Dale Earnhardt Jr. Emotionally Recalls the Exact Moment He Realized Dale Sr. Died on the Track During the Daytona 500

Even though he passed away more than 24 years ago in a tragic last-lap crash in the 2001 Daytona 500, Dale Earnhardt remains alive in the hearts and minds of countless NASCAR fans.

In a new docuseries — “Earnhardt” — exclusively on Prime Networks, the legacy of The Intimidator is once again retold by daughter Kelly and son Dale Jr.

In an exclusive interview with Entertainment Tonight, Dale Jr. reflected on the moment he learned his father had died at the far too young age of 49 years old.

“I knew it right away,” Junior said when asked how quickly he realized that his legendary father had been killed. “You have this sense. When I was watching the crash in the (rearview) mirror, I just had a feeling.

“I came back around and crossed the finish line, you drive around the track back to the pits and so I come by the accident scene and I was like, ‘Yeah, you can tell, having seen and knowing the mechanics of how a crash is treated by the wreckers, the ambulance and all the things, you see something and go, ‘Yeah, there’s something going on here. There’s more to it than normal.’

“I kind of had an idea right from the moment I looked in the mirror and saw the crash, and I thought that doesn’t look good.”

The irony of Earnhardt’s death was just the moments beforehand. He made sure that his driver, Michael Waltrip, was ahead on the last lap and streaming toward the checkered flag, and Dale Jr. was right behind in second place.

It was almost as if the elder Earnhardt served as a blocker to assure his two drivers — including his son — finished 1-2 ahead of him. And, if the crash had never taken place, it’s very likely that Dale Sr. would have finished third for a 1-2-3 Dale Earnhardt Inc. finish.

Alas, that did not happen, sadly.

Waltrip took to X (Twitter) after watching the docuseries, and even 24-plus years later, the emotion still cuts like a knife: “Laying in bed watching #Earnhardt and crying like a baby. Remembering and missing Dale.”

Post Edited By: Srijan Mandal

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Jerry Bonkowski

Jerry Bonkowski is a veteran sportswriter who has worked full-time for many of the top media outlets in the world, including USA Today (15 years), ESPN.com (4+ years), Yahoo Sports (4 1/2 years), NBCSports.com (8 years) and others. He has covered virtually every major professional and collegiate sport there is, including the Chicago Bulls' six NBA championships (including heavy focus on Michael Jordan), the Chicago Bears Super Bowl XX-winning season, the Chicago White Sox and Chicago Cubs World Series championships, two of the Chicago Blackhawks' NHL titles, Tiger Woods' PGA Tour debut, as well as many years of beat coverage of the NFL, MLB, NHL and NBA for USA Today. But Jerry's most notable achievement has been covering motorsports, most notably NASCAR, IndyCar, NHRA drag racing and Formula One. He has had a passion for racing since he started going to watch drag races at the old U.S. 30 Dragstrip (otherwise known as "Where the Great Ones Run!") in Hobart, Indiana. Jerry has covered countless NASCAR, IndyCar and NHRA races and championship battles over the years. He's also the author of a book, "Trading Paint: 101 Great NASCAR Debates", published in 2010 (and he's hoping to soon get started on another book). Away from sports, Jerry was a fully sworn part-time police officer for 20 years, enjoys reading and music (especially "hair bands" from the 1980s and 1990s), as well as playing music on his electric keyboard, driving (fast, of course!), spending time with Cyndee his wife of nearly 40 years, the couple's three adult children and three grandchildren (with more to come!), and his three dogs -- including two German Shepherds and an Olde English Bulldog who thinks he's a German Shepherd.. Jerry still gets the same excitement of seeing his byline today as he did when he started in journalism as a 15-year-old high school student. He is looking forward to writing hundreds, if not thousands, of stories in the future for TheSportsRush.com, as well as interacting with readers.

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