DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Two-time Daytona 500 winner Dale Earnhardt is retiring from driving after the 2017 NASCAR season, but will be fully involved as a race team owner.
Earnhardt missed part of last season due to a concussion suffered during an accident on the track. Since his recovery, he’s been an outspoken advocate of studies and treatment of head injuries.
“I worried a ton about people’s perception about what my problem was. I didn’t want any guesses out there. That’s the reason I was so transparent,” Earnhardt told the New York Times this year, according to USA Today.
Dale's injuries also led to NASCAR changing its medical protocol. It now requires that all national touring series use the same concussion test – the SCAT-3 – to screen drivers for head injuries.
Press Conference at 3pm to give me the opportunity to discuss the retirement news. Incredible to see the support today. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FinishStrong?src=hash">#FinishStrong</a>
💪🏼— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr)
[ April 25, 2017 ]
Earnhardt also twice won the Coke Zero 400, which is being run at Daytona International Speedway over the Independence day holiday weekend.