"I'd have a heart attack of anxiety": Dale Earnhardt Jr. rules out 'Dancing With The Stars' stint

Dale Earnhardt Jr. is a lot of things: entrepreneur, team owner, part-time driver, and sportscaster, to name a few. But there’s something the NASCAR Hall of Famer would never be. And that’s a dancer.

In an episode of the Bless Your Hardt podcast, it was revealed that there had been speculation about Dale Jr. being invited to Season 34 of Dancing with the Stars. The show will premiere on September 16, 2025, on ABC and Disney+.

Dale Jr.'s wife, Amy, said she would love to be on the show and even compete for the win. But when asked if Dale Jr. would do the same, the two-time Xfinity Series champion said (47:46),

“I would never do it. I would have a heart attack of anxiety before the show ever started.”

2025 is shaping up to be a stellar season for Dale Earnhardt Jr. as a team owner. Connor Zilisch, driver of the No. 88 Chevy, is in his first season with JR Motorsports, which Dale Jr. owns. With eight wins in his maiden season, the 19-year-old driver dominantly made the playoffs.

Dale Jr. served as Zilisch’s crew chief at Pocono Raceway in June 2025, securing a win in his crew chief debut. Zilisch’s usual crew chief, Marty Lindley, stayed out of the race, serving a one-race suspension due to loose lug nuts in Zilisch’s car at Nashville the previous weekend. Lindley resumed his duties atop the pit box at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City.

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Dale Earnhardt Jr. shares his thoughts on fans' reaction to his photo in a fire suit

Dale Earnhardt Jr. made his thoughts known about his fans reacting to his butt, as it appeared in a TikTok photo of himself dressed in a tight firesuit. Dale Jr. will turn 51 this year, and the man took pride in saying that he still has a "butt."

It all happened on an episode of the Bless Your Hardt podcast. Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s wife, who was also on the show, looked on amused while the NASCAR icon revealed his feelings about the community doting on his "firm" butt, as he called it himself.

"Well, I didn't know what they were meaning by it. But I wasn't up on the slang...didn't know if that was good or bad," Dale Earnhardt Jr. said (0:24). "I had my driver suit for this past weekend was a little tighter than normal. I don't think I've gotten bigger...I really think the suit got a little tighter, at least in my a**."

“I guess there was some people who appreciated the firm cut. Still got it; 50 years old,” he added.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. joined Amazon Prime Video and TNT Sports for their coverage of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season. He usually competes in at least one points-paying race in the Xfinity Series each year. But due to his preoccupations as a sportscaster, the resident of Lake Norman, North Carolina, will sit out this year.