Dale Earnhardt Jr. responds to CARS Tour testing fee controversy at Cordele Motor Speedway

A bit of controversy ahead of this weekend’s CARS Tour races at Cordele Motor Speedway. Dale Earnhardt Jr. is dealing with it, too. At least Dale Jr. is responding to complaints from CARS Tour drivers.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. is one of the owners of the CARS Tour. It is nice to see how active he is online with the drivers. He is also racing in the Late Model Stock event this weekend in his No. 8 car.

Cordele Motor Speedway is new for the CARS Tour. This is a Georgia track for a series that usually sticks to the Atlantic coastal states.

This week at Cordele, teams were met with high prices for testing. If you want to be competitive at a new track, testing is really important. But at $125/hr for testing with a three-hour minimum, some teams are not happy.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. has responded to driver Doug Barnes today. Barnes made the first public complaint on X/Twitter today.

“Testing today for this weekend’s CARS Tour race,” Barnes posted. “Usually it’s about $150-200 a day to test, but Cordele is welcoming us with a nice $125 AN HOUR. Thanks for the hospitality [Cordele Motor Speedway.]”

In response, Dale Jr. said, “I don’t run the track but I do know this. This wasn’t news for you today. All teams on the conference call earlier this week [were] made aware and told to plan accordingly.”

I don't run the track but I do know this . This wasn't news for you today. All teams on the conference call earlier this week or made aware and told to plan accordingly.

— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) April 10, 2025

Barnes then fired back. He wasn’t surprised by the price, but it didn’t make the situation better. Teams test to be competitive. It’s part of the game.

“I’m not acting surprised at all?” Barnes replied to the CARS Tour owner. “It’s absurd to charge us that much for testing. Maybe it’s a southern thing, but I’ve never seen it this high anywhere ever in [Late Model Stock Cars.] I can almost guarantee some people didn’t come today just because of that price, not the distance to get here.”

Once again, Dale Earnhardt Jr. replied. You have to at least give him credit for his honesty in all of this.

“It’s unfortunate that it’s that high. For sure. Didn’t see that on the radar. Maybe a testing ban is the way. I’d rather us not be testing and practicing so much. One day shows, no support classes, done by 10pm.

“Don’t let this be the story of this weekend though. Too much hard work went into this weekend from a series standpoint.”

It's unfortunate that it's that high. For sure. Didn't see that on the radar. Maybe a testing ban is the way. I'd rather us not be testing and practicing so much. One day shows, no support classes, done by 10pm.

Don't let this be the story of this weekend though. Too much hard…

— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) April 10, 2025

A testing ban? That was brought up by Dale Earnhardt Jr. as well as Doug Barnes. Donovan Strauss, driver for Hettinger Racing, also chimed in on the topic.

Could we see testing banned from the CARS Tour? At least a restriction on new tracks or perhaps a limit on how close to a race you can test? There are ways to keep testing but eliminate these chances for price gouging for one race weekend.

If the teams had to test no closer than two weeks from a race, then you could see prices go down. There is clearly a surge in demand ahead of the CARS Tour races this weekend. So, Cordele can go ahead and charge as they please. But if drivers test on random days a month or two weeks before the race, then the demand isn’t as high.

Look, the CARS Tour is a fantastic series. I’m sure Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton, and Justin Marks know how to run this series. Of course, Kip Childress, the executive director of the series, is a great leader as well. Catch the races on FloRacing and see why everyone is so excited about this new track for the CARS Tour.