this season. While his partial runs in the Xfinity Series and Late Model events have been widely appreciated by the NASCAR community, this year’s Bristol race could be the last race for the 2-time Xfinity Series champion.

Dale Jr reveals the bitter truth about his racing exploits

Just like in any major competitive sport, there comes a time when the age of the athletes starts catching up. In the case of the race car driver, the most common symptoms are weakening eyesight, reflexes starting to slow down, and hindrances in the decision-making process on the race track. Dale Jr perhaps had it worse than the rest of the drivers, as he had to struggle against concussions, which ultimately put an end to his NASCAR career.

In an interview with Bob Pockrass, Dale Jr touched on what his future as a race car driver looks like. “I imagine when I get to around 60, I’ll be probably considering that that’s probably too old to be out there battling with some of these younger guys. So I’ve got about a 10-year runway to do everything I want to do with my late model.”

JR Motorsports usually reserves a race or two for its owner to hop in and get his share of NASCAR racing. Last season, Jr started two Xfinity races at Bristol and Homestead, Miami, and this year he returns at Bristol. This keeps the Dale Jr fandom happy and content to see him get his share of NASCAR racing, despite calling it quits from competitive racing. However, even Jr isn’t sure how long he can continue competing in NASCAR events.

“I don’t really share this publicly — but every year, I pretty much feel like it could be my last. I’m going into this race at Bristol this year knowing that it might be the last one I run. There’s nothing that really makes that decision. It’s just last year was a lot of fun, led some laps. But it is a big commitment,” he further added.

It’s not that he doesn’t want to continue racing and rub shoulders against some talented race car drivers. But another factor that has made Jr rethink his limited racing is the amount of prep and commitment that goes into building that project, and executing it on the race day.

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Being competitive and racing to win is the priority for every race car driver. However, nothing’s guaranteed in the world of NASCAR racing, and at times, racing can humble even the greats of the sport. This is something Jimmie Johnson would be familiar with, given how his comeback to multiple races in the Cup Series has gone this season.

Dale Jr certainly isn’t running for trophies or outright wins, but at the same time, he doesn’t want to race for the sake of it. “And so it’s not just show up and race and, Oh man, that was great. We’ll do it again next year. There’s a lot of work that goes into it months ahead of time … When you go out there and you know the car is good and you just aren’t able to produce the result, then it’s probably time to let somebody else try it,” he added.

It will, indeed, be a sad day for the NASCAR community when Dale Earnhardt Jr decides to completely give up on racing. But until that time comes, fans should cherish the moments and celebrate his limited runs, be it NASCAR events or late-model racing.