Dale Earnhardt Jr. will slide into a role he never thought he’d be in: crew chief for JR Motorsports’ №88 Xfinity Series car at Pocono Raceway. The decision follows the suspension of Mardy Lindley, the regular crew chief of the team, one race after violating lug nut rules at Nashville Superspeedway.
The penalty related to the May 31 race where Connor Zilisch finished second in the #88 car. Two loose lug nuts were discovered during inspection after the race and as a result, Lindley was fined 10,000 dollars and suspended one race. With Lindley out for Pocono, the team surprised everyone by choosing Junior to fill in.
Despite being co-owner of the team, Dale Earnhardt Jr. has never served as a crew chief in a NASCAR national series race. He has been dealing with broadcasting, part-time racing and operating JR Motorsports.
He’s worked with drivers and offered guidance behind the scenes, but never officially been a crew chief.
Actually, no Earnhardt has ever filled the crew chief position at a national level. Should Zilisch win at Pocono, Dale Earnhardt Jr. would become the eighth individual in NASCAR to win with a combination of being a driver, an owner, and a crew chief. And the first Earnhardt to do it. It’s a very unique accomplishment and one more hit in his career.
In 2025, JR Motorsports had won seven races in 16 races so far. Justin Allgaier has two of those and Daniel Suárez won in Mexico City. Zilisch is fifth in the standings and has been building momentum with back-to-back second-place finishes including the one at Nashville that led to this crew chief change.
Pocono will be a tough test for both the driver and the temporary crew chief. The track’s three turns are tricky but Dale Earnhardt Jr. has plenty of experience there from his driving days. He won twice at Pocono in the Cup Series and had 15 top-ten finishes during his career at the track. He’ll be back after Pocono but for one weekend, Earnhardt Jr. will be in the pit box. Nobody saw this coming, but everyone will be watching.
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