“What are we doing? Are we trying to get the best race car drivers on the race track, or are we trying to get the biggest social media followings? … He’s not ready for what he’s doing!” Freddie Kraft said bluntly on the Door Bumper Clear podcast talking about Cleetus McFarland. Well, despite nearly five million YouTube subscribers, Cleetus has failed to gain the credibility that he is well deserving of that full time seat. And his results in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series so far have done little to change that belief. But not everyone is ready to dismiss his so fast, not Dale Earnhardt Jr. 

“I mean, they’re tutoring him, and really, they’re not just cashing a check. They’re really trying to help him progress as fast as possible,” Dale Jr. said, speaking to the media in Nashville.

McFarland, whose real name is Lawrence Garrett Mitchell, signed a two-year part-time deal with Richard Childress Racing earlier this year. The main reason which people point to is his huge fan following. In today’s world that is important because it could bring a lot of new eyeballs to the sport. But the truth is that, there is a gap in skills, and it’s showing in each of his outings.

In his Truck Series debut at Daytona, McFarland crashed out just six laps into the race. Then, in his O’Reilly Series debut at Rockingham, he finished 32nd, six laps down to the leader. His recent outing at Nashville wasn’t much better, ended with 35th place. These weren’t results to write home about, but Earnhardt Jr. feels that McFarland will improve with the training RCR is providing him.

“He’s with the right people. Like, the folks at RCR have all the resources to tune him, and prep him, and sim him. And, you know, Ty’s excitement around that deal, you know, the team rallying around him, the testing they did with him at Rockingham,” Junior continued. And to be honest, Dale Jr. sees in him something that many maybe haven’t.

After the disaster of a Nashville race, over in-car audio, McFarland didn’t hide from his mistakes. “Well, I made a lot more mistakes than I wanted to,” he admitted. “I really screwed us spinning out.” That honesty became one of the defining takeaways from his night in Nashville, not how he finished but how he responded. And that’s exactly the part Dale Earnhardt Jr. seems to be focusing on.

“He’s such a great dude, and I’ll be honest, I feel like I’ve gotten to talk to him when the cameras are off, and he’s such a great guy,” Earnhardt said. “He truly just wants to come in here and he doesn’t want to be the story for all the wrong reasons. He wants to come in, run his race, learn, get out of here without ruffling any feathers.”

It’s a stance that won’t make Earnhardt very popular at a NASCAR community gathering, with many upset over the fact that, despite McFarland’s lack of experience, he’s found himself racing in a national series, whereas others have to grind it out in ARCA and other series before getting noticed.

To be fair, Cleetus is doing exactly what Richard Childress hired him for. “If we can get 10% of those new fans coming to races and looking at the racetrack because of Cleetus… and I know he brought people to Rockingham, brought people watching the race.”

McFarland isn’t a terrible driver by any means. His runs in the ARCA Series, although limited, have been impressive. He finished P11 at Daytona and settled for second place at Talladega. With a well-established team like RCR helping him develop, his performances in the series can surely improve.

Cleetus McFarland addresses his improved ARCA runs after the second NOAPS attempt

Nashville yesterday wasn’t a standout run for McFarland. He showed flashes of pace and gained valuable experience, but a spin and pit-road mistakes ultimately derailed his day. In the end, he brought the car home in 35th place, several laps down, in just his second start in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.

So far, he’s not setting NASCAR on fire. But he feels that his runs alongside the best drivers in the country are benefiting him.

“When I went from this back to ARCA, my confidence was just through the roof,” McFarland told the media after the race at the Nashville Superspeedway. “I’ve been running way better ever since I got, you know, manhandled by this car. It’s formed me into a better driver.”

For most drivers, the process is quite uniform: improving in the lower series and then moving to the national series. But it seems to be working the other way around for Cleetus McFarland, and it makes sense, considering how late he started out with his professional racing career.

The 31-year-old  needs strong backing to make the most of his NASCAR runs right now, and Richard Childress Racing is providing him with the same, justifying what Dale Earnhardt Jr. said.