If Dale Earnhardt Jr. wins a Cup Series title, he's retiring at the banquet
Dale Earnhardt Jr. isn’t putting a date on any retirement plans. Though a Cup Series championship could hasten his departure from the driver’s seat.
In a wide-ranging interview on the Dan Patrick Show Tuesday, the 42-year-old Earnhardt Jr. said if he won his first series title he’d retire while accepting the trophy for the championship at the Cup Series banquet.
“If I won the championship on the stage in Vegas, hell yeah,” Junior said with a laugh. “Probably. Wouldn’t it be the best way to go out? On top?”
When Patrick mentioned the rarity of people, like Peyton Manning, retiring after a title, Junior responded with a “No, but it’s rare anyone wins a championship at 43 years old.”
Junior’s future has been one of the most discussed topics heading into 2017. He missed half of the 2016 season because of concussion issues and 2017 is the final year of his current contract with Hendrick Motorsports. He’s told the team that he wants to wait a couple months about discussing a contract extension so that he can make sure he’s in position to be able to continue with the team.
Earnhardt Jr.’s best points finish came in 2003, when he finished third to Matt Kenseth. His best finish in NASCAR’s playoff system is fifth, though there’s no telling what could have happened in 2004 if he didn’t get a 25-point penalty for cussing at Talladega and crashed at Atlanta.
Thursday’s second Duel Daytona 500 qualifying race will be Earnhardt’s first race since he ran at Kentucky in July. After qualifying on the front row for Sunday’s Daytona 500, Junior has the luxury of using the race as an experiment of sorts by virtue of having his starting position guaranteed.
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
