"He was really fast" - Sister Kelley addresses fan concern as Dale Earnhardt Jr. retires early in Budweiser No. 8 run at Florence Speedway

The iconic Budweiser #8 car returned to the racetrack at Florence Motor Speedway on Saturday, November 23. Kelley Earnhardt Miller, sister of Dale Earnhardt Jr. commented on her brother's pace after he retired due to a mechanical issue. The NASCAR Hall of Famer revived the red-and-black late-model race car for the 32nd Annual South Carolina 400.

While Earnhardt Jr. was performing on par with the eventual race-winner Lapcevich, a fuel-pump issue saw the 50-year-old finish the race 28th with 31 laps remaining. He shared a reel of his day on Instagram, captioned:

"We had a blast and we’ll be back again."

The post received a lot of comments from fans.

"How did Jr place and who won? (Asking cause it was on some weird channel no one has.)" one asked.

"@smassey55 he was 2nd with 30 to go and fuel pump broke. He was really fast," Kelley Earnhardt Miller replied.

Screengrab of Kelley Earnhardt Miller's comment in response to a fan's question on Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s Instagram post (@dalejr)

The North Carolina-born racer was joined by drivers Treyten Lapcevich, Josh Berry, Austin Green, and 37 others for the popular race.

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"He is the most popular driver in NASCAR right now and (he) don't even race" - Kenny Wallace says Dale Earnhardt Jr. is still the 'Most Popular Driver'

NASCAR legend Kenny Wallace has said on his podcast Coffee with Kenny that Dale Earnhardt Jr. is still more popular than the 2024 winner driver Chase Elliott who was awarded the title for the seventh time this season:

"All right, congratulations to Chase Elliott on NASCAR Most Popular Driver. However, you know where I'm going on this one. If last night don't tell you how popular Dale Earnhardt Jr. is -- Dale Jr. runs one Xfinity race a year. He ran it at Bristol, ran fifth. Yep, Dale Jr. ran fifth this year in the Xfinity race at Bristol, Hall of 'Ass'. He is the most popular driver in NASCAR right now and (he) don't even race. I said it. [07:19]

He's going to be back on TV next year. He's got Dirty Mo Media. He runs one NASCAR race a year. He is your most popular driver. If they put Dale Jr., if they put him on the ballot, if they put Dale Jr. on the ballot right now, he would be the most popular driver."

Wallace shared his podcast episode on his X page, captioned:

“Coffee with Kenny” ALL about @DaleJr . 1- Starting 40th😳 2- Still @NASCAR Most Popular Driver💯 3- Fighter weight 🕺 4- @FloRacing 🏁"

During a racing career of about two decades, Hall of Famer Earnhardt Jr. was crowned the 'Most Popular Driver' for 15 consecutive seasons.