“That douchebag”: Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s NASCAR driver blasts Jeb Burton for Daytona misery

Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s NASCAR driver Sammy Smith didn't hold back after getting spun out by Jeb Burton at Daytona International Speedway. Smith took to his team radio and had some choice words to say about Burton's repeat offence.

Smith began the race on third, won Stage 1, and was running up front consistently. Two laps before Stage 2 completion, however, Burton pushed up the track and got into Smith's No.8 Chevy.

He caught Smith's left rear and sent him spinning. The JRM driver was battling door-to-door on the third row at the time.

Smith immediately took to team radio to vent out his frustration. NASCAR reporter Matt Weaver shared the exceprt on his X handle, writing,

Sammy Smith is furious at Jed Burton. "That douchebag has wrecked me three times." Calls him a moron.

The No.8 team tried their best to calm him down and replied,

"We've talked about this before. We've just got to get back to work."

Matt Weaver

@MattWeaverRA

Sammy Smith is furious at Jed Burton "That douchebag has wrecked me three times." Calls him a moron Message to Sammy: "We've talked about this before. We've just got to get back to work."

All was not lost for Smith, for he finished in second behind Connor Zilisch's sub, Parker Kilgerman. JRM's Justin Allgaier rounded out the podium places and made it a pretty successful day for Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s team.

The result maintains the No.8 team's nine-race streak with top-5 results. Zilisch now enters the post-season as the top-seeded driver with 36 playoff points.

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Dale Earnhardt Jr. breaks down Connor Zilisch swap with Parker Kilgerman

Dale Earnhardt Jr. opened up about Connor Zilisch's driver swap with Parker Kilgerman during Friday's Wawa 250. The 19-year old driver began the race on pole due to NASCAR's metric system after qualifying was cancelled due to adverse weather. However, 13 laps into the race, Zilisch dove into the pits to allow Kilgerman to sub in for him.

The planned move was made to help Zilisch recover from a recent collarbone surgery. Earnhardt spoke about the decision and said (via Motorsport.com),

"It’s kind of strange to be honest with you because he’s so mature for his age. And you kinda gotta hold him back a little bit in these types of situations."

"We want to race for a championship, but we can’t risk the next two decades of what he could possibly do behind the wheel of a race car. That’s not worth it. So we will do whatever we need to do to make sure that we hand him off to his next opportunity in a good place and ready to go and rock," Dale Earnhardt Jr. added.

Although Kilgerman went on to win the race, NASCAR won't allow any playoff points to carry over for Zilisch. Nonetheless, with six wins coming of his own efforts, Zilisch has had a breakout year so far. The young prodigy is also expected to replace Daniel Suarez in Trackhouse Racing next year.