Dale Earnhardt Jr. admits he regrets his attitude in 2004 Cup title chase, says it was the ‘best year of his career’

Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s winningest season ever in the Cup series was 2004.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. admits he regrets his attitude in 2004 Cup title chase, says it was the ‘best year of his career’

Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Credits: IMAGO)

NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. told ex-racer Kenny Wallace that he regrets failing to identify his potential to win the Cup series title in 2004.  It was the best season of Juniors’ career, but his charge for the title ended with a P5 finish in the point table while Kurt Busch won his only Cup Championship.

2003 and 2004 were the peak of Dale Jr. and his team, Dale Earnhardt Inc., in the Cup series. In 2003, Dale Jr. scored two wins and 11 top-5s to finish P3 in the championship. Next year, he won the Daytona 500 and five more races in the No:8 Chevy, but he scored just a fifth-place finish at the end of the season. He finished outside the top-20 just ten times that year.

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Dale Jr. was asked about the best time of his career in the interview with Wallace, and he highlighted 2004 as the year and explained his point by highlighting his Daytona 500 win and five other wins. He then admitted that he regretted not realizing he had a shot at winning the title that year. If he was able to realize it, there was a possibility that he could’ve been a Cup champion.

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Best time in my career is probably the 2004 season. We won the Daytona 500 and 6 races. It was disappointing because we didn’t, I didn’t know what kind of, I didn’t realize that we could have won the championship that year. No point in that season did I wake up and go, ‘Damn, I got a shot at this’ and I regret that.
Dale Jr. said via Kenny Wallace show.

Dale Sr.’ went through a similar experience in 1980

In 1980, Dale Earnhardt won his maiden NASCAR Cup title, beating the likes of Richard Petty and Darell Waltrip. He won five races that year with Osterlund Racing. He finished the season in the top-5 in 19 races, and that consistency earned him the title.

Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Via IMAGO)
Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the victory lane after Earnhardt Sr. won the IROC race at Daytona International Speedway. (Via IMAGO)

Dale Jr. revealed that realizing that a championship win is possible midway to the air made a significant difference, and his father went all in for the title. Junior wasn’t fortunate enough to have a similar experience, which cost him a legacy-defining title.

I remember my dad telling me, and I remember reading an article or seen it seen in a video where he says, ‘Man, there was a point in that 1980s season where I thought, Damn, I might can win the championship this year. He’s like, ‘Shit, I could be, I could actually win this championship. We might could do this.

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