Dale Earnhardt Jr. hasn’t raced in the Daytona 500 or the NASCAR Cup Series since 2017, but someone close to him is pushing for that to change next year.
Earnhardt Jr. revealed that his wife, Amy, told him that he should race in the 2027 Daytona 500. Earnhardt’s race team, JR Motorsports, entered a car in the 2025 and 2026 Daytona 500 with driver Justin Allgaier behind the wheel.
“Amy told me I should run the Daytona 500 next year,” Earnhardt Jr. said in a clip posted to social media. “I was like, ‘what?’ We were laying in bed Sunday night after the race, [and] she was like, ‘You should just drive it next year.’ I’m like, ‘hello? Pardon me? What’d you say? Are you okay?'”
Could Dale Earnhardt Jr. return to NASCAR?
Since concussions forced Earnhardt Jr. into an early retirement from full-time Cup Series competition in 2017, he’s competed in 10 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series races. He did not race in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series in 2025.