Denny vs. Bubba, Making Up Job Titles & Parenting Advice

Summary

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The Dale Jr. Download – "Denny vs. Bubba, Making Up Job Titles & Parenting Advice"

Host: Dale Earnhardt Jr. (with TJ Majors and guests)
Date: October 3, 2025
Podcast Network: Dirty Mo Media, SiriusXM

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Episode Overview

This week, Dale Jr., TJ Majors, and a crew of frequent NASCAR insiders dive into one of the season’s most contentious moments: Denny Hamlin’s controversial move racing Bubba Wallace at Kansas Speedway, which resulted in both drivers losing their shot at victory—and opened the door for Chase Elliott’s win. Together, the hosts break down the racing incident from multiple perspectives (driver, owner, spotter), explore the complexities of team relationships, and have some lighter discussions about the evolution of job titles in NASCAR and the perplexities of parenting—particularly when you can't tell your kids apart.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Denny Hamlin vs. Bubba Wallace: Racing Incident Dissected

• Rundown of the Move:
  The show opens immediately with analysis of Hamlin’s high-stakes pass attempt against Bubba in the closing laps at Kansas (01:32–08:41).

  • Both hosts and guests agree Hamlin "sent it" into the corner, leading him to wash up the track and put the #23 (Bubba) in the wall.
  • The consensus: racing for the win justified aggressive moves, but execution could have been smarter.

• Dale Jr. Perspective:

  "I like Denny going for it... But I think he took—he just sent it a little bit too hard. You can't, you know, putting the 23 in the wall. Even though Denny gave him a car length and a half, that—Denny knows how the air works."
  — Dale Earnhardt Jr., (05:07)

• TJ Majors on Risks:

  "When two guys go in too deep like that, you know they're both not coming out the other side. And it cost them both."
  — TJ Majors, (02:47)

• Strategic Fallout:
  The incident gave Chase Elliott the win and, as TJ points out, put an unwelcome Chevrolet into the playoffs:

  "What you really did was put the guy that nobody wants in the playoffs back in the playoffs."
  — TJ Majors, (03:59)

2. The Owner-Driver Dilemma: Hamlin's Mindset

• Denny’s Defense (12:11–15:53):
  Hamlin joins the conversation post-race with a firm stance:

  • No Apologies:

    "If they're wanting an apology, they can turn off now. I'm racing for the win and I definitely won't apologize for racing for the win."
    — Denny Hamlin, (11:47 & 12:14)

  • Driver First, Owner Second:

    "On Sunday, I am the driver... The person in the 11 car is the driver. That's where the disconnect comes from; people expect me to be the guy with a 23:11 shirt on when I'm in the 11 car, and that's just not possible."
    — Denny Hamlin, (12:24)

  • Reflecting on Hindsight:

    "There are things I would do differently, no doubt about it. Had I seen what I see now, no question I would have backed off early."
    — Denny Hamlin, (15:54)

• Spotter’s Take (Freddie Kraft):
  Bubba’s spotter, Freddie Kraft, weighs in with balanced disappointment and understanding:

  "I'm not really mad at him. I'm a little disappointed. If the roles were reversed, he would be rather disappointed in us as well... He did ruin our chances. You know, that's it."
  — Freddie Kraft, (20:02 & 22:23)

3. Team Dynamics: Racing Your Own Car

• Internal Drama:
  TJ Majors and Dale debate whether it’s ever wise for a car owner to jeopardize one of his own team’s playoff shots.

  "Not with your... not with the car you own."
  — Dale Earnhardt Jr., (07:57)

  “If I was out there and drove down the corner and put one of my guys in the wall, how many fires would I be putting out today?"
  — Dale Earnhardt Jr., (08:03)

  John Wood later chimes in about the pressures and expectations inside storied teams.

4. Social Media & NASCAR Team Image

Guest: John Wood of the Wood Brothers Racing

• Unique Social Approach:
  Wood details managing the team’s famously self-deprecating Twitter, the permission he received, and the occasional line-crossing.

