Dale Earnhardt Jr. might have missed out on his last opportunity to compete in The Clash at Daytona. At least if his wife, Amy, has anything to say about it.
Dale revealed Tuesday that he is considering running in the 2018 Clash, though Amy is opposed to the idea, according to NBC Sports.
The Hendrick Motorsports driver, who missed most of 2016 with a concussion, was cleared to return to competition before the 2016 running of the exhibition race, but opted to sit out, and instead made his comeback in the Daytona 500. One of the ways to qualify for The Clash is by claiming a pole in the prior season, and Dale hadn’t earned a pole in nearly four years. That is, until he qualified first for this season’s Coke Zero 400, thus earning a spot in next year’s Clash.
“Amy doesn’t want me to run it,” Dale told NBC Sports. “I’ve got a pole and kind of want to run it. But we’ll see if she warms up to it.”
Considering the lengthy recovery process Dale endured just to return to feeling normal on a day-to-day basis, Amy’s hesitance is understandable, as it’s a non-points-paying race at a track that’s known for big wrecks. Some fans, however, still criticized Amy for telling her husband to stay out of the car, prompting her to tweet a statement Tuesday.
Amy first revealed her stance on the matter when she appeared on the “Dale Jr. Download” in June, explaining that she was upset because Dale told Hendrick that she would decide if he can enter The Clash.
Dale also told USA TODAY in June that he, while retiring from full-time racing, still might want to run in the Daytona 500 again. It’s not clear whether he would have to convince Amy to get on board with that as well, though, given the race’s significance to Dale and his family.
Thumbnail photo via Matthew O’Haren/USA TODAY Sports Images
