Dale Earnhardt Jr. and his wife were involved in a plane crash in Tennessee, and we now know their health status. It was confirmed by Kelley Earnhardt that Dale, his wife and the two pilots were able to get out of the plane crash safely and they were all taken to a local hospital. Kelly Earnhardt has no other information at the moment.
I can confirm Dale, Amy & Isla along with his two pilots were involved in a crash in Bristol TN this afternoon. Everyone is safe and has been taken to the hospital for further evaluation. We have no further information at this time. Thank you for your understanding.
— Kelley Earnhardt (@EarnhardtKelley) August 15, 2019
Earndhardt Jr. is considered by many as one of the best drivers in NASCAR history. He won the Busch Series twice and he won the Daytona 500 in 2004 and 2014. Jr. is one of the most beloved figures in NASCAR history as he’s been named the organization’s Most Popular Driver Award from 2003-2017.
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Earnhardt Jr. currently races part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. He recently talked about how NASCAR can regain the popularity it had when he started racing.
The growth of our sport to its peak, that took decades,” Earnhardt said, via the Detroit Free Press (via NESN.com). “That took more than 10 years, 20 years, that was a 50-years process,” he said in a phone conversation Friday, ahead of Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Michigan International Speedway. “You can take that apart overnight. It can be broken easily. Building it up again is going to take that same perseverance.”
Earnhardt’s father is the legendary Dale Earnhardt Sr. who is a Hall of Famer. He won the Winston Cup Series seven times which ties him with Richard Petty as the most of all-time. He won total of 76 Winston Cup races and his biggest win was in 1998 when he won the Daytona 500 for the first time.
The Daytona 500 would be last race for Earnhardt Sr. as he passed away while taking part in the event in 2001. He was in an accident in the final lap of the race where he hit the outside wall of the track head-on. Doctors said Earnhardt died instantly of blunt force trauma and he also suffered a basilar skull fracture.
This comes on the heels of Earnhardt Jr. sharing a photo of two pieces of his father’s memorabilia. Earnhardt was able to obtain a uniform that his dad wore as well as a photo of his dad after a race he won.