  “My dad was like, just don’t get us in trouble. Don't make us lose a sponsorship. ... But it started because my sister had to go to a wedding, so she gave me the login.”
  — John Wood, (28:18 & 28:51)

  "What worked was… I still don’t know how to Photoshop… So I made up for that with words where I couldn’t post a really cool picture. … I would come up with a phrase or sentence or words that still got the message across."
  — John Wood, (28:53)

• Handling Social Flubs:

  "It was totally—no malice intent at all."
  — John Wood, (31:14)

5. Parenting Advice: When You Can’t Tell Your Twins Apart

“Bless Your Heart” Segment with Dale and Amy (32:12–33:44)

• A listener confesses he can’t tell his four-year-old identical twin daughters apart, resorting to color-coded hair ties—his wife is unimpressed.

• Amy’s Take:

  “This poor guy just isn't paying enough attention."
  — Amy Earnhardt, (33:44)

• Dale’s Assurance:

  "I think it should get easier…just wait it out."
  — Dale Earnhardt Jr., (32:48)

• Anecdotes ensue about twins switching classes and the ‘Parent Trap’ movie, ending on a light note about the inevitable mischief twins can muster.

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Notable Quotes & Moments with Timestamps

• On Racing Too Aggressively:

  “I like Denny going for it. But I think he could have done it differently to not let the 9 win. Someone else win.”
  — Dale Earnhardt Jr., (05:02)

• Hamlin’s No-Regrets Attitude:

  “Race manipulation. Holy—people lose their minds. ... I think Bubba said it very accurately. We were going for the win. Both guys were going for the win.”
  — Denny Hamlin, (14:12)

• Spotter’s Real Talk:

  “He talks about racing other people, he talks about withdrawals and deposits. Well, that was a pretty big withdrawal yesterday.”
  — Freddie Kraft, (22:30)

• On the Social Media Account:

  “Anything where you’re like, whoa—that’s me.”
  — John Wood, (31:51)

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Timestamps – Important Segments

• Denny vs. Bubba Kansas incident breakdown: [01:32–08:41]
• Denny Hamlin's no-apologies post-race interview: [11:25–15:53]
• Spotter (Freddie Kraft) perspective: [19:09–22:55]
• John Wood on social media, job titles, & team PR: [25:47–32:03]
• Parenting identical twins Q&A: [32:08–33:56]

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Summary in the Podcast’s Tone

Full of candid, knowledgeable banter, this episode nails what NASCAR fans love most about The Dale Jr. Download—blunt racer talk ("What’s he supposed to do? Drive backwards around the track?"), camaraderie, and honest insights into the sport’s layered drama. The crew dives deep into the collision of ambition, loyalty, and career legacy that turns each Cup race into more than just laps on asphalt. And even as the tone shifts to parenting headaches and social-media “oops” moments, Dale and company keep it relatable, sharp, and fun.

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Transcript

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

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[Freddie Kraft]

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[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Hey, everybody, I'm Dylan Hart Jr. And this is the Dirty 30. The best highlights from all of our podcasts this week. 30 minutes every single Friday. The Dirty 30 coming at you. Let's get right to it. Hey Everybody, it's Dale Jr back again for another episode of the Dale Jr Download. And here with my co host TJ Majors on another episode of Dirty Air. How's it going, tj?

[TJ Majors]

It's going good. Travis has a rough. Are you okay on race days, Travis?

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Denny was in shape, good shape, right. To win this race.

[Matt]

It was going to win.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Yeah. Oh, God.

[TJ Majors]

Going to win.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

I'm kind of amazed at how the 23 like Denny gets when Denny's car stops going up the racetrack. There's a car and a half, but the 23 still could not keep it out of the wall because of the way the air works with these two cars.

[TJ Majors]

He could have maybe slowed down more right here. Like if he's not just like right.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

There, it just takes off.

[TJ Majors]

See, I think he throttled up.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Really?

[TJ Majors]

I think so.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

A steel though. I mean, I guess he throttled up thinking he can finish the corner.

[TJ Majors]

I don't have a problem with how Denny. Denny, what Denny did right there because honestly the. The. The 23 pass to 20 very similarly off of turn four the lap before. But my, my issue with it is this is a mile and a half the guys behind you. Anytime you pull this move, you're pretty much getting past.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Yeah, well, I don't know that. Listen, I mean, I don't think Denny went down into three knowing exactly how this was going to play out. I Think he went down in there. He definitely sent it in there.

[TJ Majors]

And I think he was hoping to clear him.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

I think he was, too. Hoping to either clear him. Maybe he didn't.

[Matt]

That's what he was. What he said was he want to clear. If you get in front.

[TJ Majors]

Yeah, he want. He's going to. He's trying to clear up and get in front of him right here. But Bubba drove it in there like Bubba should have.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Sure.

