Dale Earnhardt Jr. to join NBC Sports as NASCAR analyst in 2018

Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s post-retirement plans will include a role with NBC Sports, where he’ll serve as an analyst for the network’s NASCAR coverage beginning next season.

NBC Sports has not determined if Earnhardt, who signed a multi-year contract with NBCUniversal, will join the broadcasting team consisting of Rick Allen (play-by-play), Jeff Burton, and Steve Letarte (analysts) when NBC carries its 20-race portion of the Monster Energy Cup Series. But Earnhardt will have a significant presence regardless of his position.

“Growing up around the sport, and having admiration for a lot of the folks that are in the media today, I’m very excited to step into that realm and learn what I can to continue to further the sport,” Earnhardt said. “I want to showcase the sport to folks and try to explain to everyone what’s happening out on the racetrack. It’s going to be a lot of fun for me.”

Earnhardt will also contribute to NBC Sports outside of just NASCAR, including possible roles on the network’s NFL and Olympics coverage. Additionally, he will have opportunities in other areas, such as movies, podcasts, and television. And NBC will partner with Earnhardt in other media avenues the driver has already established, including his Dirty Mo Radio podcast network and his production company, Hammerhead Entertainment.

What role Earnhardt eventually has on NBC’s NASCAR coverage and other sports properties will develop organically, said Sam Flood, NBC Sports executive producer and president of production. The network wants it to be something Earnhardt is interested in and the right fit on the broadcast side.

Earnhardt does have previous broadcast experience. He called an Xfinity Series race on Fox in 2016, and later in the year as he was recovering from concussion-like symptoms that prevented him from competing, he joined Allen, Burton, and Letarte in the NBC booth.

“It was surprising to me how much of an adrenaline rush it was to call the race, and when the race is exciting, you know, you feed off of that just like the fans do,” Earnhardt said. “It was exciting.”

Earnhardt, NASCAR’s 14-time most popular driver, announced in April he would retire at the end of the current season. His popularity and folksy charm made him a talent NBC and FOX Sports sought to add to their NASCAR coverage, and Earnhardt spoke with both companies about potential opportunities.

“We’re thrilled to have Junior join the team,” Flood said. “He’s clearly the star of his generation.

“His love of the sport, and his passion for the history of the sport, makes him such a unique talent that he looks at it in a different way. The conversations we’ve had are about how to grow NASCAR, how to expose new fans, and how to make it — make his passion for the sport come through to the fans.”

At NBC, Earnhardt reunites with Letarte, his good friend and former crew chief who helped resurrect his career and led him to five Cup Series wins over a three-year period, including at the 2014 Daytona 500.

“I’ve always had that great friendship with the people I’ve worked with, very comfortable environment for me personally with the people I was around,” Earnhardt said. “That influenced me quite a bit, and that I would have the opportunity to work with some people that I know very well.”

Earnhardt will continue as co-owner of JR Motorsports, a multi-car Xfinity Series team. He will also still have a relationship with his current Cup Series team, Hendrick Motorsports, where he will help mentor Alex Bowman, who replaces Earnhardt as driver of the No. 88 Chevrolet next season. Earnhardt is scheduled to compete in two unidentified Xfinity races in 2018 driving for JRM.

Because of Earnhardt’s ownership stake in JRM, NBC says it will limit his involvement in covering NASCAR’s second-tier division to avoid potential conflict of interests. He will have a presence on all 20 of NBC’s Cup races.

“When you’re working with the race team, that close bond develops in competition and going through the trials and tribulations and ups and downs together,” Earnhardt said. “I hope to be able to have those experiences with the guys at NBC, with our team there, and build that fellowship and create those relationships that I’ve always created with the teams that I’ve worked with in the past, no different whether it’s race team or the broadcast team.”