'We Took Offense': Dale Earnhardt Jr. Doesn’t Miss the Irony in Calling Kyle Larson for Xfinity Battle After Connor Zilisch Injury

Kyle Larson recently made his third Xfinity Series appearance of the season while also competing in his 11th full-time Cup Series year. Having secured two wins in his first 11 Cup starts in 2025, he has been equally sharp in the second-tier field, winning two out of his three starts. That latest win came in a JR Motorsports entry, weeks after Dale Earnhardt Jr. had publicly urged him to run more Xfinity races.

Earlier, when Larson dominated Bristol by leading 277 of 300 laps, he told Kevin Harvick and Dale Jr. on their podcast that he aimed to “embarrass” the Xfinity field and remind them of the level they’d face in the Cup Series.

The remark ruffled feathers, particularly with Dale Jr., especially considering he runs an Xfinity Series outfit. He had pushed back, pointing out that Larson only chose tracks like Homestead and Bristol, circuits where he already excels, because he was chasing a record-tying third career “triple” — winning in Trucks, Xfinity, and Cup on the same weekend — like Kyle Busch.

Yet despite the criticism, Larson later reached out to Dale Jr. and expressed interest in driving for JR Motorsports if a seat became available. So, when Connor Zilisch was sidelined with injury, Junior didn’t think twice before handing the reins of his car to the #5 Hendrick driver.

Reflecting on the irony, Dale Jr. admitted, “We were just on this show a couple of weeks ago, going after he said he wanted to embarrass the field, which we are part of the field. We took offense. We said, ‘Hey, sign up for a couple more.’ … If you’re going to say that, give me all the opportunity in the world to try to get you.'”

Then, tongue in cheek, he added, “And so there I was with Kyle Larson, who’s nearly an automatic win… try to embarrass the field and in our car, and I told him, ‘All right, now I feel a little bit different.’ … When he’s driving your car, it’s great.”

So, Dale Jr. candidly acknowledged the contradiction; he bristled at Larson embarrassing his drivers, but when it was Larson delivering that win in JR Motorsports colors, he had no complaints.

Connor Zilisch expected his substitute Larson to win the race

Zilisch has shown solid pace in his rookie campaign, already bagging a win at COTA and securing two other top-10 finishes. However, a late-race crash at Talladega sidelined him for the Texas weekend, opening the door for Kyle Larson to step in.

While Zilisch would have preferred to be behind the wheel, he held no hard feelings, especially after watching his substitute drive the car to Victory Lane. In fact, Zilisch anticipated nothing less.

He said, “It’s great to see the team in Victory Lane. Coming into the weekend, [win] was almost the expectation with Kyle driving the car; he’s so talented. It’s great for our team. There’s really not much bitter(sweet) in me, other than I had to miss this race… We brought a real fast car for Kyle, and Kyle executed and did a real great job as well.”

Zilisch is anticipated to return to Charlotte and hopes to follow in Larson’s footsteps, having taken valuable notes from the #88 team’s pit box.