Dale Earnhardt Jr. Can’t wait for Cup line phone calls

Getty

Dale Earnhardt Jr. (right) had strong words about his team’s Cup Series future.

With JR Motorsports riders combining for seven wins in 18 Xfinity Series races, there are conversations going on about whether any of them can advance to the Cup Series. The group’s co-owner, Dale Earnhardt Jr, is well aware of this talk and he’s excited about the possibility.

The Hall of Famer met with members of the media at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway after Justin Allgaier won his third race of the season. He mentioned the possibility of one of his drivers leaving to fill one of the vacancies, a scenario that took an interesting turn after Petty GMS Motorsports confirmed that Ty Dillon would not be returning to the Chevrolet. number 42 in 2023.

“One thing I will say is that I can’t wait for the phone to ring for any of the four of us to take the call. I want to know about that as soon as it happens, and I can’t wait to help them decide if it’s a smart move for them,” Earnhardt said in the post-race session.

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Earnhardt had previous experience with this situation

GettyDale Earnhardt Jr. (right) expecting a call about Noah Gragson (left).

Losing a driver at the Cup Series is nothing new for Earnhardt and JRM. He has seen many winners move to larger organizations after running full-time at one of his vintage cars. The list includes Chase Elliott, William Byron and Danica Patrick.

One driver in particular that stood out was Earnhardt. The Hall of Famer took members of the media on a trip back in time as he discussed the moment he learned that a Cup Series team wanted to sign Aric Almirola.

“It was a great day,” Earnhardt added. “I was standing in my house, standing in the hallway or foyer of my house, when Aric Almirola called me and he said, ‘I have some tough news.’ He said, ‘Richard Petty called me to see…’ and I said, ‘You have to go.’ I didn’t even let him finish his sentence.

“I said, ‘That’s it. That’s what we do this for. Like, this is your chance, you know? ‘ And I was very happy. You know, because that’s like a win. It’s like a victory. That’s what happened today to get a call. It’s like being pulled from minors. And it can happen any minute right in the middle of the year. “

3 options left for JR Motorsports sports car driver

Of the four JR Motorsports drivers, three stand out as picks for the Cup Series teams – Noah Gragson, Josh Berry and Justin Allgaier. This is not light for Sam Mayer. He is just learning the details of the national series, and the extra time in the series will work in his favor.

Gragson is the most talked about option. He is running part-time in the Cup Series in 2022 while starting for both Beard Motorsports and Kaulig Racing, and there are reports of teams that could target him for empty seats. He finished in the top 20 twice in seven starts, but crashes and mechanical problems interrupted his four runs.

Like Mayer, Berry only had a limited number of starts in a national NASCAR series. He’s in his first full-time Xfinity Series season, and he’s already made two starts in the Series Cup. The 30-year-old, however, has rapidly achieved success since moving from the Late Model to the Xfinity Series, and he has created buzz about a possible Cup Series future. .

Allgaier sat in a unique situation. He has the most Cup experience with 80 games starting from 2013 to 2022, and he has the best understanding of how to run on a Sunday. However, NBC analysts made an interesting comment during the Crayon 200 on July 16.

Analysts say Allgaier may not want to return to the Cup Series. They explained that he enjoys competing in the Xfinity Series when racing on Saturdays and spending significant time with his family.

CONTINUE READING: NASCAR veteran Aric Almirola doubts the future