[TJ Majors]

And that was a shot of winning. And when two guys go in too deep like that, it's going to be, you know, they're both not coming out the other side. And it cost them both.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Yeah, well, it gave the wind to chase Elliot.

[TJ Majors]

It's just not a high percentage move.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

And that's not. It's not.

[TJ Majors]

And that I honestly thought. Denny.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

What's Denny supposed to do right there.

[TJ Majors]

Yeah, right there.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

What's the. He's supposed to do on first lap.

[TJ Majors]

Of the race right there? Denny is supposed to race and probably not cost either one of them the victory.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Supposed to race.

[Matt]

So he's supposed to let up.

[TJ Majors]

I would say do.

[Freddie Kraft]

Don't go for it, Denny.

[TJ Majors]

No, that's not. Not going for it. But he cost both of them the win, did he not?

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

He was.

[TJ Majors]

Yes or no. Did he cause both of them to win? But if he won the race. But if he doesn't do that, the third place car.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

There's no argument about the way the race played out. There's no argument, T.J. that no one's going to argue with you that he didn't cost. He cost himself and the 23. The win. He did.

[Matt]

Yeah, but that's.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

But what's he supposed to do? Yeah, what is his.

[TJ Majors]

What is he supposed to do otherwise? I think you race hard, but not one of you's got to win the race.

[Matt]

You can't tell a race car driver.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

I don't know how they. I don't know.

[TJ Majors]

Don't hit. Don't throttle up.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

I don't know how else that they're supposed to go through the corner battle, try to win the race and not bring other guys into it. I mean, just don't.

[TJ Majors]

Denny could have drove in harder and tried to clear him more or he could enter. He could have not dove down to the bottom and try to turn the center off. But one of them win. Yeah, right there. Neither one of you win. And what you really did was put the guy that nobody wants in the playoffs back in the playoffs.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

I agree.

[TJ Majors]

Would you rather race Bubba Wallace or Joey Logano right Now I saw Matt. Who do you want to race?

[Matt]

Well, yes, in hindsight and me not in the car. Of course, I'd rather Denny is Denny's.

[TJ Majors]

Denny knows who the race car drivers.

[Matt]

Dale, are you at that moment, are you thinking, well, if I let Bubba win, Logano is going to be minus 13. But if I.

[TJ Majors]

No, but he has no play but to say that. If he goes in there and says, oh, yeah, well, I just met. Then he ain't going to say, you.

[Matt]

Know, you're a race car driver going for your 60th win, punch your ticket to the round of eight, and you're saying, well, you know what? Let me think about the implications here. I'm going to ease up.

[TJ Majors]

Maybe I should cost both of us to win. Yeah, that's a good idea.

[Matt]

He's not thinking that. He's thinking, if I can make this move, I win.

[TJ Majors]

When is that ever worked?

[Matt]

We see these things happen all the time.

[TJ Majors]

Yeah. The third place guy win. You're right.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

I like Denny going for it. I think he's. I think he could have done it differently to not let the nine win. Someone else win.

[TJ Majors]

Yes, that's what I'm saying.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

I like Denny going. I like Denny going for it. I like Denny going for it. But I think he took. He just sent it a little bit too hard. You can't, you know, putting the 23 in the wall. Even though Denny gave him a car length and a half, that Denny knows how the arrow works. He, you know, I don't know, truly, if the 23 getting into the wall is all Denny or a little bit of both of them being, you know, just. I think Bubba's gets to that point and goes, this is. We're. And probably maybe he does hammer the gas, I don't know.

[TJ Majors]

But there's a way they come off the corner and race the line still.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Absolutely. Tj, There's.

[TJ Majors]

Yes, I agree with Chris Busher, Kyle Larson, I agree with you.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

I think that in the moment it was hard, maybe hard for Denny to. To admit, but I bet you Thursday or Friday or even Sunday morning at the Roval, would he privately trade you a 23 victory for the, you know, the obvious end result here? I think he would, of course. Yeah. I mean, that's not how sports works.

[TJ Majors]

I mean, I like, I like, I like him going.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

I like him going for it, man. But I think he could have done it a little differently and still been able to get out of the car and look at his crew and go, hey, I went for it without Wrecking both of us. I went for it without taking us taking either. I went for it, yet still gave us and the 23 or the 23 a shot and not letting a Chevrolet go through and win the race.

