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Dale Earnhardt Jr. praises NASCAR Cup Series race at COTA

JHby:Jonathan Howard•about 18 hours•

Jondean25

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Daytona 500
Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-Imagn Images

After watching Christopher Bell hold off a pack of hard-charging cars to win at COTA, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is more than impressed. The NASCAR Hall of Famer had a few words to say about the thrilling Cup Series race.

You can’t compliment NASCAR enough on this new, short configuration at COTA. Knocking off a mile of the track and the long straightaway with it, there were so many more passing zones.

The Xfinity Series race delivered. Then the Cup Series went out and more or less one-upped it. C-Bell in a big win and Dale Earnhardt Jr. liked what he saw.

“Hell of a race today,” Dale Jr. said, keeping it short and simple.

Of course, Dale Earnhardt Jr. loved the Xfinity Series race, too. After all, his JR Motorsports organization won with young Connor Zilisch. That race was a big too intense for Earnhardt as a team owner. Zilisch battled it out with Carson Kvapil and it looked like they were willing to wreck each other to win at one point.

However, today, Earnhardt was simply a fan. He had no car in the race and was able to enjoy the action for what it was. And there was a lot of action.

From Lap 1, Turn 1 the action was early and often. Drivers were pushed and spun out. Others were taken wide into turns and put into gravel. Towards the end of the race, Denny Hamlin absolutely cleared Austin Dillon out and into the gravel pit, causing a caution.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. enjoyed Christopher Bell win at COTA

In an epic battle down the stretch, Christopher Bell pulls off the win over William Byron and Tyler Reddick who made it very interesting in the end. Bell is the first NASCAR driver to earn two wins this season. Is this a sign of a huge season for the 20-team?

Winning two of the first three races of the season is a big deal. The last time someone won two in a row in the first three weeks was back in 2018 when Kevin Harvick won at Atlanta and Las Vegas back-to-back.

Before we go any further, congratulations to NASCAR and Speedway Motorsports. They made a change to the track, shortened it up by about a mile, and it was the perfect move. This might be the most racey road course on the schedule right now.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. enjoyed his time watching the COTA race. Now let’s get the extension done between the track and NASCAR so we can keep this race going into the future.