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Dale Earnhardt Jr. has urged NASCAR to have more practice before races, insisting that it would benefit drivers such as Jimmie Johnson, Shane Van Gisbergen and other rookies in the Cup Series and Xfinity Series.
Beginning his argument, Earnhardt Jr. said on his podcast show, Dale Jr. Download via Dirty Mo Media, that NASCAR needs to have more practice and that it is the only thing he was going to complain about after the race at Texas.
"If Jimmie is not going to race every week and he’s going to run 5 races, Jimmie needs practice. A rookie like Carson Kvapil coming in and running 5 races in an Xfinity car, he needs practice. Shane Van Gisbergen coming in and never been on ovals, he needs practice," Earnhardt Jr. claimed.
He further added that regardless of it being a 7x Cup champion like Jimmie Johnson who is coming back to compete, or a young driver like Carson Kvapil, or be it foreign drivers like Shane Van Gisbergen who are trying to come to NASCAR and be successful, they're all "great stories" that are being "stifled by the lack of practice."
Dale Earnhardt Jr. further explains why NASCAR needs more practice
Speaking further on this subject of there being a need for more practice in NASCAR, Dale Earnhardt Jr. revealed that he would love to see someone like Jimmie Johnson run better if he believes more practice can help him get there.
"I would love to give him more practice cause I want to see Jimmie Johnson be competitive, right? Cause I know he can be. And I feel like he’s racing with one arm tied behind his back and I feel that way for Shane (Van Gisbergen).
"He gave up everything he had back in New Zealand and Australia, a successful career to come out here and he wants this to work. And I don’t want there to be any excuses why it didn’t. Those are two examples," Earnhardt explained.
In the end, he gave one more reason, his "personal connection", in addition to the two examples. Earnhardt believes drivers such as Josh Berry and Carson Kvapil or any of the drivers that come through him should get more practice.
In fact, he even claimed that someone like him too, who races once or twice a year, needs practice. "Freaking A! So there you go, those are the reasons why more practice," he added.
Now whether NASCAR will pay attention to Earnhardt Jr.'s comments is something only time will tell. But for now, there isn't more practice for drivers, be it someone as accomplished as Jimmie Johnson, someone as eager to be successful as Shane Van Gisbergen, or someone as new as Carson Kvapil.
