Dale Earnhardt Jr. Had Conversations With The New York Yankees About Buying A NASCAR Team

Could we get the Red Sox vs. the Yankees on the NASCAR track too?

Fenway Sports Group, owner of the Boston Red Sox, have been in NASCAR since 2007 when the group purchased 50% of what was then known as Roush Racing and is now Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing.

But lately, rumors have been swirling that the Red Sox biggest rival is looking to get into NASCAR too.

With Cup Series teams currently locked in negotiations with NASCAR over a future charter agreement, it’s been reported that several venture capital firms are watching the progress of these negotiations closely and are interested in jumping into the sport if a long-term charter agreement is reached that can help to secure their potential investment.

And one of those groups that’s interested is the Steinbrenner family, owner of the New York Yankees.

It’s been reported that George Michael Steinbrenner IV and Julia Steinbrenner, children of late Yankees co-owner Hank Steinbrenner, could end up investing in Spire Motorsports, which currently runs the #7 car for Corey LaJoie (though it was recently announced that he wouldn’t be returning to the team in 2025), the #71 for Zane Smith, and the #77 car of Carson Hocevar.

Spire has been investing heavily in their race team lately, expanding to a three-car team and even landing the most sought-after (i.e. expensive) crew chief in the garage when Rodney Childers signed with Spire after Stewart-Haas Racing announced they would be shutting down.

But another possible investment for the Steinbrenners that’s been mentioned is JR Motorsports – the team owned by NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt Jr.

JR Motorsports currently fields four cars in the Xfinity Series, and Junior has expressed interest in moving the team to the Cup Series but has been reluctant due to the cost of buying a charter and operating a Cup Series team. But an investment from the Yankees could definitely help things.

And on this week’s episode of his podcast, The Dale Jr. Download, Junior revealed that he and his sister, Kelley Earnhardt Miller, had conversations with the Yankees group himself:

“Me and Kelley talked to the Yankees like two years ago, and they were definitely interested. They wanted to learn about what race teams spend, what are the financials and the risks involved.

These are owners and businesses that have invested in other sports.”

Earnhardt admits that if he could find an investor for JR Motorsports, it’s something he would seriously entertain:

“If somebody came in here tomorrow and said to me and Kelley, ‘We definitely want to be majority investors in a race team, and your team, to manage it, we would absolutely be interested in that.'”

Dale Earnhardt Jr. partnering up with the Yankees. Just doesn’t seem right.

But hey, NASCAR’s an expensive sport, and if it helps get his team to the next level, can’t blame a guy for doing whatever it takes.

@dirtymomedia_Dale reveals he and Kelley had past NASCAR talks with the Steinbrenner family following the recent news. ⚾

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