It’s tough to be fair and neutral when you have a stake in the fight. That’s the dilemma former NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt Jr is often faced with since he is the owner of JR Motorsports along with being a broadcaster for NBC Sports.
He described how this particular situation isn’t all that difficult for him most of the time. But then there are those moments in which it’s tough.
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“When the cars, say they’re having a battle like Justin Allgaier and Josh Berry had at Charlotte, I’m not sure I’d be able to. I’d have a hard time not voicing my frustrations over how hard they were racing each other,” he said.
“And then there’s moments when they wreck, race hard and beat and bang other drivers, there was a Justin Allgaier and Ross Chastain at Watkins Glen a couple years ago, and I have to call it down the middle and I’m not gonna lie, I’m not gonna say, ‘Justin wasn’t at fault there if he was.’”
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Dale Earnhardt Jr and his drivers are on the same page
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The JR Motorsports owner went on to reveal that he has had the tough conversations with all his drivers about him being responsible and professional in his broadcasting duties while he is calling their moves on live television.
“I’ve told all my drivers, we’ve had them here in this room that, ‘Look man, in the booth, you got to remember, I’m not your owner anymore, I’m gonna call it how I see it. If you mess up, I’ll say you messed up and it’s gonna be on TV and that’s not gonna be great for you. You’re not gonna love it,’” he said.
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“But that’s my job in the moment.”