[Matt]

And I think some drivers would have done that. But is that how Denny races?

[TJ Majors]

A week ago, he was preaching like, big picture racing and being smart. This is the opposite of.

[Matt]

No, no, no. That's not the same as last week.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Last week they were battling for 11. This was for a win. There's a little bit.

[Matt]

Stage two or whatever.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Yeah. I mean, it is what it is. Listen, this ain't the end of the world. It's a teaching moment. It's. It's also.

[TJ Majors]

It really doesn't change anything for Denny.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

It doesn't. And it's also a really. A really big, you know, really great freaking finish for nascar. A big. A big dramatic finish for nascar.

[Matt]

It also makes Denny's Roval race a whole lot easier. He would have been like, plus 24, had bubble one. Now he's plus 48.

[TJ Majors]

I mean. Yeah, I don't think it changes Denny's Roval race. I think he's going to be fine with that anyway.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

I don't know. I mean, I don't know. I don't know. I.

[Matt]

I think we should applaud this.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

No, I can't applaud it.

[TJ Majors]

Good Lord.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

I can't applaud it. Why?

[TJ Majors]

He could have drove. He could have drove backwards around the track and you would applaud it.

[Matt]

You don't want hard racing at the end.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Not like that. Not with your. Not with the car you own.

[TJ Majors]

Not with a guy you have to sit in meetings with.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

If I was out there and drove down the corner and put one of my guys in the wall, how. How much. How many fires would I be putting it out today?

[Matt]

Well, if you've already set the expectations that we're going to race as if we're competitors, like, I.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

They already know everybody's going to race as their competitors. I'm just saying this. This is. This is a little bit too much.

[TJ Majors]

And there's a lot on the line here now, like. And it didn't work out. If Denny wins this race, great move. But he didn't. And it caused more.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

It's not the end of the world. It just. I think he could have done it differently and one or one of the two cars win the race.

[Matt]

And if he lets up and bubble. If he. If bubble wins, he doesn't have to let up.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

He doesn't have to fall in line where you're getting too aggressive. Here he can, he can drive. Why didn't he not go to the bottom? Right? Why did he drive into the, into the corner and up the track and just, just totally taking away the 23's line? Right. He had other things, other ways to approach the corner. Not that they would have worked. I mean, the likelihood of him completing, completing the pass is not that high. So yes, he took the aggressive approach because he knew how low the percentage of the pass was. Right. And so, you know, I just think that Denny's, you know, Denny's personality and his approach and his ownership technique and everything, he'll say, hey, you know, this is, if you're going to, if you're going to drive my cars, this is, this is how I do business. And will he do this every time? No, but, you know, this could in, in these situations, racing for a championship, so forth. This is what I'm going to do, what I'm willing to do. And that's his prerogative. That's his, that's his choice. Don't be mad. It's not the way I would have done it.

[TJ Majors]

But don't be mad when they race you.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

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[Amy]

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[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Yeah, I love the way the house smells when you make coffee in the morning too. It just makes me think that, you know, breakfast is close behind.

[Amy]

That's right.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

All right, so visit communitycoffee.com and use code DALE20 for 20% off. Your first order of great tasting community coffee. That's code Dale d a l e2 0 for 20% off [e-mail] hey guys.

[Denny Hamlin]

Welcome to Actions Detrimental Post Kansas Speedway, second race in the round of 12.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

All right, now that we're.

[Matt]

We're warmed up, the people what they want.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Yeah, let's. Let's get into the. The cup race yesterday.

[Denny Hamlin]

I. I can tell you this trap, though. If they're wanting an apology, they can. They can turn off now. Okay.

[Matt]

I love it. I told the same thing on Twitter.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

People come at me.

[John Wood]

I was ready for war yesterday.

[Denny Hamlin]

I bet you did. I didn't look at your timeline, but how was it?

[Matt]

People coming at me blaming you? And I'm like, I told as folks, if you looking for me to come at Denny, don't hold your breath.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Yeah.

[Denny Hamlin]

All right, well, let's get in it.

[TJ Majors]

Why is there no. Why is there no apology or.

[Denny Hamlin]

Because I'm racing. Because I'm racing for the win and I definitely won't apologize for racing for the win.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

That's why.

[Matt]

It's dumb. I think people are saying you're the owner.

[Denny Hamlin]

I'm like, well, no, no, no, no. On Sunday, I am the driver.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

The.

