Dale Earnhardt Jr. Reveals His Second Choice as Denny Hamlin Admitted to Have Rejected an Offer for DEI

Two-time NASCAR Busch Series Champion Dale Earnhardt Jr. is a man with various talents. Not only does he possess Hall 0f Fame-worthy driving skills, but he also has the acumen to run multiple successful businesses. However, there is another hidden talent of Junior’s that fans may not know about. It saw him approach two young drivers, who would go on to become successful names in NASCAR over the next two decades.

Earlier, in his podcast ‘Actions Detrimental’, Denny Hamlin shared that back in 2005, Dale Earnhardt Jr tried to recruit him for DEI. Explaining how he did not think he was ready to race in the Cup Series, the 23XI Racing co-owner revealed he did not take up the offer when he was around 24 to 25 years of age. When Denny Hamlin did not accept, Dale Jr. turned to another young driver.

Dale Earnhardt Jr tried to recruit a future NASCAR Cup Series Champion

In Episode 418 of Dale Jr Download, ‘Junior’ explained that he was kind of scouting to find the best drivers for DEI back in 2004 and 2005. He also revealed that Denny Hamlin was not the only driver he approached to join his team.

“We talked about it with Kyle Busch when Kyle was on the show. I stopped Kyle in the parking lot and I was like, ‘Hey, man! Don’t know what you’re doing, but we’d love to have you come drive for us’. So, back then, I was doing a little bit of scouting. Not as much as I do these days.”

Before addressing this, Dale Jr shared his side of the time he tried to land Hamlin.

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Dale Earnhardt Jr reveals how he came to ask Denny Hamlin to join DEI

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During the conversation, Dale Earnhardt Jr recollected that back in 2004, Denny Hamlin called him and said that he had a meeting scheduled with Joe Gibbs Racing, as he might probably get an opportunity to drive an Xfinity race in Daytona. However, as Hamlin had nowhere to stay, Earnhardt Jr. offered him to stay on his bus during the 2004 Speed Weeks.

Sharing how he thought that Hamlin could be a perfect fit for DEI, ‘Junior’ said, “So, he had his meeting and secretly even then I was like ‘Man! I wish I could get him to come to DEI. Wish we were hiring him, not Joe Gibbs.'”

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Dale Jr added, “I think Richie Gilmore or somebody or Ty Norris or somebody had an idea like we should talk to him or see if he’d be interested in driving the #15 car and so I went to him and it was very brief. I was just like, ‘Hey man, I want you to know this is an opportunity available to you. I don’t know what you’re doing or how you feel about your future where you’re at. But want you to consider it.”

Hamlin, however, refused to accept the opportunity, as he was quite happy where he was. But irrespective of his decision, he was flattered by Earnhardt Jr.’s offer for him to drive the #15 car for Dale Earnhardt, Inc.