MOORESVILLE, N.C. – Dale Earnhardt Jr. will make his lone NASCAR Xfinity Series start next season at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway on April 8.
Earnhardt confirmed the news via his weekly podcast, The Dale Jr. Download, on Tuesday afternoon.
“For my Xfinity Series race next year for Unilever, I’m going to run at Martinsville,” Earnhardt said. “I love short tracks. People ask me all the time, ‘What was your favorite track? Oh man I thought you’d say Talladega.’ I either say Martinsville or Bristol given the kind of car I have.
“Martinsville is a blast, but also Bristol is equally as fun depending on how the car is driving,” Earnhardt continued. “I’ve had some tough days at Martinsville where the car wasn’t exactly there, but when it gets down to it what type of racing do I love to do? It’s short-track racing. It’s bumper-to-bumper, half-mile, trading paint. I’m going to get to do a little bit of that next year.”
Since retiring from NASCAR Cup Series competition at the conclusion of the 2017 season, Earnhardt has competed in one Xfinity Series race each season as part of a sponsorship agreement with Unilever.
In 2018 he raced at Richmond (Va.) Raceway, starting second and finishing fourth. He raced at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway in 2019, finishing fifth. Last year he competed at Florida’s Homestead-Miami Speedway, where he earned another fifth-place finish.
This season Earnhardt once again raced at Richmond, starting 30th and finishing 14th.
Earnhardt has never competed in an Xfinity Series race at Martinsville Speedway, but he does have one victory in NASCAR Cup Series competition at the half-mile oval.
“The races at Martinsville are a blast,” Earnhardt said. “If I’m a ticket buyer I’m going to get me a ticket and I only buy one for the year, Martinsville would be in the top-three. You can see the whole race track. There is going to be drama. Every lap there is beating and banging that the cameras just can not even cover. You miss a lot of it when you’re watching it at home on TV.”