For the stock car racing scene, Martinsville is surely the next thrilling chapter. But it was the recent Cars Tour pit stop at Tri-County Speedway that is still capturing headlines as NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt Jr, finds himself tangled up in a web of chaos and confusion in his late-model stock car series. The scene was Granite Falls, a backdrop ripe for drama. With just two laps to go, drivers, Gavan Boschele and Ashton Higgins, locked horns in a fierce battle. Boschele, not one to play by the rules, nudged ES’s newest exclusive interview guest in a desperate bid to gain the upper hand. But what followed was a chain reaction of chaos, as out of turn 3, the No. 9 of Higgins met the unforgiving wall.

Out of his car and out for vengeance, Higgins was a storm on two legs, smashing Boschele’s windshield in an unbridled fit of rage. Yet, that was just the start. Pit-lane turned into a battleground, with crew members joining the fray, and creating a scene straight out of a Hollywood blockbuster. It escalated so rapidly that the long arm of the law had to intervene, as Dale Jr, was left grappling with a PR nightmare.

After intense brawl fallout, Ashton Higgins shares battered #9’s damage

As the sun dipped below the horizon at the North Carolina track, the verdict on the pit-lane brawl hung in the air. In a swift resolution, both the drivers involved received probation for the remainder of the season, while Higgins was slapped with a $500 fine for his unauthorized dash across the track.

In an exclusive interview with EssentiallySports, Higgins offered an olive branch to Earnhardt, who, in the aftermath of the tumultuous incident that unfolded during his series, had been left feeling embarrassed. Higgins expressed a mix of remorse and understanding. Acknowledging the chaos that unfolded, he said, “I understand. I’ve talked to some series officials and asked them if they could relay a message to him that I was sorry and didn’t mean for it to get that heated and out of hand.”

When asked what would he say to Junior if he was here, the 21-year-old went on to express, “Just apologize on behalf of that and let him know that it won’t happen again. I’m sure he understands where I am coming from, but I just want him to understand why I was as mad as I was, which I’m sure he did. Really, I will just apologize to him.”

After the on-track happenings, Higgins shared the battered state of his No. 9 on Twitter as he revealed, “After getting the car unloaded last night around 2:00 A.M. we discovered that we do have substantial chassis damage after being drove through on the last lap, which will likely put us out for the rest of the year.”

Higgins’ tweet served as a visual reminder of the actions that had propelled the incident. His admission, “You know, we let our emotions get the best of us,” was a candid acknowledgment of the frenzy on that night. He further stressed, “he [Dale] has to understand where I’m coming from.”

Surprisingly, it appeared that Earnhardt, who knows a thing or two about on-track drama, did indeed understand the underlying dynamics of such incidents, quipping, “I want there to be some controversy.”

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Dale Earnhardt Jr unleashes fury as on-track battle spilled over into the pits

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In a recent episode of his podcast, Earnhardt Jr didn’t hold back one bit. The Hall of Famer, known for his straight talk, didn’t mince words. “The pro-race was embarrassing,” he declared, making his perspective crystal clear. “I want things to be sensational, I want there to be some controversy. I’m okay with drivers going over that line and maybe being a bit aggressive. But a lot of what I saw was egregious and just too much, right? [In] The last lap, the guy just got dumped.”

Dale went on to express his disappointment and embarrassment at the recent pro series debacle. He recognized that while you can’t expect high drama every week, it’s inevitable from time to time. His solution? Get to the drivers, have a heart-to-heart with them, and set them straight. “We can’t have this,” he emphasized.

As for the pit lane fiasco, where grown adults were brawling like kids, Earnhardt Jr had no patience for it. “You got grown people fighting like kids, shouting over the roofs of race cars at each other. It’s a really bad look,” he admonished.

With 2023 closing out its final months and the racing series heading into the season’s final stretch, in a world where rivalries ignite like a powder keg, what are the odds for smoother laps and cooler heads on the track? Stay tuned for more exclusive stories about Ashton Higgins with EssentiallySports.

Read more: “Sold It to Dale Jr for Cheap” – NASCAR Driver Takes a Jab at Dale Earnhardt Jr’s $30 Million Hurdle