Dale Earnhardt Jr. reveals names of two NASCAR legends who helped him the most to overcome his father’s tragic death

Dale Earnhardt Jr. reveals names of two NASCAR legends who helped him the most to overcome his father’s tragic death

Mark Martin and Dale Earnhardt Jr.

The death of Dale Earnhardt is one of the darkest parts of NASCAR history. The record seven times cup champion and maybe the GOAT of the sport died following the injury he sustained in a high-pace crash at Daytona. Earnhardt was killed on impact, and the tragedy influenced NASCAR safety standards for the decades to come.

Dale Earnhardt was trying to hold the rest of the field up in the final lap of the race racing at P3. Michael Waltrip led the race with teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr behind him. Waltrip went on to win the race while Jr finished P2. They were welcomed with the devastating news of Dale’s death. Dale Jr had struggled a lot before making a return to the track. He made his father proud on and off track with his NASCAR career.

YouTube video

Dale Jr., in a recent episode of his podcast, revealed while talking about Ty Gibbs losing his father just hours after his Xfinity championship win the names of three individuals that helped him the most to overcome his father’s death. He said, “I think one of the things that helped me is Bobby Labonte, Dale Jarrett, and Mike Helton,”.

FS Video

Bobby Labonte is a former cup champion now working as a sports pundit with Fox sports. Dale Jarrett is a cup champion, the son of legendary driver Nedd Jarrett, and an NBC sports pundit.  Mike Helton is currently the NASCAR vice president.

Also read: “Can’t let this opportunity pass,” Former NASCAR driver set to ‘race’ for senate

How the trio helped Dale Earnhardt Jr. overcome Dale Sr’s death

Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Bobby Labonte, Dale Jarrett, and Mike Helton

Dale Jr. pointed out that family and friends will always be with you in challenging situations. He said, “Obviously when you lose somebody, your family, your friends, and all of the people you know and connect with and communicate with are there. They’re there and supportive. They’re there for a hug, conversation, cry, whatever it is,”.  

He added that drivers such as Mark Martin, Jarrett, and Labonte, who weren’t in his close friend circle, made a difference by checking in on him regularly. He said being with individuals who knew his father was a significant relief.

“When guys that typically aren’t in that circle reached out to me, that made the most difference. To have Dale Jarrett comfort me, or Mark Martin or Bobby Labonte, Mike Helton, constantly asking if I was OK, asking me to accompany them to the race track or something. To be around anybody. To be around those guys, especially those that knew my father was so helpful,” Dale Earnhardt Jr. added.

Also read: Why was Mike Kelley appointed as Ricky Stenhouse Jr.’s new crew chief?

Also read: Why did Kyle Busch sign Brian Pattie as KBM crew chief?