Dale Earnhardt Jr. Not Expecting 'Charter Fairy' to Pave Way to NASCAR Cup Series

Yahoo

26-02-2025

By just about any metric, Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s return to the NASCAR Cup Series with JR Motorsports at the was a success.
The race was the lone NASCAR Cup Series race on the team's schedule for 2025.
As much as Earnhardt would like to return to the Cup Series as an owner, the $40 million or so needed for a charter isn't in the cards right now.
About the only thing every Daytona 500 fan cheered was the presence on the grid of owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. and his JR Motorsports team. It was the company's first Cup Series race and the first time a 'Dale' had been around on a Sunday afternoon since Junior's last Daytona 500 in 2017.
It was, in almost every way, a smashing success. While plenty of fans used chatrooms and message boards to complain about almost anything 500-related, those same chatrooms and message boards overflowed with praise for Junior and his driver, ninth-finishing Justin Allgaier. It was almost as if the Hall of Fame superstar were back racing.
Several fans said they'd start watching Cup again if Earnhardt Jr. were involved. 'Sweet,' another said. 'I have someone to cheer on.' Yet another said what millions probably were thinking: 'I love Junior's passion and love for NASCAR. He's such a great guy—realistic, and relates to old-timers and new fans. I hope he stays a part of this sport for years.'
There's almost no question that Junior and JRM will be part of NASCAR for years. He and his sister, Kelley, have built a thriving business with hundreds of employees fielding four Xfinity Series teams and teams in the Advance Auto Parts weekly Late Model and the CARS series.
The 20-year-old organization has always been successful. Allgaier (2024), Tyler Reddick (2018), William Byron (2017) and Chase Elliott (2014) have delivered driver and owner championships to JRM. Twenty of its 63 drivers have combined for 35 poles and 88 victories, all in Chevrolets Among them: future Cup champions Elliott, Kyle Larson, Brad Keselowski, Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, Martin Truex Jr., and Tony Stewart. There were times when Mark Martin drove for JRM, as well as Ryan Newman, Danica Patrick, Robby Gordon, Jamie McMurray, and Kasey Kahne.
An impressive list of alums, to be sure.
Qualifying for the 500 and finishing ninth almost moved Earnhardt Jr. and Kelley to tears. While Byron did his winner's burnouts for the second consecutive year, the Earnhardts and their crew were celebrating with well-wishers along pit road. It was reminiscent of the outpouring of support when Dale Earnhardt finally won the 500 in 1998.
But left hanging is the biggest question: when will it happen again? When will JR Motorsports enter another Cup race with Allgaier and the No. 40 Chevrolet? Will it ever have a NASCAR charter and run the full Cup schedule?
The short answer is … it depends on money.
On a recent podcast, Earnhardt Jr. said he'd consider another Cup race with Allgaier at Daytona or Talladega if a suitable sponsor signed on. Lacking that, the Daytona 500 is JRM's lone Cup start for 2025.
'Travellers (whiskey) and those folks had a really great time,' he said of the team's Daytona 500 sponsor. 'If they feel it's worthwhile to do another investment, to run another race with that car at Talladega or Daytona … well, that's to be determined. If they want that, we'd probably do it. Yeah, we'd crank it up and rerun everything. Otherwise, I don't know that we'll run another Cup race this year.'
Getting a one-off sponsor—even for someone as enormously popular as Earnhardt Jr.—is one thing. Finding suitable partners and well-heeled sponsors to help buy a NASCAR charter is something else. 'People are a bit confused over how this process works,' he said. 'They don't know if I've given mixed signals about where I am in terms of what I'd invest or not invest, or what I expect.
'Here's how it would work: say the charter—and I may be naïve; maybe it's not this simple—but let's say a charter goes for $40 million. That's a lot. I was hoping it would cost me $25 million, but the ones available today are $40 million. I'm not giving you $40 million for a charter. It's not something I'm interested in … and that's my prerogative. What needs to happen is an investor comes in, somebody who wants to partner with us.
'I'd invest $5 million or $10 million in the right situation. Say, $5 million. Absolutely, maybe more. That's about 20% ownership and a very comfortable place for me. I'm bringing to the table my sister and our history of owning and operating this race team. Our success stories aren't only on the racetrack, but in licensing, marketing, engagement, and activation. Almost every single partner we've had that's left and gone somewhere else has come back and said, 'y'all do it better.' We're bringing all that to the table; the rest of the money has to come from somewhere.
'It has to come from somebody who wants to invest in the idea that a $40 million charter will be worth $100 million or $150 million or $250 million down the road. Two years? Ten years? Whatever it is. I believe that's true because I believe that's real; that's a possibility. I wouldn't put $5 million or $10 million into this if I didn't think it was going to turn into something more.'
The Earnhardts are savvy enough to realize they have leverage. They've listened to enough sponsor spiels to know acceptable ones from the others. They're not going to fall for the first pretty face who comes in with a bag of money.
'The person who comes in can't be just anybody," he said. 'You don't partner with just anybody you'll compromise with, make decisions with, and communicate with for a 10- or 20-year process. It can't be someone you're going to be arguing and fighting with over management decisions in two or three years. That's not an easy thing to come to terms with or understand.
'That's why, if it happens, it happens. That's how you've got to feel about it. I don't know when that person might walk in. There have been people who've wanted to invest, people we've sat down and talked with about the money; people who had the money. But we didn't do it because it wasn't the right fit for Kelley and me. We're not going to do it with risk involved … and I'm not talking about financial risk. I'm talking about our employees here; everything we're doing in this building is working well. We can't upset that.
'We've got to make sure we're going into a partnership with somebody we can live with and love and want to be with and work with. And I'm not wanting it for free … not at all, and I don't expect that. I don't expect NASCAR or the charter fairy to drop one in my lap. That's not what I think should happen or what I think will happen.
'I'm willing to invest real money into it. Absolutely, especially when I know that it's a win-win across the board.'
Meanwhile … millions of JRM fans remain hopeful there is, in fact, a charter fairy.