Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s appreciation for Indianapolis Motor Speedway runs deep

As Dale Earnhardt Jr. turned laps during practice Saturday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, his thoughts were not entirely on how to best setup the No. 88 Chevrolet for Sunday’s Brickyard 400.

Instead, Earnhardt drifted to thinking about the rich history of the track that was built before World War I; one of the most iconic venues in all of sports that hosts the Indianapolis 500 on Memorial Day weekend and NASCAR’s top two series each summer.

“You know who has raced here and who has been here,” Earnhardt said. “I was just thinking about that in practice going down the back straightaway about all the names that have gone down that straightaway.

“If you could go back in time and just experience everything that’s happened here, it’s so overwhelming to think about.”

That NASCAR’s most popular driver would have an appreciation for Indianapolis’ lineage isn’t surprising. Not only because he’s amid his final full season of racing and likely competing at Indianapolis for the last time, but also because Earnhardt has a deep appreciation of motor sports history that includes collecting memorabilia and regularly watching races from decades past.

IMS recognized Earnhardt’s fondness with track president Doug Boles presenting him the track’s No. 8 from its old scoring pylon as a retirement gift.

“The feeling that you get when you walk in here is such a special place, it’s hard to put it into words,” Earnhardt said. There’s not a lot of tracks that give me that feeling.

“What happened here is a little bit bigger, as far as what’s happened here in the last 100 years. It’s a little bit bigger than all of us. And so, it never gets old coming here because of that.”

But while Earnhardt appreciates all that’s transpired at Indianapolis, he has yet to truly leave his own mark.

The 2.5-mile track is not among his best. Earnhardt’s only finished better than fourth once in 16 starts, and his 18.8 average finish is third-worst among the 23 tracks on the Monster Energy Cup Series schedule. He’s led all of 15 combined laps over the past eight races.

With Earnhardt and the Hendrick Motorsports No. 88 team struggling to find speed most weeks this season, earning a first-ever Indianapolis win Sunday may not be a realistic proposition. But if Earnhardt could find a way to win the Brickyard 400, it certainly would be an accomplishment he’d appreciate.

“It is a race that I think all the drivers feel is very important to our series and a big milestone in your career,” Earnhardt said. “It ranks right up there probably close to the Daytona 500 in importance and pride to be able to come away as a winner at this place.”

A win also carries another tangible benefit: It would virtually lock Earnhardt into the 16-driver playoff field. Effectively wiping out what has been a frustrating and disappointing final season that’s seen him go winless through 19 races and facing a points deficit where he’s too far back in the standings -- 173 points behind Matt Kenseth for the final provisional transfer spot -- to make the playoffs unless he were victorious in one of the seven remaining regular season races.

“Considering how our season has gone, a win here would right all the wrongs,” Earnhardt said. “We’d probably forget about all the struggles we’ve had to get a big win like that.”