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FORT WORTH, TX – NOVEMBER 03: Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the #88 Nationwide/Justice League Chevrolet, stands in the garage area during practice for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway on November 3, 2017 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images for Texas Motor Speedway)
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FORT WORTH, TX – NOVEMBER 03: Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the #88 Nationwide/Justice League Chevrolet, stands in the garage area during practice for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway on November 3, 2017 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images for Texas Motor Speedway)
People who are intimately familiar with NASCAR lore, would know that Dale Earnhardt Jr comes from a racing dynasty. It all started when Ralph Earnhardt began racing in 1949, making his Cup Series debut in 1956. Over the course of his career, he has picked up a fair number of trophies and accolades. Unfortunately, he has not won anything in the Cup Series but has notched up triumphs elsewhere.
Recently, Dale Jr was exploring his grandparents’ attic and made a bunch of discoveries. To be precise, he found several broken trophies that belonged to his grandfather, Ralph. Among other discoveries, he found trophies for the 1953 200-lap team race at the Hickory Speedway. He also found trophies won at the erstwhile Rambi Raceway and a 1957 NASCAR Sportsman championship.
Dale Jr posted this on Instagram yesterday. He went through his grandparent’s attic and came across some old broken trophies of Ralph’s. Here are a few pics, check his story for the rest before they disappear. pic.twitter.com/72xiwL0aFU
— The Dale Earnhardt Archive (@ArchivesDe) January 16, 2022
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The oldest Earnhardt also won a demolition race at the Jacksonville Speedway in 1956. Others included a second trophy at the Hickory Speedway and a second-place sportsman trophy. The bad news was that most of the trophies were broken, and they were not enough to create a complete trophy.
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Dale Earnhardt Jr and his family continued the legacy
After Ralph, it was his son, Dale Earnhardt, who would go on to achieve tremendous success. Case in point, he clinched a record-equalling seven NASCAR Cup Series titles, tying with Richard ‘The King’ Petty. Sadly, Dale Earnhardt would tragically pass away in 2001 due to a fatal accident at the Daytona 500.
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RICHMOND, VA – SEPTEMBER 11: Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the #88 Nationwide Chevrolet, stands in the garage area during practice for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond International Raceway on September 11, 2015 in Richmond, Virginia. (Photo by Matt Sullivan/NASCAR via Getty Images)
With his passing, he left behind two daughters and two sons, and both sons were racing drivers. Admittedly, neither of them could really emulate his success, with Dale Earnhardt Jr coming the closest with 26 wins. Interestingly, there is a fourth generation of Earnhardts, namely Bobby and Jeffrey, sons of Kerry Earnhardt. Both of them were also in the family business of racing. Bobby often plied his trade in the ARCA and Xfinity arena, before he retired in 2019. Meanwhile, Jeffrey Earnhardt has competed in the Cup, Truck, and Xfinity Series and is still active.
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