When Dale Earnhardt Jr. stepped in as interim crew chief for Connor Zilisch at Pocono Raceway, everyone in the NASCAR world thought it was a fun little surprise. A Hall of Famer coming out of retirement to help a young talent and make some history. But not everyone was impressed.
Kyle Busch didn’t see a comeback. He saw a publicity stunt. Before the race he said, “He’s just going to be a warm body sitting on top of the box.” He went on to add, “It’s all publicity, but spin it how you want it,” implying that Earnhardt Jr.’s presence was all about marketing and not motorsport. The timing of the comment raised some eyebrows especially since Zilisch (18 years old) went on to win the race.
The backlash was immediate. Fans of Dale Earnhardt Jr. (one of the most popular guys in the sport) were quick to defend him. But it wasn’t just fans who… Denny Hamlin, a seven-time Pocono winner, also spoke up on his Actions Detrimental podcast.
He gave credit to the JR Motorsports team and the pre-race prep but said Earnhardt Jr. deserved some credit too.
“I think we gotta give Dale Jr. a little bit of due,” Hamlin said. “Certainly don’t want to undersell the fact that the team was doing the heavy lifting… but still, you gotta be responsible, right?”
He said the truth lies somewhere in between — Junior wasn’t just a figurehead but he wasn’t calling all the shots either.
As the criticism towards Busch grew he tried to clarify his comments on social media. On X, he wrote, “This has nothing to do with any animosity towards Dale Jr. I’m referencing how silly the suspensions for crew chiefs are these days with all the technology they have to stay in contact with their teams.”
But by then, the damage was done. When you call someone “just a warm body” it tends to stick.
The tension between Busch and Earnhardt Jr. isn’t new. It goes back to 2007 when Earnhardt Jr. left Dale Earnhardt, Inc. for Hendrick Motorsports. That move essentially pushed Busch out of the team and started a rivalry that’s been simmering ever since.
In the end, Earnhardt Jr. didn’t say a word about it. He didn’t need to. Zilisch won. Kyle Busch can call it a PR stunt. Denny Hamlin can call it strategy. And fans can argue where the truth lies. But one thing’s for sure — when Dale Earnhardt Jr. sat on top of the pit box at Pocono, he was a champion.
Read the full article here
