A post-race fight involving Corey Heim generated plenty of conversation around the NASCAR world Saturday night. Dale Earnhardt Jr. found something else in the viral scene worth talking about.
Heim was involved in a physical altercation following the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 Late Model race at Martinsville Speedway. Video of the incident quickly circulated on social media, in part because of what happened and in part because of where it happened: near Martinsville’s famous hot dog stand.
That detail was apparently enough for Earnhardt to chime in.
“The thing of it is, those are some damn good hotdogs,” Earnhardt wrote on X, tagging Martinsville Speedway.
Earnhardt didn’t assign blame or offer a serious assessment of the confrontation. Instead, the NASCAR Hall of Famer found some humor in one of the more unusual scenes of the weekend.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Finds Humor in Viral Martinsville Fight
The altercation followed an eventful finish to Saturday night’s Late Model race.
Heim, who finished third in the No. 22, made contact with Treyten Lapcevich after the checkered flag. The two drivers door-slammed entering Turn 1 and both cars crashed.
Video captured afterward showed the situation escalating near the hot dog stand in the Martinsville infield. A member of Chad Bryant Racing could be seen approaching Heim from his right and punching him in the head. As people attempted to separate those involved, Heim was struck again amid the crowd.
Heim did not appear to throw a punch in the video.
Afterward, Heim offered his perspective on the on-track contact that preceded the confrontation.
“I really don’t know. He tried to smush me into the curb and then my tire hopped his tire,” Heim said. “As you can see, I’ve got nowhere to go. He just completely turns left and then I hop his tire, so I don’t know what he was doing. It is what it is. It’s Late Model racing.”
Heim later showed that he was able to find some humor in the situation himself.
He posted a selfie on X giving a thumbs-up and delivered a short message after the altercation.
“Solid effort, but at least make it count next time 😂,” Heim wrote.
Martinsville’s Famous Hot Dogs Become Part of the Story
Earnhardt’s response made no attempt to dissect what happened between Heim and members of the opposing team.
Instead, he focused on a Martinsville institution.
Hot dogs have long been synonymous with Martinsville Speedway, making the location of Saturday night’s confrontation particularly hard for Earnhardt to ignore.
And while a fight involving one of NASCAR’s prominent young drivers was hardly a laughing matter in the moment, Earnhardt’s one-line response quickly became part of the online conversation surrounding it.
“The thing of it is, those are some damn good hotdogs.”
Sometimes there isn’t much more to add.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Weighs In After Corey Heim Fight at Martinsville