Dale Earnhardt Jr. revealed the final text conversation he had with Kyle Busch prior to the NASCAR champion’s tragic passing last Thursday. The 26-time Cup Series winner said he was texting back-and-forth with Busch one day before he passed away.
In the most recent episode of his “Dale Jr. Download” podcast, Earnhardt Jr. revealed he and Busch had a cool plan getting put into place for a late model race in the CARS Racing Tour, a series that is helped run by Earnhardt Jr.
Earnhardt Jr. said Busch wanted to run ‘The Dale Jr. 8’
Seemingly holding back his emotions, Earnhardt Jr. recounted the last conversation he had with Busch, a former competitor and friend.
The two were putting plans into place for Busch to run Earnhardt Jr.’s late model in the CARS Tour at a future date.
“I was texting with him the day before he passed away about getting together this Thursday to bring his seat from his late model over to my shop. We had agreed that he was going to race our car at the CARS tour,” Earnhardt Jr. said.
Earnhardt Jr. recalls Busch asking what paint scheme he could run for the one-off event, and when NASCAR’s former Most Popular Driver asked what Busch wanted, the response shocked him.
“He’s texting me and he’s like, ‘What scheme are we gonna run?’ I was like, ‘You can run any scheme you want.’ I was like, ‘I was like, what number do you want to run? You can run 51, whatever you want to run.’ He goes, and he said it, literally, ‘The Dale Jr. 8.’ I was like, ‘You got it,’” Earnhardt Jr. said.
After Earnhardt Jr. did not hesitate to grant Busch the opportunity to drive the “Dale Jr. 8,” the retired NASCAR legend revealed the final text Busch sent to him.
“He gave me a head explosion emoji and he said, ‘Race fans,’” Earnhardt Jr. said.
Busch died on Thursday at 41 years old after being hospitalized with a severe illness. The news left the sports world in shock, leading to tributes by many from in and out of NASCAR.
Prior to Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600, the Busch family gathered to honor Kyle on the frontstretch. Before the green flag, the field made a pace lap with the missing man formation, and there was a moment of silence on the eighth lap of the race.
Austin Hill set to race Busch’s car again at Nashville
In the wake of Busch’s tragic passing last Thursday, Austin Hill was tapped to drive the Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet in his place. Out of respect for Busch and his family, the number was changed from 8 to 33.
Hill will remain in the No. 33 car for this Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Nashville. While there are no long-term plans in place, it is safe to say Hill will most likely be the driver behind the wheel in the future.
Hill currently competes full-time in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series for RCR, piloting the No. 21 car. He has 15 career victories in the series.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Reveals Final Conversation With Kyle Busch