Dale Earnhardt Sr. is still alive in spirit in the modern era of NASCAR.
That’s at least how Dale Jr. sees things. And hey… are we really going to doubt what the man whose father was the “Intimidator” says? I personally don’t think that would be wise, so when Dale Jr. says there are current drivers in NASCAR that remind him of his dad, we just have to sit back and listen.
Obviously, there’s no doubting the success of Dale Sr.’s racing career. He was a seven-time Cup Series Champion, and is arguably the most recognizable NASCAR driver ever. He’s still just as present in pop culture as he was during his heyday, and Dale Sr.’s driving style has apparently been mimicked – whether it be intentionally or unintentionally – in 2025.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. was asked if there were any drivers in the modern day that reminded him of his dad, and the talented former NASCAR driver (and current racing broadcaster) had quite the interesting answer:
“People are probably going to go crazy over this one, but Carson Hocevar – a little bit – is kind of like a young Dale Earnhardt in a way. (He) makes a lot of mistakes, ruffles a lot of feathers, but he’s very fast and very aggressive. Ross Chastain reminds me a lot of dad.
Anyone who has… even Joey Logano a little bit. I mean, Joey, he gets a little frustrated when he gets run over but he’s one that puts the bumper to ’em. He’s run a few guys up the racetrack and into the fence to win races. That’s very much like dad. He was very aggressive, especially in certain points in his career.”
Oh wow… so basically some of the more divisive drivers that are currently a part of NASCAR?
Dale Jr. rightfully prefaced that “people might go crazy” over some of his thoughts (I’m sure some die-hard fans are seething reading how he answered the question), but it’s cool to see that he believes there’s some value in not being the most popular race car driver, at least amongst racing fans. And Dale Jr. seems to just be going by what he sees when it comes to driving style, though I’d still consider it a compliment to be likened to the late, great driver of the No. 3 car:
“I’ll see that little glimpse or little peek of dad’s style in a lot of different drivers and I think it’s just human nature, what I’m seeing. But it’s comparable to dad.”
I don’t know why, but I always get a little emotional seeing Dale Earnhardt Jr. speaking about his father. To me, it seems like he really enjoyed that question, just because it allowed him to reminisce a bit about having the NASCAR icon as a dad and compare it to the modern era of NASCAR.
He even later opened up the question to NASCAR fans, asking them what they thought about his take and backing up his comparison:
“What do y’all think? Any drivers remind you of dads driving style? He had many phases. Young rookie, pissing off the vets. In 1986 and 1987 he dominated while bulldozing much of the competition. Mid 90s he’d still rough you up, but seemed a bit more selective. I loved the aggression then and today.”
Many of them agreed, although a few thought Kyle Busch at his peak was comparable to Dale. Denny Hamlin got a vote as well.
