NASCAR throwback: Rusty Wallace recalls discussing business ideas with Dale Earnhardt pre-race

NASCAR Hall of Famer and a 76-time winner in the NASCAR Cup Series Dale Earnhardt is a driver who needs no introduction in racing circles.

The man fondly remembered as 'The Intimidator' remains one of the best drivers in the history of stock car racing, with few drivers managing to tie his seven championship titles and none able to surpass the milestone.

While Dale Earnhardt was a country boy at heart, with close-quarters racing and trading paint with other drivers on the track running in his veins, the North Carolina native also had a natural eye for entrepreneurial opportunities.

During his racing days, the former Richard Childress Racing driver not only had a knack for 'rattling others' cages' as he used to call them but also for earning additional wealth.

Racing alongside Earnhardt at the time, Rusty Wallace was one of the few drivers who managed to team up with the latter to make some extra cash alongside their driving day jobs.

Wallace recalled how the duo planned to leverage merchandise sales at the North Wilkesboro Speedway and said in one of NBC Sports' retrospectives on Earnhardt:

“So, we get in the race, I come off Turn 2, he bangs me in the back end. I got hot and come off Turn 2 and I slammed the brakes. He hit me so hard, it tore off his grille and front end. I finished second, and Old Man France comes down and says, ‘What in the hell are you doing out there, man?’ Just selling T-shirts, boss. I really respected (Earnhardt). He taught me a lot."

Jeff Gordon looks back at partnership with Dale Earnhardt to sell diecasts

Another money-making opportunity that seemingly caught Dale Earnhardt's attention was the business of selling diecasts, one of the most common forms of NASCAR memorabilia over the years.

Former Hendrick Motorsports driver Jeff Gordon recalled 'The Intimidator' and himself being involved in a diecast-making deal themselves and said:

“He would know who was selling (how much) every weekend. Where his sales are, where the other drivers are, he knew it all. I think my stuff started getting up there. I’m sure there was a little rivalry and competition, but he embraced it and said, ‘Man, I think we got something here we can grow.’”

Apart from introducing stock car racing to an audience never exposed to the sport, Dale Earnhardt also managed to keep his core followers behind him with his charming personality and driving skills.