By Cole Cusumano

The career and personal life of Dale Earnhardt Jr. will undoubtedly go down as one of the most troubling yet triumphant stories in professional sports history. Dealt the impossible task from day one of living up to his father’s standards, the 15-time most popular driver was able to compile an impressive racing resume, overcome multitudes of agonizing adversity and leave an everlasting impact on a once dying sport as near-perfect ambassador. 

And now, he will be inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

The stats speak for themselves; 26 NASCAR Cup Series wins, a two-time NASCAR Xfinity Series Champion, two-time Daytona 500 Champion and 10 superspeedway victories. Earnhardt Jr. may not have had the flash of the late-great Intimidator, but as he notes, his contributions to the sport extend far past his racing career.

“There were a lot of people that wanted me to be Dale Earnhardt,” the 45-year-old said. “They wanted me to be as successful as he was and drive like him. When I realized that ‘hey, I’m not going to be able to win those races, I’m not going to be able to win a championship,’ I started to think of what I could do outside of that. I wasn’t always perfect, but I started focusing in those areas and being accessible, being available, being accountable and I feel like I did a decent job at that. I’m pretty happy with that part of my career when it comes to the impact I had on the sport — I’m very happy with it.”

Earnhardt successfully brought NASCAR back into the mainstream light. Doing everything from interviews with Rolling Stones, appearing in music videos and television shows like MTV Cribs, he was able to capture the attention of communities that didn’t typically welcome or receive the sport from a positive lense. He put a personality behind the helmet in a time where the sport needed it the most.

“I tried to strive for more of that, because it was getting such a great reaction and we were creating a lot of new fans,” Earnhardt said. “I always thought it was something important to me that I gained a ton of fans because of who I was right out the gate. It’s important for me that our sport survives and is strong way, way beyond my life, because not only is it important that people remember the mark I left, even more so the mark that my father left and all the other greats in this sport, and the drivers that are in it today. All these wins and those things that you did won’t matter if the sport’s gone.”

Once the 15-time most popular driver realized his role, he embraced it and began blossoming into one of the most essential ambassadors across professional sports. 

Earnhardt is someone who has a deep respect for the history of NASCAR and those who’ve paved the way for the sport’s success. This is largely a reason why he opted to start his own podcast and become an analyst for NBC. He felt this was the greatest path in growing the sport beyond his racing career.

In a day that began with a root canal, Earnhardt was in the midst of recording his podcast, The Dale Jr. Download, when it was confirmed he would receive the prestigious honor of being inducted into the 2021 Hall of Fame class. 

“It’s really emotional because I feed off of affirmation,” Earnhardt revealed. “I really, really feed off of that and that affects me heavily in the workplace, in my homelife and everything I do. There’s no greater pat on the back or tip of the cap than this from the industry. It’s such a great feeling that someone feels like that I made an impact on the sport — and I know my numbers. I know the wins, the lack of a championship — I know what my numbers are, and I feel like that I was chosen based on that, but also the impact off the race track and being an ambassador for the sport.”

As someone who has an unfathomable amount of respect for the sport and those who’ve come before him, the two-time Daytona 500 Champion attained the highest form of affirmation, garnering 76% of the votes and becoming an first-ballot Hall of Famer.

Yes, Earnhardt may not be the winningest driver in NASCAR history — he may not even have a championship — but winning isn’t everything. In fact, it’s the furthest thing from that. Once your career is all said and done, it’s about leaving a lasting impact on the sport for years to come. Not only was the 15-time most popular driver and exemplary teammate and competitor on and off the track, he set the standard for class as an ambassador for NASCAR’s past, present and future.

Similarly to when his father captured his elusive Daytona 500 win in 1998, there’s a reason why every team lined up down pit road prior to Earnhardt’s final race. This wasn’t a singular milestone event achieved by a legend; it was an act of appreciation and recognition for a man and all he’s done to represent, propel and evolve the sport.

Earnhardt will now be forever immortalized alongside the names he strives for people to remember and honor. His presence as an ambassador will infinitely radiate throughout the industry and we embrace what the Hall of Famer has in store for NASCAR’s future