Dale Earnhardt Jr. plans on retiring at the end of the 2017 season, but the end might come a lot sooner if his teammates have anything to say about it.
During Lap 343 of Sunday’s Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond International Raceway, Earnhardt got ran into the wall by none other than one of his Hendrick Motorsports teammates: Jimmie Johnson.
Earnhardt got a little loose on the outside, but still seemed to be in plain sight.
Although the act didn’t appear to be intentional, Johnson’s explanation probably won’t make Earnhardt feel any better.
“I had no idea that he was out there,” Johnson could be heard saying on team radio, via Texas Motor Speedway.
Things went from bad to worse for Earnhardt, who just 14 laps later blew his rear left tire.
Clearly, the first stop on the Hendrick Motorsports driver’s unofficial retirement tour didn’t go as planned.
Thumbnail photo via Peter Casey/USA TODAY Sports Images