[Denny Hamlin]

The person in the 11 car is the driver. That's the. That's where the disconnect, I think, comes from, is that people expect me to be a different person. They expect me to be the guy with a 23:11 shirt on when I'm in the 11 car. And that's just not possible. It's not possible.

[Matt]

Like, what's that say to Joe Gibbs if he's seeing that, like you, you're racing for him?

[Denny Hamlin]

I have zero doubts in my mind. I know. Because I know where my mind was in that moment is that I was racing the 23 the same as I would race anybody in that moment. I would. Truthfully, I would erase my teammates the same way.

[TJ Majors]

I believe that.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

But was there any, like, little thought in your mind thinking that, like, man.

[Caller/Listener]

I know where Bubba's position is in the points. I know where my position is.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

I. You got more invested in a Bubble Wallace win than a Chase Briscoe or.

[Caller/Listener]

Or Christopher Bell win.

[Denny Hamlin]

Yes. Again, my responsibilities as the team owner comes Monday through Saturday. Like, it is not up to me to get 23:11 into the round of eight, if that makes any sense. It's. It's not. That's not my responsibility. My responsibility is get the 11 into the round of eight. I'm the driver on Sunday of that 11. Joe pays me a lot of money to make sure that that car wins a championship or has a shot to.

[Tommy Baldwin]

And.

[Denny Hamlin]

I mean, could you imagine the outrage if I just backed off and let him have it?

[Matt]

Race manipulation.

[Denny Hamlin]

Holy. People lose their minds. But instead, I think Bubba said it very accurately. We were going for the win. Both guys were going for the win. Did you see those last few restarts? Everybody was side drafting each other so hard. Everyone was bouncing off of everything. It's the only reason I got back in the race is the 20. And the 23 had an episode off a turn four. Like, that was. That was my. Like, oh, man, we're back. We got a shot. You know, I. I've got data to prove it right here. I'm in the blue. I didn't. I backed off early. I'm on the brakes. He's the orange, I'm the blue. Look at all my previous laps. I drove into the same spot. But unfortunately, what was different is that I entered the corner and I can analyze this. Now, I have about a second to analyze this. As I'm going down the back stretch trying to figure out. So as a driver, what I'm trying to do is figure out angles. What angle am I going to take this corner?

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Where's.

[Denny Hamlin]

Where's the guy beside me? All those things play a factor into how deep you can drive into a corner or how shallow you need to be or whatever. So now that I can analyze this more out of the car and look at things and see, you know, again, while I'm in this car, in this cocoon to the. Going into turn three, I don't even see the 23.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

I don't.

[Denny Hamlin]

I don't know how close he is. I don't know if he's a car width up. Is he right on my door? Those are all factors in how your car is going to take the next corner. And so there are things I would do differently. No doubt about it. Had I seen what I see now, no question I would have backed off early because I would have thought, you know what, he's probably going to overdrive the corner and that'll just get back by him on the exit. But, man, that's. That's Monday morning quarterback and I. There's no way in that split second I have to make a decision. I don't. I don't know that he's right there. And we have no gap between our cars. Had I known we had no gap between our cars. I would have known my car is about to go straight, but I had no way of knowing that I did not know. And so I entered the corner the same amount to the same point. I always let off and my car went dead straight. And it's because of the aero situation that I was in. I was closer to the 23 than I had budgeted for and unfortunately it took us both up the track. I took him up the track, he bounced off the wall. I slowed down enough that we, you know, gave the 9 car the win. But that is racing and I'm not going to apologize for trying to win the race. That the 11 car was the most deserving car to win that race, without a doubt.

[TJ Majors]

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[Tommy Baldwin]

What's up everybody? This is Tommy Baldwin, competition director, Rick Ware Racing. Welcome back to dbc. Freddie, how are you doing today?

[Freddie Kraft]

So Carson has things probably had a.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Lot better of a weekend than you did.

[Freddie Kraft]

Yeah, I mean weekend was really good till about the last. I don't know 20 minutes of it.

[Tommy Baldwin]

But explain.

[Freddie Kraft]

Well, I think we're going to get into the meat of it when we get to spot on, spot off. But I am still Freddie Kraft. I still spot for Bubba Wallace. We still got ran in the fence yesterday and joining us today, a buddy of mine and I kind of need him this morning because he usually knows how to lighten up the room a little bit. AJ Almender. Welcome to door Bumper Clear.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

My friend Denny Hamlin ruins Bubba Wallace's chances to make the next round of the playoffs by putting him in the wall, allowing Chase Elliot and win. Spot on, spot off. Go ahead, Freddie.

