Dale Earnhardt Jr. has a Glowing Assessment of the Next Gen Car That Will Please NASCAR Fans

Earlier this week, the NASCAR Cup Series paddock was at Daytona for pre-season testing. Among the drivers was a familiar, but unexpected face, Dale Earnhardt Jr. The veteran driver hopped into the #5 Chevrolet of Kyle Larson, who is currently competing in the Chili Bowl Nationals. Following the test, Dale Jr. gave his verdict on the cars and was quite happy with it.

He said, “The car does everything better than any NASCAR Cup car that we’ve ever had. It brakes better, has much more performance in the braking package. With the racket pinion steering, the steering is a lot more surgical. It’s a word that’s not used today, and I thought that it is a great way to describe it. Super precise, so when I turned the steering wheel to go around the corner at Daytona in the old car, you turn the wheel more. So, to steer the car with this racket pinion, I only need to turn the wheel about a fifth of what I used to turn it.”

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What else did Dale Earnhardt Jr have to say about the cars?

According to him, this is the same for any kind of steering input. Whether it is for side-drafting, getting across the racetrack, pulling away from a rival or dodging a crash, all the inputs will be smaller. At the end of the day, all of the drivers will have to learn to adapt to this change. Dale Jr. acknowledged that this could potentially put them in ‘uncomfortable’ situations.

The veteran driver has also insisted that he has no interest in competing in the Daytona 500 this year. After all, he is 47 years old now, and no longer in the prime of his career. Instead, he is content with just appearing in select Xfinity Series races, and his days of taking risks are now over for good.

READ MORE: Dale Earnhardt Jr on Daytona 500 Appearance Talks: “Take a Guy Like William Byron, He’s Young. He’s a Risk-Taker and I’m Done Taking Risks”