There is no doubt that Dale Earnhardt Jr.‘s Xfinity Series team, JR Motorsports, has produced some great talents over the years. Many of these drivers run in the Cup Series today across various teams with varying degrees of success. One of the most recent examples of this would be the recent signing of Josh Berry, who is set to race in the #4 car of Stewart-Haas Racing starting next season, replacing 2014 Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick.
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With its rich history of propelling top talent into the Cup Series, Junior recently spoke about his happiness for what his team has been able to do for other drivers at the start of their careers.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. is proud for JR Motorsports to be a stepping stone
While speaking on his podcast, Junior emphasized how he was proud that his Xfinity Series team was often considered a pivotal stepping stone for people willing to get hired into the Cup Series. He made it clear that they were not a Cup team, but rather a “pathway to the Cup level.”
“When someone is hired out of this building (@JRMotorsports) by a cup team, I stick my chest out. I am proud of that” – @DaleJr
📺 FULL CLIP: https://t.co/FM96hIxG11 pic.twitter.com/sqSWiKI4L7
— Dirty Mo Media (@DirtyMoMedia) June 22, 2023
The Hall of Famer expressed, “When I talk to them about our company being this, sort of pathway to the Cup level, we really should embrace that. We’re not a Cup team. We’re not, We’re not the final destination. Now some people do want to come work here because they just love what we do. And this is really where they want to be long term. We do have those employees here. But for a lot of people, we’re this opportunity that gets them the next opportunity.”
“We’re a rung on the ladder and we should be very proud of that because we’re very capable rung on the ladder. We’re very, we’ve got a lot of examples of where people have came through here and absolutely had great success at getting to the next level. I’ve said it over and over and I don’t matter repeat myself. When someone’s hired out of this building by a Cup team… I stick my chest out. I’m proud of that. And it’s a big win for our company.”
Josh Berry becomes the 10th JR Motorsports driver to head into the Cup Series
In a separate tweet, Dirty Mo Media shared a snippet from the Dale Jr Download, where Junior mentioned how Josh Berry would be the 10th driver for them who made it into the Cup Series. He also reiterated the point on how his team was like a “vessel” for top talent to move up the ladder in stock car racing.
With @joshberry heading to the NASCAR Cup Series, he is now the 10th driver to do so through @JRMotorsports.
📺 Watch the full clip from the @DaleJr Download here: https://t.co/ofbe6k0SpV pic.twitter.com/FYQOzAsC5x
— Dirty Mo Media (@DirtyMoMedia) June 22, 2023
Talking about Berry’s recent signing, Junior mentioned, “JR Motorsports exists you know to win races, championships. But mainly we are a bit of a vessel to get to this top level and we do it with drivers. My sister told me you’ll be the 10th driver to come through our system to make the cup level.”
After nurturing talents like Chase Elliott, Noah Gragson, Tyler Reddick, and several others, Junior is clearly beaming with joy knowing his team provided them with the landscape to grow further into their careers. The only question remains, will JR Motorsports enter the Cup Series itself?
