Racing World Reacts To Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s Retirement From NASCAR After 18 Seasons

Dale Earnhardt Jr. has received lots of support from the world of NASCAR following his announcement Tuesday morning that he will be retiring from racing at the end of the 2017 season after 18 years.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Retiring From Racing: NASCAR Reacts

The 42-year-old Hall of Famer and son of NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt Sr. raced with Hendricks Motorsports.

Earnhardt Sr. was killed in a crash in the Daytona 500 in 2001.

Throughout his NASCAR career, Earnhardt Jr. won 26 top Cup series in 603 starts, and also won the Daytona 500 twice, in 2004 and 2014. He also won the Most Popular Driver Award 14 straight times. He has one top-10 finish this year in eight starts and sits 24th in the season standings.

Hendricks Motorsports has not named a replacement for Earnhardt, whose contract expires at the end of this season.

“I do feel like this is a new chapter, for whatever reason,” Earnhardt said before the new season began this year. “I don’t have a vision for what’s going to happen. I don’t know how to explain it, but it feels like a new me.”

Here are the famous drivers and other members of the NASCAR community who took to social media to express their congratulations to Earnhardt on his prolific career. Among the high-profile names was Tony Stewart, who retired at the end of last season and called Earnhardt a “great friend,” and Team Penske driver Brad Keselowski.

Earnhardt’s wife, Amy Reimann, also tweeted the following note:

Even country music star Charlie Daniels voiced his opinion on the announcement:

Earnhardt missed the final 18 races of 2016 due to concussion that sidelined him in July. It was his second concussion in four years: in 2012, Earnhardt missed two races due to a pair of concussions he sustained during a six-week stretch.

“When I got my first concussion, in 1998, it was like: ‘Wow. I feel dizzy. Ha ha,’” Earnhardt said in February. “It’s scary now, knowing everything we know. There’s still a ton to learn. We’re going through such a transition how we talk about concussions, how we treat concussions. It’s very interesting to me. Very educational.”

Earnhardt is the fourth top NASCAR driver to retire from racing in the last two years. Jeff Gordon stepped away after the 2015 season, though he replaced the injured Earnhardt last year. Stewart retired last year, and Carl Edwards surprised fans by ending his NASCAR career in January.

Evidently, Earnhardt will be severely missed.

AVONDALE, AZ – NOVEMBER 15:  Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the #88 Nationwide Chevrolet, celebrates in victory lane after winning the rain-shortened NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500 at Phoenix International Raceway on November 15, 2015 in Avondale, Arizona.  (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)