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NASCAR veteran Dale Earnhardt Jr. seemed uncertain regarding Noah Gragson’s move to the Richard Childress Racing shed, replacing the #3 Austin Dillon as the SHR’s Gragson future remains questionable.
Stewart-Haas Racing co-owners, Tony Stewart and Gene Haas declared closing their shops by the end of the 2024 season. This has led the current SHR drivers into a free agent market and numerous speculations by the NASCAR community regarding the future of these four for the next Cup Series season.In a recent episode on the Dale Jr. Download podcast, the 49-year-old Dale Jr. seemed doubtful of the rumors of #10 SHR driver Gragson replacing #3 driver Austin Dillon in the Cup Series. The No. 3 was notably made famous by NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt during his career in Richard Childress Racing.
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“I’ve heard rumors that Noah could be going to the #3. I don’t believe those rumors that’s really kinda far-fetched. Even though i don’t think Austin retiring and setting into a managing role at RCR,” Dale Jr. said [at 14:47]
Austin Dillon is the son of Mike Dillon, a former stock car driver and the general manager for RCR. The #3 Dillon is also the grandson of RCR owner, Richard Childress.
“I hope that Austin would one day be president and running RCR but I don’t know that time has come for him to make that choice. They are making some changes on his own team to try to make him better. He had a great run this past week . So maybe he still believes that there’s something left in the tank.” Dale Jr. added.
Dale Jr. believes that it is too soon for Dillon to leave racing full-time and get into a managerial role. He thinks that Dillon could still perform in NASCAR’s top-tier division as he recently finished P6 at the World Wide Technology Raceway. However, the 34-year-old stands at P30 in the overall standings, with two top-ten finishes so far.
Noah Gragson reacts to SHR shutting down their operations unexpectedly
Noah Gragson also recently shared his thoughts on the unexpected announcement by Stewart-Haas Racing about their closure by the end of the 2024 season.
The 25-year-old signed a multi-year contract with SHR in the beginning of the season. He previously competed for JR Motorsports (JRM) in the Xfinity Series. Gragson was also the 2022 Most Popular driver in the Xfinity Series, the season where he finished second in the final standings for Dale Earnhardt-led JRM.In an interview with Frontstretch, Gragson said:
“It’s definitely challenging, it probably throws a wrench into what we thought in January. But you know, I’ve been through my fair share of adversity and challenges in life and that being said it’s just another step in the process.” [ 8:40]
“I told Tony I’m extremely grateful and thankful for you taking a chance on me and giving me an opportunity to reinvent myself, reprove myself. and if it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be in this position, you know looking for opportunity.” Gragson added.
