Dale Earnhardt Jr. thinks it’s ridiculous to retire a cars number in NASCAR.
Earnhardt the son of legendary Dale Earnhardt Sr., announced Thursday that he will run the No. 3 in the NASCAR Nationwide Series at Daytona International Speedway in July. The No. 3 was campaigned by his father throughout most of his career but since his death during the 2001 Daytona 500, the number has not been raced in the Cup Series since then.
The number 3 was the subject of a great deal of speculation and controversy after Earnhardt’s passing with many saying it should be retired.
Speaking at Richmond International Raceway Friday, Earnhardt Jr. said if someone wants to race with the number 3 they should be allowed to.
“If someone wants to run the No. 3, let them run the No. 3. Numbers are numbers,” Earnhardt said. “I don’t think that even if somebody does run the No. 3, I don’t think anyone is going to forget what Daddy did with it.
As for whether the number should be retired, Earnhardt was clear.
“It is ridiculous to try to retire numbers or favor numbers for certain drivers,” he said. “The No. 3 meant a lot to Daddy and meant a lot to a lot of race fans but there is some kid that is growing up that really was never a Dale Earnhardt fan but he drives the No. 3 and he might want to be the No. 3 all his life and to not give that guy that opportunity just isn’t fair.”
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Comments
I think he should run that number himself on his cup car, thur JR Motorsport, and leave his Nationwide car alone.
Have to agree with Junior's opinion on the number being used in the future by someone else.....believe that day is coming sooner than some Dale fans want to admit.
i think its a great idea and a good way to honnor his father
I agree with Jr on this and think he should run it on all of his cars until he retires.
I think retiring numbers in any sport is ridicules. It’s more memorable for a famous athlete’s number to be on the field or track than to just take it out and place it on a flag or wall somewhere. It would be better to see that number 3 on the side of a race car doing 200 mph than it would on a wall doing 0.
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