Before Dale Earnhardt Jr. began his current streak where’s he had a stranglehold on NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver award for 14 consecutive seasons, it was Bill Elliott whose name was seemingly permanently engraved on the trophy, taking the honor 16 times in an 18-year span.
So with Earnhardt having announced his full-time retirement from the Monster Energy Cup Series on Tuesday, and with popular drivers Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, and Carl Edwards all now former drivers, who then will assume the throne as the sport’s most popular?
In a bit of serendipity, the likely heir apparent is a driver Earnhardt helped develop and who also shares close ties with Elliott. That would be Chase Elliott, the 21-year-old son of the NASCAR Hall of Famer, who won a championship driving for the Xfinity Series team Earnhardt co-owns and is currently Earnhardt’s Hendrick Motorsports teammate.
Although in just his second Cup season, Elliott’s popularity is already apparent. During prerace driver introductions, only Earnhardt regularly receives a louder ovation, and Elliott’s No. 24 NAPA car was the best-selling diecast in 2016, according to Lionel Racing, the official diecast of NASCAR. A significant feat when you consider it marked the first time since 2011 the top diecast didn’t belong to Earnhardt.
Unquestionably, some of Elliott’s popularity has to do with him taking over Gordon’s iconic No. 24 car and absorbing some of the four-time champion’s fans, in addition to being the son of a beloved former driver.
Still, that fans are embracing Elliott with open arms — and pocketbooks — takes on added importance in light of Earnhardt’s decision that he will join Gordon, Stewart, and Edwards in retirement. And in all likelihood, within a few years they will be joined by Matt Kenseth (age 45), Jimmie Johnson (41), and Kevin Harvick (41).
Soon these large fan bases will need new favorite drivers to root for. The opportunity before Elliott, Kyle Larson (24), Ryan Blaney (23), and the plethora of emerging talent across NASCAR’s developmental tours is they can become the new faces of the sport. Similar to how their direct predecessors took over the mantle from the likes of Bill Elliott, Dale Earnhardt Sr., Rusty Wallace, and Mark Martin a generation ago.
“Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott, just to name two of probably a dozen guys that I’m excited about,” Dale Earnhardt Jr. said during his press conference Tuesday. “… All those guys have great attitudes, great personalities.
“I know them well enough to be excited about how fans are going to know them in the future. I feel like that these are the guys that they’re the cream of the crop, and maybe I’m the only one that sees it in this room, but I really have a lot of confidence in the personalities that we have.”
Although there is little doubt that NASCAR is awash in a sea of young talents who are accomplishing things in record time on the track, there is uncertainty whether Elliott, Larson, and their contemporaries can fill the roles Earnhardt and Gordon served off it. As not just successful drivers who win races, but as crossover, transcendent personalities who appear in Jay Z music videos (Earnhardt) and host daytime and late-night entertainment television shows (Edwards, Gordon).
Can Elliott and Larson accompany their performance on Sundays with necessary charisma to be media darlings during the week?
“I’ve never seen so much young talent,” said Rick Hendrick, Earnhardt and Elliott’s team owner. “They’re here, they’re young, they’re aggressive, they’re fun. I think the sport has got a lot to be excited about. Let’s face it, Dale is unique. You can’t replace Dale.”
Said Earnhardt: “Larson is cool as a cucumber — easy to talk to, marketable. Chase is the same way; so easy and approachable. That’s what you’ve got to be. These guys are effortless at it. So once they start to pick it up and understand the power of what they have at their fingertips, the sky’s the limit for NASCAR. I’m super excited about the future.”
Unlike a newly repaved speedway, Earnhardt acknowledges the transition will not be seamless and will contain inevitable growing pains. Being thrust under an even bigger spotlight than they experience now will require an adjustment period; even Gordon wasn’t the charismatic figure that he is today when he burst onto the scene in the early 1990s.
“This is a new batch of guys that are going to do things in a new way,” Earnhardt said. “They’re going to bring a lot of color and excitement and energy to the sport.
“We’ve just got to get them in front of the fans, let the fans get to know them, and I think the rest will take care of itself.”
For NASCAR’s sake, in the midst of trying to combat continually sliding television ratings and attendance that remains flat most weeks, it better hope that those parts of Junior Nation elect to become members of Elliott’s Entourage or Larson’s Legion. And soon.