Dale Earnhardt Jr. joins his father in the NASCAR Hall of Fame. Here’s the 2021 class
Dale Earnhardt Jr., Mike Stefanik and Red Farmer will be inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2021, the sport announced Tuesday. Ralph Seagraves is the recipient of the Landmark Award for Outstanding Contributions to NASCAR.
This is the first year Earnhardt Jr.’s name has appeared on the ballot. The former Cup driver, current team owner, author, broadcast analyst and part-time driver joins his father, Dale Earnhardt, cemented in the NASCAR history books with the latest honor.
“I was good with just being on the (nominees) sheet,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “I was happy with that. I’m 45 and relatively young in the grand scheme of Hall of Fame inductions, and so I was gonna be completely comfortable patiently waiting on whatever opportunity if my name should ever get called.”
He didn’t have to wait long for the announcement, which came on an NBC Sports Network broadcast Tuesday evening, a few hours after Earnhardt Jr. had root canal.
“I was more nervous about that the induction here tonight,” Earnhardt Jr. said.
Earnhardt Jr. retired from full-time racing in 2017 following a storied career that included two Daytona 500 wins, 26 Cup Series race wins and 15 consecutive years as the sport’s Most Popular Driver. His father, former Cup driver Earnhardt, was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2010, nine years after he was killed during an accident at the Daytona 500.
While Earnhardt Jr. said he wanted to continue his father’s legacy after his death, he added that he knew he would be able to do that better off the track than on it.
“I know my numbers,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “I know the wins, the lack of a championship. I know what my numbers are. I feel like I was chosen based on that, but also on the impact off the racetrack and being an ambassador for the sport.”
The Earnhardts are the sixth father-son duo elected into the NASCAR Hall of Fame. The Allisons (Bobby and Davey), Bakers (Buck and Buddy), Frances (William H.G. and Bill Jr.), Jarretts (Ned and Dale) and Pettys (Lee and Richard) are also names with that honor.
Earnhardt Jr. and Stefanik were selected from a list of 10 nominees on the Modern Era ballot, reserved for the sport’s “contemporary stars.” Those nominees included former drivers Jeff Burton, Carl Edwards, Neil Bonnett, Harry Gant, Larry Phillips, Ricky Rudd, as well as former championship crew chiefs Harry Hyde and Kirk Shelmerdine.
Stefanik, who died in 2019, is one of just two drivers with nine NASCAR championships, along with Richie Evans. He nearly made the 2020 Hall of Fame class when five individuals were inducted, receiving the sixth-most votes last year.
Farmer was also a staple on the previous ballots, but this year was placed into the newly added “Pioneer Ballot” category, which is reserved for individuals whose NASCAR career began more than 60 years ago. Farmer was the single inductee from a list of five nominees on the Pioneer Ballot, including Hershel McGriff (driver), Jake Elder (crew chief), Banjo Matthews (car builder) and Ralph Moody (driver and team owner).
“Most of the people that put you in the Hall of Fame weren’t even born when I was racing,” Farmer said. “So they don’t really know what happened back in the ‘50s, ‘60s and ‘70s. They only see what’s happened in the last 20 to 30 years they’ve been in the business, so it was kind of hard to get recognized.”
“This new (Pioneer) award is gonna be great,” Farmer continued. “It’s gonna get some of the old fellows back in there.”
Farmer, 87, said he started racing in NASCAR in 1953 on a beach course before superspeedways were even built. He was an original member of The Alabama Gang and is still racing. He said he’s planning to race this Friday and Saturday at the Talladega short track.
“I didn’t know whether I’d ever make it into the NASCAR Hall of Fame,” Farmer said. “This is the biggest honor you’ll ever get.”
Seagraves rounded out the night’s winners as the recipient of the Landmark Award, which given to “a general ambassador for the sport through a professional or non-professional role,” according to NASCAR. Seagraves is most known for helping form a partnership between NASCAR and the Winston brand for the Winston Racing Series. He was selected from a list of five individuals, which also included driver Janet Guthrie, NASCAR’s first flagman Alvin Hawkins, former NASCAR president Mike Helton and Pocono Raceway founder Dr. Joseph Mattioli.
A panel consisting of NASCAR executives, media representatives, former inductees, and speedway owners, among other NASCAR personnel, submitted 65 ballots last week, in addition to one ballot from a nationwide fan vote, to determine the three inductees for the 2021 class. This was the first year that the Hall of Fame selected three inductees from two different ballots rather than a total of five inductees.
“There’s no greater pat on the back or tip of the cap then this,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “From the industry. From the people that vote who are all sort of sprinkled throughout the industry or the sport, whether they’re drivers or journalists, NASCAR industry execs or whatever. ... It’s such a great feeling that someone feels like I made an impact on the sport.”
The induction ceremony is scheduled for the winter of 2021.
NASCAR 2021 Hall of Fame Class
- Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Mike Stafanik
Red Farmer
Landmark Award
Ralph Seagraves
This story was originally published June 16, 2020 at 5:21 PM with the headline "Dale Earnhardt Jr. joins his father in the NASCAR Hall of Fame. Here’s the 2021 class."