[Freddie Kraft]

Listen, I'm not really mad at him. I'm a little disappointed. The. I think if the roles were reversed, he would be rather disappointed in us as well. So I. And I don't really know. I mean, obviously we're. It's just guys racing hard. We did not. We raced the 20 just as hard the lap before, the last two laps before that. You're pushing for everything you can. Obviously our. Our season is on the line there for us. We have to. I mean, we're not mathematically eliminated, but going to the Roval 20 something with Bubba is probably not ideal. And listen, he's got to win too. You know, he's.

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[Freddie Kraft]

He's going for 60. I think there's other going on with him that he really would like to win right now. So the. I don't really fault him for it and I. It's just. It was one of those things that he has to do something. You know, he can't. He can't just push us down the back straightaway and that, that's not fair to his 11 team. It's, you know, if he'd be getting killed on social media today if he just pushes us down the back stretch and just follows us through. Um, I think that our mindset, or at least Bubba's, looked to me like we could have obviously blocked way more aggressively down the back stretch. But I think Bubba's just said, you know, he's got a good run. He's going to get underneath me here. We're going to go into three and four and race this thing out. And may the best man win. And unfortunately, I think it was just, you know, pretty poor execution to, you know, just run up into us and, and allow the 9 car to get by both of us. You know, we're on his door there. It's just got, you know, like I said, it's not.

[Tommy Baldwin]

You hit a wall a little bit.

[Freddie Kraft]

Yeah, yeah.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

I mean, I wasn't lying off of it. Yeah, they did.

[Tommy Baldwin]

I missed that part. You know, I was in the restaurant watching on tv.

[Freddie Kraft]

But yeah, it's. It is what it is. I. You know, it's. Unfortunately, you see, the end result where we take five Toyotas in the top five with the white flag and let a Chevy win the race is not. Is not ideal. But I don't know. I don't. I don't know that you can tell, you know, I don't. I wish he didn't run us in the fence. I'm sure the 20 wishes we cut him a break. So I. I don't know. It's hard to. It's hard to really be angry. It's just disappointed with the results.

[Caller/Listener]

Way to really go after that question.

[Tommy Baldwin]

Yeah.

[Caller/Listener]

He just spent five minutes talking about.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

What you should have said was spot on. He did ruin. He did ruin your chances.

[Freddie Kraft]

I mean, he did ruin our chances. You know, that's it. That's what it is, you know, for.

[Caller/Listener]

Are you afraid your paycheck won't signed.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

If you say anything else?

[Freddie Kraft]

The thing is he. That's what he always talks about, you know, when he talks about racing other people, he talks about withdrawals and deposits. Well, that was a pretty big withdrawal yesterday.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

So.

[Freddie Kraft]

So, I mean, if he continues to send me direct deposits, I will get over this eventually, I assume. But, you know, I don't know. I don't know how to feel about it because it did ruin our chances. It probably will ruin our chances to continue on in these playoffs. But what's he supposed to do? I don't.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Yeah. You know, it also ruined my chances.

[Amy]

At DVC picks, but we can talk about that later.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Anybody else got anything on that one?

[Freddie Kraft]

Yeah, I mean, I mean, Tom.

[Tommy Baldwin]

I mean, I don't. I think he had to do what he had to do. I mean, it's going for a win, right? He's going for his 60th. He just got. Just dominated the whole race. Won both stages. He had the fastest lap, has a bad pit stop. I mean, he's got a. He's going for a championship this year. Whether he's pushing that stuff aside or not, it's still in his mind. I don't know if he. Does he. Did he understand how many points he was ahead already? You know, was he probably locked in already, you know, didn't have to race hard in a roval. If someone. You don't know. I mean, if you watch yesterday with Bubba leading, how much that playoff deal just shifted, man. What could have been happened? So what would have happened if he let him win? What we'd be talking. What would the whole world be talking about? Be talking about?

[Freddie Kraft]

Not probably 100% rule. Everything else would come up.

[Tommy Baldwin]

I mean, I think he was put in a little bit of position as like, I'm going to go win this race, man, for my team, for everybody else.

