Dale Earnhardt Jr. fuels speculation of possible return with social media post
Hendrick Motorsports dropped a tease on Twitter on Tuesday afternoon that has Dale Earnhardt Jr. fans going crazy.
The tweet included an 11-second video, showing the lower half of a driver walking toward the camera in a National Guard firesuit, then reaching down and fixing the cuff on his right pants leg with featuring skeleton gloves.
The caption for the tweet was “Something’s coming. Tomorrow. 9 a.m. ET. Dale Jr. Download.”
Fans on Twitter immediately began speculating it could mean a return to the track for Dale Earnhardt Jr., who officially retired from racing following a full slate in the 2017 season. He has since occasionally returned to drive in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
But some fans believe Earnhardt Jr. could get behind the wheel for a NASCAR Cup Series race, possibly even the NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro from May 17-19. It would make a lot of sense to include a legend like Earnhardt Jr. in the field at the historic NASCAR track.
Another possibility is the weekend before, the Official Throwback Weekend of NASCAR at Darlington Raceway on May 10-12.
The official Darlington Raceway account got in on the fun in the replies, sharing an eyes emoji under the post.
In any case, there was plenty of speculation on the teaser.
Plenty of other fans speculated that a 2014 National Guard throwback paint scheme could be in the works for a Hendrick Motorsports driver such as Alex Bowman or William Byron. “I’m now convinced this is a Bowman National Guard sponsored throwback for Darlington,” one fan replied.
Most fans on social media felt like a race was in store, though. And though Earnhardt Jr. has participated in a handful of Xfinity Series races in recent years, a Cup Series race would be a welcome sight.
“If JR is running the Allstar Race in a CUP car I might go CRAZY,” one fan wrote on Twitter.
Fans will have to tune in on Wednesday morning to find out for sure exactly what Tuesday’s tease meant.