Dale Earnhardt’s death on the final lap of the 2001 Daytona 500 didn’t just change NASCAR. It froze the sport in a moment of collective grief. 25 years later, that wound still hasn’t fully healed, as FOX Sports’ latest documentary, We’ve Lost Dale Earnhardt: 25 Years Later, taps straight into that emotion. But while the Intimidator’s legacy remains untouchable, a growing section of fans is pushing back, arguing that NASCAR’s storytelling has become stuck in rewind. They say the sport is endlessly circling Earnhardt’s tragedy while other legends, eras, and voices wait in the shadows.
FOX Sports revisits NASCAR’s darkest day
FOX Sports and NASCAR Studios are once again reopening the most painful chapter in NASCAR history on the silver anniversary of the 2001 Daytona 500, the race that reshaped the sport forever. Premiering Thursday, Feb. 12 at 10 p.m. ET on FS1 following the NASCAR Cup Series American 250 Duels, the film promises an emotional, immersive look at the loss of the seven-time champion and the shockwaves that still ripple through the garage today.
“This documentary explores the man behind the wheel and goes beyond a single day in history to delve into how one moment forever changed the sport and continues to impact drivers competing today,” said Barry Nugent, vice president, development & original programming, FOX Sports.
Told through exclusive first-person accounts, rare home videos, archival broadcast footage, and cinematic storytelling, the documentary revisits Earnhardt’s death while examining how NASCAR and FOX itself navigated the unimaginable in real time during the network’s first-ever NASCAR broadcast.
A loss that reshaped NASCAR and continues to echo through the sport, its people and its culture today.
We’ve Lost Dale Earnhardt: 25 Years Later premieres Feb. 12 after The Duel at Daytona (10p ET) on FS1. pic.twitter.com/lmri2znvgG
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) January 27, 2026
Former NASCAR President Mike Helton, who delivered the words that stunned the racing world, reflects on the weight of that moment. Similarly, 2001 Daytona 500 competitors Rusty Wallace and Kurt Busch provide firsthand recollections from the track.
The film also features insights from Kyle Busch, Joey Logano, and Ryan Blaney, tying Dale Earnhardt’s legacy directly to today’s stars, while Frankie Muniz offers a unique perspective as the honorary pace car driver that day.
Beyond grief, the documentary also spotlights the safety revolution that followed and Earnhardt’s enduring influence on the sport’s culture.
But as FOX leans once more into a familiar story, not all fans are convinced this is the tribute NASCAR needs right now. And this sentiment has sparked an increasingly vocal backlash.
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Fans push back as Dale Earnhardt tributes trigger fatigue
As soon as FOX Sports rolled out We’ve Lost Dale Earnhardt: 25 Years Later, the backlash was loud, emotional, and impossible to ignore. For many fans (including me), this wasn’t about disrespecting Dale Earnhardt’s legacy. It was about exhaustion.
One comment summed up the growing fatigue bluntly, saying, “Just stop with this , we dont need this every damn year over and over.” Fans were quick to list past projects like The Day: Remembering Dale Earnhardt (2011) and Dale Earnhardt: Legend, Legacy (2021) and more, arguing that most of these films circle back to the same moment. They all talk about his death rather than pushing the sport forward.
“Pretty soon Dale’s gonna have more documentaries than Cup wins,” one fan joked, a sarcastic nod to Earnhardt’s 76 Cup victories and the steady drumbeat of tributes. Another went even further: “In 2040, they’ll be talking about the 15th anniversary of Biffle’s death.”
The comment referenced the tragic 2025 plane crash that killed former NASCAR champion Greg Biffle, his wife Cristina, their children Emma and Ryder, and three others. It served as a blunt reminder that NASCAR has other painful stories that may one day be recycled and stretched the same way.
There was also frustration about priorities. “Man I love dale…still am a massive fan… but if we put as much effort into our current product as we do into Dale docs….” That sentiment reflected broader criticism of NASCAR’s modern issues. From car packages and rule changes to track scheduling and business decisions, fans feel that nostalgia is being used as a crutch rather than making changes that fans actually want to see.
Others questioned why NASCAR didn’t simply focus on what many consider the gold standard (currently). “Prime documentary is one of the best documentaries ever done. Just show that.” That comment pointed to Amazon Prime’s four-part Earnhardt docuseries released in May 2025, which covered Dale’s life, career, and family in far greater depth.
Finally, some fans asked why other tragedies remain footnotes. “Where are the stories of Adam Petty, Kenny Irwin Jr., and Tony Roper,” one wrote. They further added that while Dale Earnhardt’s death sparked safety discussions, it took Blaise Alexander’s fatal ARCA crash later in 2001 for HANS devices to become mandatory.
The message was clear: honoring Dale still matters. But fans want balance, evolution, and room for other stories to breathe.
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