A class act as always.
Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2021, which was his first year of eligibility, following his official retirement from the sport in 2017. He was a 26-time Cup Series winner and two-time Daytona 500 champion, and he won back-to-back O’Reilly Auto Parts Series championships in 1998 and 1999 before moving up to compete full-time in the Cup Series. In addition, he was incredibly popular among fans, as he was voted NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver 15 consecutive years from 2003 to 2017.
To most fans, he was easily a first ballot candidate, but during an episode of his Dale Jr. Download podcast this week, Jr explained that he would have “preferred to have waited,” saying he wanted older drivers who had been waiting for much longer, like Ray Elder and Randy Dorton, to go instead. He didn’t say this, but I’m sure in the back of his mind hew knew he would get in eventually, and he has so much knowledge and respect for the history of the sport that I’m sure that’s a lot of the reasoning as to why he thinks this way.
Just a few days ago, the the 15 nominees for the 2027 HOF class were revealed, which includes three different categories for nominees in the Modern Era Ballot, Pioneer Ballot and the Landmark Award. Nominees include Kevin Harvick, Greg Biffle, Neil Bonnett, Tim Brewer, Jeff Burton, Randy Dorton, Ray Elder, Ray Fox, Banjo Matthews and more.
Jr. got to talking about how the new guys tend to jump to the front of the line, saying it happened with him, and he wished others, like Ray Elder and Randy Dorton (both are nominated again this year), would’ve gotten in instead of him:
“We were on the show the other day talking about how the new guys who come on the ballot jump right to the front of the line. It happened with me… I tell you this, they shouldn’t have put me in when they did. I think they could have waited.
I would have preferred to have waited, and the Ray Elders, the Randy Dorton’s — all those guys that were here a long time ago — they should get in. But a guy like me pops up on the damn ballot and goes right to the front of the line. It’s like when you’re checking in to get your flight, you gotta wait your turn.”
Of course, Jr. knows there’s some that shouldn’t have to wait, like Jimmie Johnson,, the Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty, but there’s a lot of grey area beyond that:
“There are the Jimmie Johnson’s, the Dale Earnhardt’s, and the Richard Petty‘s where you don’t make them wait, guys who have won multiple championships. Like Kyle Busch, right? When he’s eligible, he’s going in. We put him in right away. But there’s a few people, and I would say I’m comfortable saying I’m one of them that could have [waited].”
This discussion came up because Jr. feels like the Modern Era ballot doesn’t always include the people he thinks they should, saying Ray Elder has an incredible legacy:
“Six-time ARCA Menards Series West champion. That is absolutely incorrect. It is misleading information. It absolutely downgrades it.”
Back during his time in that series, the ARCA was a Cup Series, and so those championships hold much more weight:
“It was a cup level series. And he won six championships in that series. Back in the 70s, NASCAR didn’t even own ARCA. It wasn’t even a NASCAR owned property. To call it the ARCA Menards Series West is a huge disgrace.”
It’s an interesting point, a broader concept that I think goes on in reference to many other professional sports Hall of Fames, though it is interesting with NASCAR in particular considering there are so many different levels and so much rich history in terms of how it even came to be in the first place.
Ultimately, a lot of factors go into deciding who gets into any Hall of Fame, but I think Jr. is right in advocating for these other drivers and putting into perspective just how important their careers were to the advancement and popularity of the sport…. even if a lot of us weren’t alive to see it for ourselves, which actually makes it all the more important.
