Dale Earnhardt Jr. criticizes NASCAR over Richmond after 2025 schedule leak

Earlier this week, an alleged leak of the NASCAR 2025 schedule made the rounds on social media, and while NASCAR officially condemned the leak and said there were inaccuracies, that did not stop Dale Earnhardt, Jr. from interfering.

Earnhardt Jr. particularly lamented the alleged loss of a second race in Richmond.

“It’s an unfortunate thing for Richmond, but we saw the writing on the wall as the short track package is just as crappy as it has been for the last couple of years since the NextGen car came out,” Earnhardt Jr. said at the Download Dale Jr..

Richmond is, of course, the scene of the latest major drama on the NASCAR Cup Series circuit. Austin Dillon did it when he destroyed both Joey Logano And Denny Hamlin in the final corners to take the win.

Because of his victory, he was later penalized by NASCAR and his playoff eligibility was revoked.

The second race at Richmond will not take place next year, however, if the alleged leak proves true. NASCAR will eliminate it in order to bolster its short-track package, which Earnhardt Jr. said was not up to par.

“I'm not going to be lenient on that, it was awful. Horrible,” he said. “You can think what you want about Richmond, the track, the facility, its modernization effort compared to other facilities and the appeal that it could have, but the lousy way the short track package has been running for some time is the main reason why there are no two dates for this track.”

The former NASCAR driver also commented on some other tracks.

“Wilkesboro is still an All-Star race, I can't wait to hopefully see a points race there,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “I'm ready for the All-Star race to be moved somewhere else and for Wilkesboro to have a 400-lap race, something like that.”

Two more races caught his attention.

“Chicago is still there and Sonoma has been moved to another season, and I think I'll do that too,” he said. “So Amy will be happy.”

Finally, Earnardt Jr. commented on the playoffs, which feature a new song. He was very surprised to see it, although he wasn't necessarily against it.

“The playoffs are wild. How the hell did St. Louis end up in the playoffs?” Earnhardt Jr. said. “I'd like to know, I'm not… it's bizarre. It's fine. I mean, there's no vibe of 'Oh, you guys don't deserve this,' I'm just wondering how this even happened. I never thought they had a chance to make the playoffs. Ever. It just still feels like they just got into the Cup Series. And now they're in the playoffs. So I'm wondering where the, what the reasons are, what the reasons are, why.”