“Brings the Absolute Worst Out of You”: Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s Honest Admission About His Competitive Nature

Dale Earnhardt Jr. looks out from his pit box Saturday, July 26, 2025, during the Pennzoil 250 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Dale Earnhardt Jr. was always a fierce competitor on the race track. He won two Busch Series championships and 26 Cup Series races, among many other accolades, using his relentless character. But what is interesting is that this has never been limited to the track. One other avenue in which he carried it into is console gaming. The icon spoke about it in an interview with Jeff Gluck recently.

Junior and a few of his friends are on the NCAA College Football Xbox/PlayStation Dynasty League. He admitted that he is not a gracious loser in this and doesn’t just hop out of the console when he faces defeat. Apparently, it bothers him a great deal. He also continued to speak about how playing Madden Mobile with his friends brought out the absolute worst in him.

“We used to be in a Madden league back in around 2012, and I won the Super Bowl three years in a row, so I was pretty good, but playing Madden with your friends brings the absolute worst out of you. Nothing else is like this,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “And I had to stop and tell myself: ‘This isn’t healthy if I can’t control my emotions around winning and losing.’”

Junior wasn’t the only NASCAR icon with this problem. He revealed that RFK Racing co-owner Brad Keselowski was involved in this as well and that he regularly broke remotes in frustration. “I don’t know what it is about console games and your friends, especially sports games.” This is quite the revelation he made, and it warrants a deeper dive into his addiction.

Junior’s addiction to Madden Mobile

Junior revealed in a 2017 episode of Dale Jr. Download that he spends a ridiculous amount of time playing Madden Mobile. He said, “New season just started, so I’m spending roughly half of my waking hours on Madden Mobile. Yeah, I know it’s excessive, and Amy’s not very happy.” 

He added, “People ask us what music we listen to, people ask us all kinds of questions. Our favorite mobile app – mobile game – is Madden Mobile. It is free. We’re in a league, and got a bunch of guys in there. Half of them don’t know who we are – don’t know who I am – that’s probably best.”

He refused to share his username in the game and also warned that it wasn’t an easily recognisable one.

Post Edited By: Somin Bhattacharjee
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jeff Gluck

About the author

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Gowtham Ramalingam

Gowtham is a NASCAR journalist at The SportsRush. Though his affinity for racing stems from Formula 1, he found himself drawn to NASCAR's unparalleled excitement over the years. As a result he has shared his insights and observations by authoring over 3000 articles on the sport. An avid fiction writer, you can find him lost in imaginary worlds when he is not immersed in racing. He hopes to continue savoring the thrill of every lap and race together with his readers for as long as he can.

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