[Caller/Listener]

I mean, at the end of the day, whether you love or hate Denny, he is who he is.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Yeah.

[Caller/Listener]

It's not like this was out of character in the sense of, like, you know, why. Why didn't he let Bubba win? Or, you know, why did he race him so hard? Like, the guy drives as hard as he can against everybody. I mean, and that's like, obviously it was not great execution, both cars. You know, I think. I think. I don't know. In my mind, Bubba thought he was probably going to the bottom more because that's the one thing in this. In this. With this car that's unlike a truck or an Xfinity car. When you go in side by side, usually if you are pinned on the guy's door, you're just trying to worry about not getting wrecked with them because you know what you're doing. Well, these cars, when you go in side by side, it just makes both cars. It's tight as can be. I mean, you saw it with the 20, right? Like, and there's nothing. Once it starts, there's no grip on both cars. And I think. I don't know, Bubba probably expected Danny maybe to go a little bit lower and not be. But once they got locked doors, it was game over. But Denny is who he is, whether you love it or hate it. Like, he doesn't change for whoever he's racing, whether it's his own car.

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[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

All right, here we are for another episode of the Dale Jr. Download. And we got a great one for an interview today. It's John Wood. So, John, it's Pre. I appreciate you coming through. It's good to have you on here. Son of Eddie Wood. Eddie is the oldest of Glen Wood's children. You began working at the Wood Brothers at the age of 12, is that right?

[John Wood]

You must have found it somewhere.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

I don't know.

[John Wood]

It sounds about right. I was there at 12. I won't say I was working.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

You weren't working. Working for. So what's your earliest memory of. Of racing and what your families was. What your family was responsible for?

[John Wood]

My earliest memory. This is a. It's crazy how things stick in your mind when you're a kid, but the earliest thing I remember was being at Martinsville. A friend of mine and I were throwing a baseball or a tennis ball or something, and your dad, of all people, walks past and we hit him with the ball. Like, I mean, hit him in the nuts. I wasn't going to say that, but I mean, he just popped around the holler and like, boom, there he. And that just stuck in my mind because it's like I'm at a racetrack and here's this, like, almost imaginary figure and we just hit him with a ball.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

One of the things I wanted to talk to you about was social media. One of the things that I think you're really well known for is managing the Wood Brothers social media account. I can't believe that they let you do that.

[John Wood]

I can't either, honestly, because it's, you know, I don't know.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

But at the same time. At the same time. So one of the. One of the accounts that I like doing this, man, because they deserve it. There's a lot of great accounts out there, and we as an industry have learned that it's good when our accounts have personality.

[John Wood]

Absolutely.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

And one of the. One of the really good ones out there right now is rfk. They do a really solid job. I would say that you inadvertently, maybe unintentionally, were kind of on the front end of that being an account that could be self deprecating, but also at the same time, call out some stuff that tell it.

[John Wood]

Like, it's funny.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Tell. Like I said, how did you get away with that? Because I see the Wood Brothers, in my opinion, as very conservative when it comes to, you know, speaking out of class.

[John Wood]

That. That part I. I got no answers for because it. So at the beginning, my dad was like, just don't get us in trouble. Like, don't. Don't make us lose a sponsorship. Don't say anything. That's a lot of pressure, you know, like, we're gonna get in trouble with the law. Just, you know, just be cool about it. But it started because my sister had to go to a wedding, so she was doing it prior 2012. She had to go to a wedding. So they gave me the login information. And I'd never even used Twitter. I even know what Twitter was. So I created an account for myself and then took over that one. And it was just trial by error.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Yeah.

[John Wood]

What worked was I still don't know how to Photoshop. I don't know how to doctor up a picture, make these graphics. So that shortfall I made up with words where I couldn't post a really cool picture and say, here's my social media graphic for the day. Like it. And retweet it and subscribe, and whatever you do, I would come up with a phrase or a sentence or words that still got the message across. And it sort of turned into. Well, I'll just tell it like I see it, because that's just the type of person I am. I don't really know why, but Motorcraft has always been trusting, maybe. And they were our only partner for a long time. So back when this started, we were part time. They were our only sponsor, basically. That and Ford, and they seem to be cool with it and. Yeah, go have at it. Do whatever you want to do. Just don't say cuss words. Bad ones.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Yeah.

[John Wood]

And we'll see what happens. And I would push the boundaries. I didn't know it at the time.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

You didn't?

