Dale Earnhardt Jr. Brands Steve Phelps as “A Great Dude” Despite Richard Childress Insult Leading to Resignation

NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. has shared his thoughts the sudden exit of Steve Phelps from the sport.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Brands Steve Phelps as “A Great Dude” Despite Richard Childress Insult Leading to Resignation

Richard Childress, Dale Earnhardt Jr and Steve Phelps (Via IMAGO)

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The NASCAR community was surprised when it was announced that commissioner Steve Phelps has decided to retire from the sport. It was a disappointing exit considering the veteran left the sport, after two decades of service, owing to the charter lawsuit chaos and his insulting comments targeting Hall of Famer Richard Childress.

Despite all these controversy, HOF Dale Earnhardt Jr. doesn’t have many negative things to say about Steve Phelps. On the latest episode of his podcast, Junior asserted that the ex-commissioner was wrong to say what he said about Richard Childress, who is one of his close associates, but still thinks the former is a great individual.

I don’t mind telling you that I think Phelps is a great dude. know what he said about Richard Childress is not cool, I didn’t like it, I don’t think that was a good thing to say about Richard. No matter what you think about Richard Childress, Richard is near family to me. I grew up in his shop, my dad drove his racecars, and we’ve got a connection and a bond unique to a lot of other people in the industry.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. said via Dale Jr. Download.

He reiterated that, everyone in the garage including Steve Phelps knows the comment was dumb and uncalled for. But at the same time, Dale Jr. highlighted how people often say bad things in private conversations, but admitted that it’s still not a great defence. He expects the official to get back to a leadership position in another sport.

I didn’t appreciate what Phelps said about him, and I would tell that to Phelps and Phelps would agree it was a dumb thing to say. We’ve all said things in messages that we would prefer people not to see but if you’re a guy in Phelps’ position, you can’t f**king say that sh*t in a text message. That was a mistake on his own part. He’s owned it from what I can tell, and Steve Phelps will land on his feet.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. added.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. insists Steve Phelps was fighting for the team during charter negotiations

In the same conversation, Dale Jr. talked about the contribution made by Phelps over the years. He highlighted how he guided the sport through some big moments and also admitted that he will get some slack from the fans for this comment.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. (via Imago)
Dale Earnhardt Jr. (via Imago)

He’s a good dude, and he’s done some great things in our sport. He’s shepherded our sport through some tough times, and I’ll know I’ll catch some sh*t for that, but I don’t give a sh*t, this is what I believe. …

Dale Earnhardt Jr. said.

Furthermore, he asserted that Phelps and President Steve O’Donnell were fighting for the teams in the charter negations, unlike what many thinks happened. The only mistake that the officials made was the shit talk about Childress that got exposed.

If y’all were paying attention during the trial, we all learned that both Phelps and O’Donnell were actually trying to get the teams what they freaking wanted. Aside from what Phelps said about Richard, Phelps and O’Donnell were kind of working to get everything right. I mean, f**k.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. added.

The comments from the Hall of Fames seems bit naïve, considering for Phelps and O’Donnell NASCAR having the upper hand was always the primary objective. The 23XI-FRM lawsuit showed they failed to give the teams what they asked for and paid the price. But at the same time, as Junior suggested Steve Phelps has made many invaluable contributions towards the sport.

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