Well, a veteran can never really forget his talents. Dale Earnhardt Jr, a 26-time Cup Series race winner, is an icon of NASCAR. He retired 8 years ago at the end of the 2017 season. But Dale Jr has continued to be heavily relevant to the sport. Part of that was driven by his role in the NBC Sports broadcast booth since 2018. That came to an end in 2024, and Dale Jr took a year’s break. Now, the legend is slowly picking up the microphone again, with a dry run before a premier event.
The CARS Tour will head back to its biggest stage, North Wilkesboro Speedway, this weekend. The Window World 100 will be flagged off at the 0.625-mile short track on May 16th. Dale Earnhardt Jr, co-owner of the series, is taking up a major role in this grand event.
A jam-packed schedule for Dale Earnhardt Jr
Exactly a year ago, NASCAR’s new media partners roped in Dale Earnhardt Jr. These were TNT Sports and Amazon Prime, which announced that the two-time Daytona 500 winner will join their respective broadcast teams in 2025. Until now, Amazon has covered practice and qualifying for the Busch Light Clash and Daytona. That practice will continue into the All-Star Race weekend. However, the $2.049 trillion worth company’s first NASCAR event will be the Coca-Cola 600, where Dale Jr will debut in the Amazon Prime booth. Before his grand appearance, though, he will brush up on his broadcasting skills a bit. The upcoming weekend, the CARS Tour and NASCAR will visit North Wilkesboro, a venue which Dale Jr helped to reinvigorate.
And Dale Earnhardt Jr is using his familiar ground to gear up for a greater event. The CARS Tour’s Window World 100 will be made extra special with a unique medley of broadcasters. Play-by-play announcer Eric Brennan will have two star-studded NASCAR veterans by his side. The official X account of CARS Tour announced: “𝐌𝐄𝐄𝐓 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐓𝐄𝐀𝐌 @Ebrennan45 will be joined by @KevinHarvick and @DaleJr in the booth for 𝘣𝘰𝘵𝘩 races at @NWBSpeedway this week! @MrF4Speed will cover pit road with @kaitlynvincie joining him for the LMSC race.”
𝐌𝐄𝐄𝐓 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐓𝐄𝐀𝐌 @Ebrennan45 will be joined by @KevinHarvick and @DaleJr in the booth for 𝘣𝘰𝘵𝘩 races at @NWBSpeedway this week! @MrF4Speed will cover pit road with @kaitlynvincie joining him for the LMSC race. @zmaxraceproduc1 | @SoundGearHear | @FloRacing |… pic.twitter.com/y9srgeSMvD
— CARS Tour (@CARSTour) May 12, 2025
This will be Dale Earnhardt Jr’s warm-up to his broadcast duties at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Jared Stacy, Director of Global Live Sports Production, Amazon Prime Video, is confident in the veteran’s upcoming role. She had proclaimed last year: “We are thrilled to welcome Dale as an official member of the Amazon family, and build our NASCAR coverage around him. One of the most beloved figures in racing history, Dale has an unrivaled passion for the sport. We are so excited for him to connect with NASCAR fans.” Dale Jr also stated in November 2024, “I’m honored to be a part of Prime Video’s entry into NASCAR. It is an exciting opportunity to have the chance to give our NASCAR fan base yet another way to watch the sport.”
Clearly, preparations are in full swing for Dale Earnhardt Jr’s broadcast return. Before NASCAR’s crown jewel event kicks off, however, Dale Jr has a lot to look forward to.
Witnessing a great talent on the track
Although the CARS Tour may be a launchpad for NASCAR aspirants, the feeder series showcases great racing nonetheless. Among the talented drivers under the spotlight for the North Wilkesboro event is Parker Eatmon. From beginning his racing career at age 9 in Bandoleros to winning the 2021 U.S. Legend Cars National Championship, Eatmon has come a long way. He debuted in the Late Model Cars category in 2022 a Hickory Motor Speedway. Now, he has signed up for the remaining part of the zMAX CARS Tour 2025 schedule with Hettinger Racing. He debuted with the same team on May 3rd at Ace Speedway and clinched a solid 8th-place finish. For the Window World 100 race, Eatmon will debut a new partner, Vetted Ventures.
Eatmon earned an impressive victory in December 2024. He won the prestigious Thanksgiving Classic 250 at Southern National Motorsports Park. His excellence was visible during this race, which was not easy for him. Eatmon reflected recently: “I had to fight for that win. It definitely wasn’t given to me. With about 50 laps to go, I knew I had a pretty good shot to win. We played our strategy right, and my racecar really came to me at the end of the race. We had a long, green flag run, and I took the lead with about 10 laps to go. But then the caution came out with 7 to go, and I had to buckle down and fight. I got moved a couple of times, yet finally regained the lead with 5 to go.”
With such a star like Parker Eatmon participating, Dale Earnhardt Jr may enjoy his broadcasting duty this weekend. Let us see how the veteran resumes to dazzling us in the booth.
The post Dale Earnhardt Jr. Runs a Mock Drill Before Taking Command Over $2.049 Trillion Worth Employers Job appeared first on EssentiallySports.