[John Wood]

But, like, there was one time when. So we're at Pocono and Bubba Wallace crashes with somebody, and we hit a piece of his brake rotor. So I couldn't see the crash. All I knew was what I heard on the radio that, well, we. We hit a piece of a brake rotor. So I did it, tweet, I guess there was a crash or something and we hit a brake rotor. I don't know what words it was I said, but it came across as a little bit callous because. Yeah, maybe because at the time, Bubba might have been hurt. I didn't know that. Yeah, like, if you were in my position, you would. Had no idea. So anyway, whoever it was at the time, the scumbag that ran RCR's Twitter, here I am, like, doing it again. Called us out and like, well, at least Bubba wasn't hurt. Dude, I didn't know. Like, you're on pit road just like I am. You see the same stuff I see. I didn't know how hard he crashed. I got no clue. So give me an opportunity to be like, hey, sorry, I didn't know that. But they doubled down and, yeah, sure, you're sorry. Huh? Why do this to me? Like, I Haven't. I don't even know who it was to this day. I don't know. And I don't want to know. I don't want to hate them. Yeah, but that happened.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

That's hilarious.

[John Wood]

And, like, it was totally. No malice intent at all.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Sure.

[John Wood]

So over time, when those things happen over and over and over and over, you kind of get like, is this worth it? Is it worth me getting in trouble and losing, potentially my job losing. Hurting my race team's longevity, whatever, by saying something to. To keep people entertained? No, it's not. So I backed off some, but the tendencies are still there. If I.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

You still have the log.

[John Wood]

I do. I do.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Who runs now?

[John Wood]

My sister does a lot of it. Like all the crap you saw at Loudon. That was me.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

That was you?

[John Wood]

Yeah, yeah.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Any.

[John Wood]

Anything where you're like, whoa, that's me.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

I think we can tell.

[John Wood]

But you know, again, I can't change it. It's just who.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Yeah.

[John Wood]

Who I am. Who we are. And it's. It seems to work okay.

[Amy]

Hey, guys. Dale Jr. And I are back in the Dirty Mo Media studio for another round of Bless yous Heart.

[Caller/Listener]

Dear Amy and Dale, I have identical twin daughters. They just turned four, and they look so alike that I've lost track of who's who. My wife says it's easy to tell. One has a different smile, but I don't see it. They look the same. I already feel like a horrible dad. So I started make marking one with a different color hair, tie, or bracelet so I can tell my wife found out I was doing this, and she's beyond mad. I can deal with the wife later. How do I fix knowing who's who?

[Amy]

Good Lord.

[Caller/Listener]

I know. Kind of understand where he's coming from, though.

[Amy]

I mean, they're four, so they are pretty small.

[TJ Majors]

Yeah.

[Amy]

Like, their personalities haven't even really totally come out yet.

[Caller/Listener]

That's what I'm saying.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

I think it should get easier. Your point? So wait it out.

[Amy]

I feel like the hair tie thing is pretty clever.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Right?

[Amy]

I mean, I also understand his wife being annoyed that he can't tell them apart, but it sounds like he's spending enough time with them to do their hair. I don't know. Usually, like, if you can't tell your kids apart, it's because you're not really hanging out with them very often. Like. Yeah, but it sounds like he is.

[Caller/Listener]

My fear is he. He's gotten too far down the road of not knowing that he just doesn't know which ones he doesn't have a baseline yet.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

They're never gonna know.

[Caller/Listener]

Yeah.

[Amy]

I don't know. This could work. This could work. In favor for the girls.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

They're gonna know. They're never gonna know.

[Amy]

They're gonna know.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

They're gonna know.

[Amy]

They're gonna know. I feel like the girls are gonna get older and use that to their advantage to trick their parents especially. This is such a bad thing for.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Yeah.

[Caller/Listener]

I knew twins in high school that they went to each other's classes.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

It was a movie like that a bunch.

[TJ Majors]

Yeah.

[Caller/Listener]

And never got fooled.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Yeah.

[Caller/Listener]

Parent Trap's another one.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Yeah.

[Amy]

I don't know. That's weird. But listen, I've never seen two identical twins that were so alike that they couldn't be told apart. Even like friends. Kids. This poor guy just isn't paying enough attention.

[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]

Check out Dirty Mo Media on Instagram, Facebook X and TikTok. Go.

[TJ Majors]

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[Freddie Kraft]

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