“I Miss It Terribly!” Dale Earnhardt Jr. Ends Speculations Over NASCAR Cup Return

It’s been over eight years since NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. has last raced in the Cup Series and there are still a set of fans that expecting the veteran to make a return. Recently with Tony Stewart making a Truck Series start at Daytona, the calls intensified and the JR Motorsports co-owner has finally responded to it.

In the first ever episode of Jeff Gluck’s The Gluckcast podcast, Dale Earnhardt Jr. was asked about the speculations. He responded that it’s naïve for anyone to think that he will race in an event like Daytona 500 after not driving the elite division car for almost a decade. The veteran sees this as a disservice that talented racers in the current garage even think like that.

A part of me thinks that anyone, myself included, is absolutely naive to think that you can go to Daytona and compete at the highest level after being out of the car for almost eight or nine years. I think it’s a disservice to how talented the [Ryan] Blaneys and [Denny] Hamlins are in that realm at the Cup level to think, ‘Yeah, I’m going to go run it’ just like on a whim, show up and do what they do.’

Dale Earnhardt Jr. said via The Gluckcast podcast.

The two times Busch Series champion loves and admire premier division drivers, as knows the hard work the Cup seat demand from the racers. The grind is one of the major things he misses the most after retirement, but that doesn’t mean he wants to race again.

What they do is elite. I admire it. I remember what it was like to do that every single week, and I knew how often you need to do it to be the best…I miss it terribly. Don’t think that I don’t want to do it. But I don’t know that it really serves me any good, and that’s where it is.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. added.

But he hasn’t ruled out one more race starts in the series, as he looking into potential race one last time in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series with his team. He is also open to making a Truck Series start instead as well. So, the fans have something to hope for in the future.

I am curious and interested in running another Xfinity (O’Reilly Auto Parts) race. I’m not saying I won’t ever race Xfinity or maybe drive a truck somewhere. I’m not done with that thought or that potential.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. asserted.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. confesses he was damn bored with fuel saving in the Daytona 500 weekend

One of the biggest criticisms of the 2026 Daytona 500 weekend was the extensive fuel saving runs from the teams, especially in the Duels. Just like majority of the racing community, the Hall of Famer was bored and almost fall asleep due to the stale racing.

I’m sitting there, and I’m watching them all run 40, 50, 60 percent throttle. Just sitting there holding their throttles right around 40, 50, 60 percent during the Duel… I swear, man, I fell asleep. I mean, I was literally… Our cars in the race racing on the track, and I am about to fall asleep. I’m not joking, I’m not exaggerating this at all. I was like, ‘How the hell am I this damn bored?’

Dale Earnhardt Jr. said.

It was one of the biggest topics of discussion after the race in social media as well as in podcasts, with many drivers urging NASCAR to fix the issue immediately.  It would be interesting to see how the sanctioning body is going to respond to the discussions.

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