Dale Earnhardt Jr on Talladega: “Any of those crashes probably would have given me a bit of an injury.”
Dale Earnhardt Jr is in his final season of NASCAR racing. Why? Head injuries have forced him to part early.
Watch the video interview below.
Of course, Talladega is prone to injury. High speed racing equals high speed crashes. High speed crashes equals injury.
For a driver that has endured multiple concussions, it’s got to feel good when you escape Talladega without any crashes. Especially on a day like yesterday when 70% of the field crashed out of the event.
Related: Dale Earnhardt Jr post-concussion interview with his doctor
“I thought we had the car to win before we bent the splitter down,” Dale Earnhardt Jr talked about his race at Talladega Superspeedway.
Is Dale Earnhardt Jr relieved to escape Talladega without injury?
That great question asked by Jeff Gluck from the media center of Talladega Superspeedway.
“Absolutely,” Dale Earnhardt Jr responds with a smile.
“I’ve had some trouble here in the past. I think that anyone who questions our desire to be here and compete this year. And our desire to run hard and race. [They] can look at the risks that we took here this afternoon.”
Any of those crashes probably would have given me a bit of an injury.
-Dale Earnhardt Jr
“Any of those crashes probably would have given me a bit of an injury that would have held me out the rest of the season. That’s hypothetical but I think it says a lot about being out there and competing, showing that we want to compete.”
Dale Earnhardt Jr avoided 3 big crashes today at Talladega Superspeedway. He slid through the grass to avoid one, bending the splitter, but that was about all the extent of impact. Each time he made it through a crash, the crowd erupted.
This was one that I was worried about.
-Dale Earnhardt Jr
“This was one that I was worried about. In the back of my mind I was a little concerned. But, you can’t win the race if you race scared. I’ve raced scared here before and you don’t do well when that happens.”
Related: Dale Earnhardt Jr retirement announcement video
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“You have to block it out and just go out there and take the risks. And hope that it’s just not your day to get in one of those accidents.”
“And it wasn’t!,” Dale Earnhardt Jr excitedly concludes that statement.
“I wish we could have seen what we could have done with a straight car at the end. We tried to push Brad into the lead. But, the splitter was on the ground so bad that we got disconnected.”
“The #11 went right on around us. It was downhill from there.”
I’m glad we got through it
-Dale Jr
“But, I was worried about this one. And I’m glad we got through it,” Dale Earnhardt Jr concludes from Talladega Speedway.
Related: NASCAR concussion protocol extended
Dale Earnhardt Jr finished 7th yesterday in his final race at Talladega Superspeedway. He end’s his Talladega career with 6 wins and an average finish of 15th.
Related: Dale Earnhardt Jr 2018 clash? Amy Earnhardt doesn’t like it
Dale Earnhardt Jr on escaping Talladega without injury
Talladega Superspeedway video hightlights
October 15, 2017
NASCAR Cup Series
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