What do we know about Dale Earnhardt? Apart from being the 7-time NASCAR champion, larger-than-life personality and relentless pursuit of wins. The Intimidator has been always viewed through this lens, one that is restricted to the confines of the ovals or behind the iconic No. 3 RCR Chevy. There have been multiple attempts to express his personality and character through drama on the screen. ESPN’s The Dale Earnhardt Story was an attempt to uncover the mystery behind the legend, but it didn’t reveal the unknowns about his personal or professional life.

Even now, after 24 years of his passing, his presence still looms large in the NASCAR world, a testament to his enduring legacy. Earnhardt’s career was more than just winning races, it was about redefining what a NASCAR driver should be. From humble beginnings as the son of a racing pioneer to becoming America’s most celebrated figure. His ability to connect with the racing fans, whether through the devil-may-care attitude when he was inside his car or his down-to-earth nature when he was outside of it, made him a household name throughout the country. But what if there was more to Dale Earnhardt Sr. than what we know?

Earnhardt Legacy Revived

 This Memorial Day weekend, Prime Video is giving fans the chance to see the untold story unfold in a four-part docuseries directed by none other than Ron Howard, the legendary, Oscar-winning filmmaker. This has been produced in collaboration with NASCAR Studios, Imagine Documentaries, and Dirty Mo Media (founded by Dale Earnhardt Jr.) and promises to dive deep into Dale Sr.’s life, not just his life as a NASCAR legend but also as a father, businessman, and a human being, with never-seen-before footage and personal stories.

“There’s really only one great Dale Earnhardt documentary that in my mind that has ever been made, and that’s the Dale documentary. For anybody that wanted to know anything about Dale Earnhardt, the Dale doc was the one that I would hand to them and say don’t watch anything else. Nothing else compares. This right here is what you need to know about everything.” Dale Jr. said on his podcast Dale Jr. Download.

Earnhardt was a force of nature, with 76 wins, leading more than 25000 laps, and equaling Richard Petty‘s record of 7 championships, the Intimidator wasn’t afraid to bump, block, and battle for every inch of that race track, no matter who was against him. And quite the opposite off-the-track, he was the leader among the drivers, and their unofficial spokesperson.

In recent years, Earnhardt’s legacy has seen a revival through storytelling efforts, such as ‘3: The Dale Earnhardt Story’ back in 2004 or ‘Dale’ in 2007 with an aim to connect with the modern audience. In the upcoming Prime Video Docuseries, Earnhardt is the frontrunner of this movement to revive his legacy and show the younger audience who the Intimidator was. We have seen how impactful the docuseries have been especially with the motorsports icon. Netflix’s tribute to F1 legend Ayrton Senna has been received well by the viewers and a similar response is expected from Dale Earnhardt‘s new documentary.

Fans are Loving the Comeback of Dale Earnhardt on Screen

Unlike other docuseries which focused just on Earnhardt Sr.’s racing career, his championships, or his Daytona victory, this series takes a more personal touch in the life of the racing legend. This announcement of this series has sent shockwaves through the NASCAR world, and social media is buzzing with excitement and anticipation, and the fans can’t wait.

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Remember when NASCAR announced the five Cup Series races in 2025 will be streamed exclusively on Amazon Prime? Fans weren’t sure about making this switch from linear TV and some even claimed that they would boycott watching the race. Well, fast forward to 2025, and the new partner is the one making all the necessary efforts to paint a narrative that seeps deep within the racing community. FOX is busy with IndyCar, and NBC doesn’t kick into action until the post-season, so it’s fair to see Prime Video is the one giving the bang for their buck when it comes to NASCAR-related content. And the new Dale Earnhardt docuseries in likely to attract more fans to the sport, “This looks like a must-watch. Definitely going to check this out when it’s released, especially if it has some never-before-seen stuff (based on what Dale Jr. said about it).”

While others were excited for the involvement of Ron Howard, the master storyteller, “I just stopped when it said ‘Ron Howard’… very cool,” praising the multiple Oscar-winning director. For a film-maker who has delivered hits like Apollo 13 and A Beautiful Mind, but race for race fans his best creation is the movie Rush. Howard was able to capture the true essence of the rivalry between James Hunt and Niki Lauda. While the racing scenes are the movie have set the standard, the storytelling aspect and the picturization of the rivalry was that stood out for the fans.

Fans are also excited due to the inclusion of never-seen-before footage and stories that are said to be included in this docuseries. There has to be something more than just on-track footage that even had Dale Jr. hyped up ahead of the big release. “Looks good. Dale, Jr said on his podcast that they found a lot more stuff that even he hadn’t seen,” 

This docuseries promises to be more than a highlight reel, or just a one-off event that people will watch once and forget about, as one fan rightly said, “I’ll definitely watch it. Hopefully it is successful enough for them to make more NASCAR doc series.” This is an effort by Amazon under their $7 Billion deal with NASCAR, to put Earnhardt Sr. on the world stage and let more people across the globe, learn about the racing legend. This might be the start of a new chain of docuseries celebrating the icons of the sport after all Prime Video is linked to NASCAR for the next seven years.

With the docuseries, aptly titled ‘Earnhardt’ releasing on Memorial Day for maximum impact, it is shaping up to be more than just another sports documentary. It promises to deliver an amazing experience to everyone, whether you are a die hard NASCAR fan, or someone who is new to the world of NASCAR. Who knows, this could turn out to be better than Netflix’s NASCAR Full Speed?