The NASCAR lawsuit ended recently, marking the end of a number of things. For instance, the sport will institute permanent charters instead of the temporary, renewable charters that were costing teams millions of dollars in past years. Also, 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports will race as chartered teams again. However, the sport’s other troubles are still around – and that is what bothers Dale Earnhardt Jr. as his former driver heads to the premier tier.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. warns against an unsolicited move

“The Rookie of the Year has happened for years; it’s a tradition. Some years, there’s a very good Rookie of the Year battle; some years, there is not. This will be one of those years. That’s okay, don’t f—ing blow it up. Like, every time there is some kind of a hiccup or some kind of anomaly, we all make so much f—ing noise about it. Then, NASCAR feels like they gotta go blow it up. Hence, the playoffs and all the bulls— that none of us really like,” Dale Earnhardt Jr. ranted in on the Wednesday episode of Dale Jr Download.

In 2025, Shane van Gisbergen bagged the Rookie of the Year honors. He not only won five road course races but also improved his prowess at oval tracks. The Kiwi driver outdistanced fellow rookie Riley Herbst, driving for 23XI Racing. However, this competition will be non-existent in 2026 when SVG’s new Trackhouse Racing teammate, Connor Zilisch, comes to compete. And Dale Earnhardt Jr. pleads with NASCAR to let it stay like that.

After all, the playoffs were introduced to ratchet up the drama and introduce ‘Game 7’ moments. In the past, the full-season points system sometimes crowned champions long before the season ended. The perceived boredom bothered NASCAR’s elite, and hence, they changed the format. That is how the sport introduced all the novel elements that ultimately lost popularity – like the Next-Gen car, stage racing, etc.

Connor Zilisch has been the belle of the ball in the Xfinity Series, picking up 10 wins across his rookie year. He was the first-ballot choice for the championship. Sadly, however, his top rival Jesse Love was prepared, as the Richard Childress Racing No. 2 car crossed the finish line at Phoenix Raceway first. That left Zilisch and his No. 88 JR Motorsports team hurt. Nonetheless, Dale Jr. uplifted the 19-year-old phenom.

“He may have a chance to run for a championship again down the road,” Dale Earnhardt Jr. said. “I wouldn’t want him to think that this was his only shot because you never know what might come up. But he’s a great kid, had a great year, and I was thankful to be part of it. We didn’t win the trophy, but I had more fun than ever as an owner, being involved hands-on with everything.”

Now, however, Connor Zilisch may have a fresh challenge.

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A warning from another early bird

When Joey Logano entered NASCAR, he was also deemed a prodigy. When he was a rising kid in the early 2000s, NASCAR Xfinity Series champion Randy LaJoie nicknamed him “Slice Bread,” as in the greatest thing since. Joe Gibbs Racing signed Logano as a teenager, and history unfolded on short tracks. Logano became the youngest winner in Xfinity Series history in 2008. A year later, however, Logano got a reality check in the Cup Series. Only with time and experience, and a second chance from a team owner, vaulted him to a championship level. So Logano warned fellow prodigy Connor Zilisch.

“I think he’s better than I was at that age, and he seems to be more mature than I was at that age. It’s easy as an 18- or 19-year-old to drink the Kool-Aid. He’s a great driver, no doubt. He won a lot of Xfinity races. Cup racing is different. Everybody is great at this level. Everybody is fantastic,” Joey Logano said. “So, you can’t drink your own Kool-Aid too much where you think you’re the next thing because you’re going to get here and fall on your face. I lived it. As good as I think he is and will be, I also think he has to stay humble throughout it all and remember what’s important.”

Clearly, Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s former racer will need to buckle up for a bumpy ride. Let’s see what 2026 holds in store for him.