Dale Earnhardt Jr. slams NASCAR for making The Clash “a joke” ahead of Bowman Gray race

Two times Xfinity Series champion Dale Earnhardt Jr. has shared his feelings about the fall from grace of season opener, The Clash.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. slams NASCAR for making The Clash “a joke” ahead of Bowman Gray race

Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Via IMAGO)

Since the start of the Next-Gen era, 2022 season, the LA Colosseum was host of The Clash, taking over from Daytona. Though the races on the 0.25 track were unique, it didn’t yield as much excitement as expected. This made NASCAR to change the race to Bowman Gray Stadium in 2025, and many fans are excited about the change.

Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. though doesn’t seem to be as excited, owing to his frustrating with the format. He recalled via the Dale Jr. Download podcast, how the Clash went from an exclusive event at Daytona to what it is now. Over the years NASCAR discontinued the must-be a pole winner provision which made the race unique and now any cars, even open team can race in it.  

YouTube video

Back when The Clash was running at Daytona, and they continued to expand the field, the idea was that there were partners, brands and sponsors going, ‘Why isn’t my car in this race? I want my car in this race.’ And then there were moments when like me or a big-name person wasn’t in The Clash.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. said on the Dale Jr. Download.

The driver used to enjoy the process and used to joke about securing a spot at the clash, after winning the pole. But now Junior feels the policy changes to allow everyone to race has made it a joke and The Clash has lost the legitimacy or the uniqueness that made it special.

FS Video

And so, the rules of eligibility were continuously massaged and twisted to basically just kind of include any team. We used to make the joke like hey man, you got a valid driver’s license, you’re eligible for The Clash. It had become a joke, and it took a lot of the legitimacy or the uniqueness and specialness out of The Clash.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. added.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. asserts NASCAR drivers also share the same feeling

Further talking on the topic, Junior pointed out that how the drivers used to celebrate not only starting the race on P1 but also securing a seat in The Clash after winning the pole in the past and now there is no such feelings. He believes NASCAR killed the challenge of achieving with the eligibility criteria changes.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Via IMAGO)

The Clash, as I’ve mentioned a million times, was about pole winners. … You would even hear drivers mention it in their interviews as they won the pole…When you lost that, what have you done? You’ve made a mistake. I guess what I’m saying is this feeling like it’s necessary to make sure everybody’s always a part of it, takes away the challenge of achieving.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. said.

The comments from Dale Jr. makes a lot of sense, when the significance of the race’s history is taken into account. At the same time NASCAR also has some strong rational behind the changes. It would be interesting to see if NASCAR can make some tweaks, merging the two formats into something more balanced.