“Infuriating. My blood was boiling.” Christopher Bell did not mince his words while giving a verdict on last Saturday’s Xfinity Series race. If the Cup Series driver who won three back-to-back races this season can be so passionately angry, what do you think the fans are? Enormous waves of outrage rocked the NASCAR community after the Marine Corps 250 at Martinsville Speedway, and Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s driver was specifically targeted.
JR Motorsports have often heralded the face of controversy in past years. Ranging from Sam Mayer’s aggressive reputation to Brandon Jones’ self-inflicted car troubles, Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s team has faced a lot. So the fans grew adamant to do something about the latest trouble – but Dale Jr. retorted back.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. snubs fans’ pressure
Well, the simmering discontent in the community is well-justified. What Sammy Smith executed at Martinsville Speedway undid a streak of excellence for JR Motorsports. Dale Earnhardt Jr’s team started the year on a strong note – Justin Allgaier ran the team’s first-ever Cup Series race at the Daytona 500, finishing 9th. Then, Connor Zilisch won at Circuit of The Americas in the Xfinity Series, and Justin Allgaier fetched back-to-back wins in Las Vegas and Homestead-Miami. So, when Sammy Smith decided to destroy Taylor Gray’s race lead on the last lap, it marked a sharp reversal of Dale Jr.’s team excellence. The veteran team owner was already in a bad mood to begin with, and now a NASCAR fan made it worse.
The two rivals clashed several times during the Martinsville race, and Sammy Smith was at his wit’s end when Taylor Gray allegedly flipped him the bird. As Gray was leading into Turn 3 on the final lap, Smith did not hit the brakes and kept driving until he plowed into Gray’s rear bumper. His intentions to win the race backfired and collected a volley of cars in the backstretch instead. This massive pile-up resulted just from Smith’s vengeance, hence leaving drivers, veterans, and fans infuriated.
So when Dale Jr. posted the purse distribution for upcoming CARS Tour races, a fan was there to nag him about doing something about Smith. They bitterly pointed out that Dale Jr. has been “radio silent.” But the veteran snapped back: “You think I’m supposed to broadcast how I manage those situations? Maybe I will, maybe I won’t.”
You think I’m suppose to broadcast how I manage those situations? Maybe I will, maybe I won’t.
— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) March 31, 2025
Indeed, Dale Earnhardt Jr has not been silent after Sammy Smith’s aggressive behavior unfolded at Martinsville. Along with the disappointed posts on X of other sports veterans, Junior also condemned his own driver’s moves. “The racetrack is historic in the grand scheme of all things NASCAR and deserves better,” he posted on X. Dale Jr may be more disappointed with Smith as he committed his actions in the No. 8, a car number very special to Junior. He used it at the beginning of his career from 1999 to 2007. He retrieved the right to use it only last year. Last November, Dale Jr debuted his iconic Budweiser paint scheme for the Florence 400 Late Model race. So, to see Smith use that legacy in a lackluster way must have stung.
Sammy Smith did take responsibility for his actions, but the lack of consequences seemed to bother the community. To add to that, Smith’s admission of guilt came with a slice of blame toward Taylor Gray. “Absolutely, it was egregious,” Smith said about his move on Taylor Gray. “I’m not proud of it, but he would have done the exact same thing to me, roles reversed… He just has no respect for me; he was flipping me off under the red flag and swerving at my door.”
This blame game only emphasized the point that the community is making. These drivers need to understand the consequences of their actions. Mark Martin and Denny Hamlin both called for a black flag to be waved at races in such situations. The Xfinity grid might be a place for young drivers to learn the ropes, but first, they need to learn to respect each other. As Christopher Bell said, “The Cup drivers respect each other more… It was a disgrace for our sport. That should not be tolerated, not the last lap, but just the whole thing.”
While the NASCAR community gets impatient with Dale Jr., a sports veteran also raised his eyebrows at the alarming events at Martinsville.
Another team owner stresses the responsibility
Well, it is not easy being a team owner. Some of the active racers in the Cup Series who own teams include Brad Keselowski. The RFK Racing team owner has a championship-winning history with Team Penske. He achieved 35 of 36 Cup Series race victories and the 2012 title under that team, conquering legacy events like the Coca-Cola 600. However, when Keselowski chose to leave behind that golden legacy and invest in growing a team, he knew what he was doing. He began his co-ownership duties at RFK Racing in 2023, and the team has improved ever since. Chris Buescher has already fetched 4 victories and Keselowski himself won a single race last year.
So Brad Keselowski knows well how to manage a race team. After Saturday’s Martinsville events shocked him to the core, he urged Dale Earnhardt Jr. to take a stern approach to his drivers. Sammy Smith may have a string of laurels to his name – he was the 2021 ARCA Menards Series East champion. But he needs to be taught a lesson. Keselowski emphasized the same in a post on X: “The solution needs to come from the car owners, not NASCAR. Until the car owners are willing to park their drivers for getting this out of control, very little will change. I get that they are all scared to park a funded driver out of fear they will lose the money to continue operations. At some point, that’s the risk you have to take to get this right.”
Evidently, the calls are mounting for Dale Earnhardt Jr to be more strict. Until that happens, Sammy Smith may inspire other drivers to flout every bit of respect as flagrantly as he did.
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