31 Years Ago, Dale Earnhardt “Struggled” Together With His Buddy “Little Al” to Conquer Indianapolis Across NASCAR & Indy

Born into a prominent racing family, Al Unser Jr was one of the drivers whom the Americans of the 90s loved. Known by the names “Little Al” or “Al Junior,” he’d won the Indianapolis 500 and the IndyCar Championship twice in his time. Despite his later years going down a tougher path with alcohol abuse, his achievements on the track and the relationship that he shared with Dale Earnhardt Sr cannot be forgotten.

Sharing a beautiful moment that portrayed the respect that the drivers had for each other, NASCAR historian “nascarman” shared an old video on his “X” handle. Hearing the yesteryear heroes talk on the screen, one can’t help the shivers that go down the spine.

Dale Earnhardt Sr surprised Al Unser Jr with a beautiful gesture on air

The 1992 Indianapolis 500 is ranked by many as one of the greatest Indy500 races in history. The eventful race at the Brickyard was filled with fateful wrecks but ended in a clean and narrow win for Al Unser Jr as he beat Scott Goodyear by 0.043 seconds. The victory was his first at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and he ended up being the third from his family (along with his father Al Unser Sr. and his uncle Bobby Unser) to win at the track.

After collecting his accolade, Little Al appeared on TV for a call-in show with ESPN. As the hosts and the driver prepared for their first caller, a formidable voice broke through the phone announcing itself as “Earnhardt.”

Taking the hosts and Junior by surprise, Dale Sr said that he’d called in to congratulate Al. However, Earnhardt first admitted, “We sort of struggled in there and sort of weighed them out, didn’t we? I was driving and I kept asking ‘Is Indy over? Is Indy over?’ And they said Michael and Little Al were leading and I kept my fingers crossed. You won.”

Dale Sr himself was a victor that weekend as he raced through the checkered flag at Charlotte to win the Coca-Cola 600. Congratulating him back with delight, Al chipped, “Thank you very much, Dale. It looks like both the No. 3s went into victory circle”.  

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The professional admiration that Dale Sr and his “Buddy” Little Al had for each other

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As the conversation on TV continued, the host took his chance to ask about the relationship that the drivers shared. Mentioning their days racing in the IROC series, he asked, “Dale, I know you’ve sort of adopted Little Al as your buddy. You two seem to draft together so well. You two work together closely, don’t you?

Reflecting his own character and the respect that he had for Al, Dale Sr responded that they were good “except when it came down to the white flag.” He reasoned that that was how it is with two guys who want to win and said that he watches a lot of Al’s races and has a lot of respect for him.

It is history that Dale Sr and Kyle Petty had desperately wanted Al to race in NASCAR ever since he beat them to win the IROC Championship in 1986. But it wasn’t until over a decade later that he’d made that long-awaited jump. But by then, it was too late for anything. Despite his career going down a path that made him a victim of extortion, drug use, and depression, his admiration for Dale Sr was never lost.

In the aftermath of the Intimidator’s death, Al had revealed the impact he’d created in his life. He’d said, “Dale was the first one to welcome me into NASCAR and show me how to go fast on the track. But once he showed me how to go fast, he was also one of the ones to take me off the track and go on to win. He was a great race car driver and a great person.”

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