Dale Earnhardt Jr lays out three rule changes he | Sports News

Dale Earnhardt Jr. outlined a collection of changes he’d nonetheless prefer to see applied by NASCAR as this yr’s watershed offseason attracts to a close.

In latest weeks, NASCAR has undergone a main facelift amidst rising strain from followers, pundits and drivers alike. Earlier this month, the sanctioning physique introduced the return of the Chase-style playoff system, which stood because the de facto postseason format from 2004 to 2013.

“Numbers! Put em where ya want! (Between the tires of course),” he wrote on X. “Overtime. One attempt. I’d love to see it go but fans would be big mad when one ends under yellow.”

Earnhardt moreover shared his ideas on whether or not NASCAR ought to use “the Boot” part at Watkins Glen International relatively than working the shorter format that bypasses the one-mile extension added in 1971. “Boot? Yes if we can run the current course under yellow,” he stated.

This is hardly the primary time that Earnhardt has supplied his two cents on the present state of NASCAR. During a latest episode of the ‘Dale Jr. Download,’ he voiced his help for the return of The Chase, which is able to place better worth on consistency throughout the playoffs and replaces the notorious 3-3-3-1 knockout format.

“I’ll be honest, I’m in a better place now,” Earnhardt stated. “Last year wore me down, the trial, the negativity, all of it. I didn’t realize how much I disliked the format until it was gone, and I couldn’t really say it out loud while I was still broadcasting. You want to protect your job, and that puts you in a tough spot.”

Earnhardt additionally welcomed NASCAR’s determination to increase the goal horsepower for Next Gen vehicles to 750 hp in any respect street programs and tracks beneath 1.5 miles in size subsequent season. In 2026, Bristol Motor Speedway, Darlington Raceway, Dover Motor Speedway, Nashville Superspeedway and World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway will transition to the short-track/road-course package deal, which makes use of a three-inch rear spoiler and fewer diffuser strakes.

“There have been real gains,” Earnhardt famous. “The tire was better last year. The car is being adjusted in the right direction. A lot of things are looking good. It feels like the sport is pointed in the right way. We’ll see how it all plays out.”

The playoff changes and increase in horsepower are removed from the one revisions to the NASCAR rule e-book. A-post flaps — a security measure that helps cut back the chance of liftoff during a spinout — will moreover be mandated at each Cup Series monitor.

For new producers (OEMs) getting into the Cup Series, O’Reilly Auto Parts Series — beforehand generally known as Xfinity — or Craftsman Truck Series, a handful of new testing procedures have additionally been outlined.