Dale Earnhardt Jr. treads with caution over change of guard in NASCAR broadcasting

Dale Earnhardt Jr. expressed his excitement with Prime taking over the broadcasting duties in NASCAR. The Amazon-owned venture will become the official broadcasting partner for the sport from Coke 600 onwards for five races until Pocono.

Speaking about it on the Dale Jr. Download, the NASCAR Hall of Famer said that despite Amazon's inexperience with NASCAR, he's excited about it. Dale Earnhardt Jr. mentioned that Prime has 'a great team,' which aims to deliver 'pretty interesting content' for fans (6:20).

"I think there'll be some ways that, I say this carefully because I don't think that one TV partner is better than the other and I don't think you would ever have that conversation publicly, but I know that Amazon will bring some new ideas just like anybody.

"Amazon, if you looked at any of their NFL coverage, they got some neat bells and whistles, some stuff on the screen that's different, fun, new ways to deliver the the information and data that they have. And there's so much information coming off of the Next Gen car that Amazon's going to try to use it in unique ways."

He referenced how when one gets a new crew chief, they bring in their methods. Earnhardt also spoke about Steve Letarte's role in the Prime booth.

He said that Letarte, a former crew chief and an experienced analyst, will help fans understand the data from the Next Gen car. He remarked that fans will have fun, be surprised and 'happy to see' what Prime has in store for its five races.

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Dale Earnhardt Jr. has practised his tools ahead of his first Cup race as an analyst in years

Following his retirement from NASCAR as a full-time driver, Dale Earnhardt Jr. has remained a big part of the sport through the role of a broadcaster, anxious to get in the booth and get to work.

Junior was a big stable of the NBC team from 2018 until 2023. But since his contract was up at the end of the 2023 season, he hasn't been a part of a booth for a Cup race.

That's why he claimed feeling "anxious" for the broadcasting opportunity in the Coke 600. Nevertheless, Earnhardt mentioned that his recent booth stint in CARS Tour allowed him to practice his skills.

"Been a long time since I've actually called a Cup race," he said. (7:33) "I've been practicing a little bit. I got to do the Flo Pro Late Model race at Orange County and then I did the Late Model or the Pro Late Model race again at Wilkesboro. Also did the late Model Stock race with Kevin Harvick which was also on Flo and FOX Sports 1."

Dale Earnhardt Jr. recalled briefly working with FOX Sports as a "neat" experience. It's worth mentioning that before joining NBC Sports in 2018, he had a few guest experiences in the booth with FOX.