Dale Earnhardt Jr Earns a Place in the NASCAR Hall of Fame

Dale Earnhardt Jr has steadily built up a legacy of his own and made himself well-known. Now, people know him for who he is, and not just as Dale Earnhardt Sr’s son.

In light of this, the fan favorite driver earned a spot on the NASCAR Hall of Fame, joining his late father. According to reports, Earnhardt Jr will be inducted in Charlotte, North Carolina. Also being inducted are, the late Mike Stefanik and 87-year-old Red Farmer. Although he never won a series championship, 76% of the votes went in Earnhardt Jr’s favour.

Speaking about the honour, Dale Earnhardt Jr said, “Just talking about it, it’s really emotional because I feed off affirmation. It’s such a great feeling to know people think I made an impact. I know what my numbers are, and I feel like I was chosen because of that, but also for the impact I made off the track, being an ambassador for the sport.”

Aside from Dale Jr and Sr, grandfather Ralph was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1997. In addition to that, in 1998, he was named one of NASCAR’s 50 Greatest Drivers.

How did Dale Earnhardt Jr handle the pressure of his father’s name?

Speaking about his father’s death, Dale Jr said,  “I knew when Dad died, I was going to assume most if not all of his fan base, and I feel like I took care of that. I didn’t squander that, I didn’t ruin that, and I also introduced myself to a lot of people who never heard of Dale Earnhardt.”

The 45-year old confessed that there were times when he doubted himself and his abilities. He knew that many people wanted him to emulate his father in terms of success and aggression. However, he focused on introducing new fans to stock car racing, and earned 15 consecutive Most Popular Driver awards.