By running three races with Sam Hunt Racing during the 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series season, Jeffrey Earnhardt made the 2025 season the 51st consecutive season to feature an Earnhardt in at least one of NASCAR's three national series.
Jeffrey is the nephew of Dale Earnhardt Jr., who retired from full-time Cup Series competition after the 2017 season. Despite taking on a new role in the NBC Sports broadcast booth from 2018 to 2023, Dale Jr. still ran at least one Xfinity Series race each year for his JR Motorsports team, and he did so again in 2024.
The 2025 season was Dale Jr.'s first without any NASCAR national series starts since 1995. He made his Busch Series debut, which was also his national series debut in 1996, and his Cup Series debut came three years later in 1999.
Dale Jr. hasn't officially retired completely from driving, although he recently wrapped up his second season in the broadcast booth for both Amazon Prime Video and TNT Sports, which joined NASCAR as its two newest broadcast partners as a part of the sport's seven-year, $7.7 billion media rights deal in 2025. He hasn't run any NASCAR races in 2026 either.
As for Jeffrey, he entered 2026 having competed in NASCAR for 17 consecutive years dating back to 2009. He recently announced that he plans to return in 2027, but with no plans for 2026, it is looking like the 2026 season will be the first season without an Earnhardt competing since 1974.
Workin hard for 2027 race season!!! 💪🏼 YALL STAY TUNED. pic.twitter.com/9Q3VBIWV1m
— Jeffrey Earnhardt (@JEarnhardt1) September 22, 2026
Jeffrey hasn't confirmed his specific plans for 2027, but he plans to reveal more in the coming months. The season is scheduled to begin in February at Daytona International Speedway.
51-year Earnhardt streak at risk after Jeffrey's announcement
While Ralph Earnhardt competed at the Cup level for six total seasons (1956, 1957, and 1961 to 1964), the streak began when son Dale Earnhardt made his Cup Series debut in 1975. He competed at the Cup level for 27 consecutive seasons until his death on the final lap of the 2001 Daytona 500. He also made select Busch Series starts each year from 1982 to 1994.
The only other Earnhardts to play a role in this 51-year streak are Kerry, Dale's oldest son, and Bobby Dale, Kerry's oldest son. Kerry competed each year from 1998 to 2009, and he spent time in all three series, while Bobby Dale ran select Xfinity Series races each year from 2017 to 2019.
Bobby Dale recently competed in a majority of the 2026 ARCA Menards Series season.
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