“You watch your son and he can’t even walk a straight line”: When Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s mother Brenda supported his decision to retire 

Dale Earnhardt Jr., one of NASCAR's most recognizable and popular figures, announced in 2017 that he would retire from his full-time racing career at the end of the season. Junior's long and successful career was almost two decades in length, which consisted of almost 600 races. During that time, Junior recorded two Daytona 500 victories and was voted NASCAR's Most Popular Driver for a remarkable 15 consecutive years.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. announced while standing next to Hendrick Motorsports owner Rick Hendrick, and he stressed that his wish was to leave the sport on his own terms and expressed appreciation for his experiences and accomplishments. He had health concerns, specifically his recovery from symptoms connected to a concussion, an impetus to consider him stepping away from racing. He noted that he was healthy enough to race, but leaving on his own terms was more of a priority, with him honoring his obligations to his fans and team.

Brenda Jackson, the mother of Dale Earnhardt Jr., in a 2017 interview with Mike Hembree for USA Today, recalled the time when Junior decided he wanted to step away from NASCAR. She said that after she saw her son suffer from a concussion and its aftereffects, she could understand why he decided to call it quits.

“You watch your 42-year-old son, and he can’t even walk a straight line. He gets on a bicycle, and he can’t keep his balance. He can’t drive a car, although he drives one for a living,” said Brenda, who was supportive of Dale Jr.'s decision.

Meanwhile, Dale Earnhardt Jr. recently opened up about the challenges he faced communicating with Connor Zilisch's suspended crew chief, Mardy Lindley, during the Xfinity Series race at Pocono Raceway.

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Dale Earnhardt Jr. on the struggles of communicating with Connor Zilisch’s suspended crew chief

After Lindley was suspended due to a post-race infraction at Nashville, Earnhardt Jr. stepped in as interim crew chief. He described the communication with Lindley as "delayed" and less hands-on than he would have preferred, likening it to receiving a playbook in advance and then being left largely on his own.

"Yes. I could communicate with Mardy. It was difficult, it was delayed and I'll be honest, Mardy was not as hands-on as I would have been in his position. The vibe that I got from Mardy was almost like he gave us the playbook on Wednesday, and then he just kind of stood set back, and he's like, I'm not there," he said on the latest episode of Dale Jr. Download. "During the race. I was like, where the f**k is Mardy? I'm like, 'hey, Mardy blah blah blah' and he's like, 'whatever you think', and I'm like, 'What the f**k, what do you mean what do I think, like you're the crew chief, what do you think,'" he added.

Earnhardt expressed frustration at times during the race, feeling that Lindley was not as engaged or supportive as he expected, noting that Lindley was simply watching the race from home rather than actively participating in strategy decisions.

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Edited by Rupesh