Should Dale Earnhardt Jr. Retire Before Season’s End?
By Asher Fair
After announcing his retirement in late April, Dale Earnhardt Jr. left many fans wondering what exactly he has to gain in the remainder of the 2017 season. Should he quit while he’s ahead?
Dale Earnhardt Jr. missed the final 18 races of the 2016 NASCAR Cup Series season with concussion-like symptoms. The cause was believed to be a wreck at Michigan in the 15th race of last season. He raced in the following three races after the wreck, but was benched for the remainder of the season after his 13th place finish at Kentucky.
Here’s a video of that wreck at Michigan that took place not even one year ago.
Earnhardt Jr. was cleared to return to racing this season, but that did not stop him from making a huge announcement toward the end of April. He announced that he would retire following the 2017 season.
Currently sitting in 23rd place in the championship standings with just two finishes in the top 10, a 5th place finish at Texas and a 10th place finish at Charlotte, through 12 races this season, one can only wonder what exactly Earnhardt Jr. is out to prove by racing in the final 24 races of the season.
According to Dale Jr. himself, he doesn’t have anything to prove. He’s doing it for one group of people.
"“My fans want me to win and to go out and have a great year and win the championship. I don’t know if I feel like I have something to prove, but there is that expectation to compete and go do well.”"
Certainly it would be great for the two-time Daytona 500 champion to finish out the season with perhaps a win or two as well as a playoff berth and maybe even a fairy tale ending to his storied career with his first career NASCAR Cup Series championship. But what is the likelihood that even one of those things happens, especially given the lack of success Earnhardt Jr. has had so far this season?
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As fans and drivers are unfortunately reminded on a regular basis, racing has never been, is not and never will be a 100% safe sport. The three-car wreck at Kansas a few weeks ago involving Joey Logano, Danica Patrick and Aric Almirola was our most recent reminder of that, as it resulted in Almirola sustaining a compression fracture in his back with a recovery time of 8-12 weeks.
Seeing as how Dale Earnhardt Jr. has had recent health issues himself over the past year as a result of a wreck, is the ever-so-slight chance of the potential rewards obtained from racing really worth the ever-present risk that comes with driving at speeds in excess of 200 miles per hour, especially at the age of 42?
Richard Petty, NASCAR’s all-time wins leader by nearly twice as many victories as 2nd place on the list, stated before the season that he was disappointed by Earnhardt Jr.’s decision to return to the sport this season.
"“I was a little disappointed that he did. [Earnhardt Jr. has] lived half his life, and he don’t need to be messed up going to the next. I just feel like he got through with it two or three times, and he had some pretty big knocks in the head. I’ve had them, too, I think I still live in one of them, but hitting mine was never that bad. He’s got a lot of career opportunities in front of him. He could make another career, and racing would be a minor thing for him.”"
Earnhardt Jr. has competed in 31 races over the course of the 49 total NASCAR Cup races contested since he last won a race. His latest victory took place during the fall race at Phoenix in the 2015 season. Just eight of those 31 races in which he has competed since that win have resulted in top 10 finishes for him.
Given the fact that Earnhardt Jr. has said that he’s accomplished more than what he ever thought he would accomplish, no one would fault him for calling it a career early. He has struggled this season, and given his recent injury history, the risks outweigh the rewards at this point in his career.
While it would be great for him to, at the very least, race once more at each of the tracks remaining on this season’s schedule, Dale Earnhardt Jr. has nothing left to prove, and he’s said so himself. Sure, he wants to go out on a high note for his fans, and no one can fault him for wanting that. But, all things considered, no one from his biggest fan to his biggest critic could fault him for hanging up his helmet before the season ends.
Next: Top Five Candidates To Replace Dale Jr. in the #88 Car
Whether you want him to or not, do you believe that it would be the smart move for Earnhardt Jr. to call it a career before the 2017 season comes to a close? Let us know in the comments below, and be sure to follow me on Instagram as well as Beyond the Flag on both Instagram and Twitter. Finally, don’t forget to follow along with Beyond the Flag for the latest news, opinions and analysis stemming from a number of different motorsports series. You don’t want to miss any of it.