Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s podcast was the scene of a hot take about the NASCAR Hall of Fame last week. The opinion, which has the whole of NASCAR talking, that only Cup drivers should be allowed into the HoF began from the Dirty Mo Media studios. But a week from that, another hot take has emerged from the podcast. And this time it is from Dale Earnhardt Jr. himself.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. wonders if NASCAR rushed with him in the HoF

During the latest episode of the Dale Jr. Download, the discussion began around the recent HoF announcement. At Martinsville, Mike Helton announced that Kevin Harvick would be a nominee for the Class of 2027.

This was something which Dale Earnhardt Jr. believed would be ‘a lock’ for Harvick. However, he was then confronted with the idea that some fans wondered whether NASCAR should’ve waited for some time before naming Harvick as a HoF nominee, which led to a major admission from Dale Jr. about his own induction in 2021, four years after his retirement.

“I’ll tell you this, they shouldn’t have put me in when they did. I think they could’ve waited. I would’ve preferred to have waited. Now there are the Jimmie Johnsons, the Dale Earnhardt, the Richard Pettys that you don’t make them wait. Guys who have won multiple championships. Like Kyle Busch, he’s going in; we’ll put him in right away. But there are a few people, and I would be comfortable saying I am one of them, who could’ve (waited),” he described.

To Earnhardt’s point, three of the drivers he mentioned are 7-time Cup champions. Even Kyle Busch, who has two Cup titles to his name, has 233 wins, the most in the history of NASCAR across the three national series.

Dale Jr.’s career numbers are pale in comparison to Busch’s, Jimmie Johnson’s, or his own father’s.

Making his case for NASCAR waiting to put him in the HoF, Dale Earnhardt Jr. claimed he feels healthy and young. And looking at the list of the Class of 2027 nominees, he sees names of drivers that have been around for a long time, names that deserve to get in.

However, a driver like him, Dale Jr. claimed, appears on the ballot and goes ‘right to the front of the line.’ He likened that to waiting for one’s turn while checking in for a flight and getting the luggage tagged.

Junior’s legacy in NASCAR covers more than the track

There are very few names in the history of NASCAR who achieved beyond the racetrack and wins. Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s name is one of them. While he had modest success behind the wheel of a racecar across the Busch Series and the Cup Series, his contributions extend far beyond his role as a driver.

Earnhardt won two Busch Series championships and 24 races. At the Cup level, he won 26 races, including two Daytona 500s, but no titles.

However, much like Jeff Gordon in the 90s, Earnhardt Jr. was also responsible for introducing NASCAR to a whole new audience. His appearances on shows like Cribs, Talladega Nights, and even starring in a Jay- Z video are some of the many examples of Earnhardt’s presence in pop culture, which made NASCAR a household name.

But even after his retirement in 2017, Dale Earnhardt Jr. continued to be a big part of the sport. His podcast network, dedicated almost entirely to NASCAR, his efforts of uplifting grassroots racing, and shedding light on iconic tracks like North Wilkesboro are some of the highlights of Dale Jr.’s key role in the sport. In fact, to this day, he remains a beloved figure among the fans, the garage, and the overall ecosystem of the sport.

Therefore, it’d be interesting to see how his take on him being put in the Hall of Fame prematurely goes down.