Dale Earnhardt and Jeff Gordon were friends off-track and rivals on-track. Years after Earnhardt passed away in a tragic crash, Gordon decided to celebrate one of his wins by waving a number 3 flag from his car. Back in 2019, Gordon explained how it felt while showing his respect to his long-time rival. Earnhardt Junior also thanked the former 4 time Cup Series champion for his gesture.

Gordon said, “When that win came, and we knew that it was gonna be maybe controversial to some of the Earnhardt fans. But didn’t matter, that was a great way to show respect.”

Then Dale Earnhardt Jr said, “I just loved it. I thought it was great, anybody saying anything great or showing any kind of recognition to dad is a great thing.”

“But coming from Jeff Gordon who’s accomplished so much made it even more special.”

Gordon concluded by stating, “The coolest thing was Dale Earnhardt Jr coming over to victory lane, by him saying ‘dad would have been proud’ that solidified it for me. I’m so glad that we did that, that day.”

Jeff Gordon later visited Dale Earnhardt’s statue

In order to pay his respects to his former rival and friend, the former Hendrick Motorsports driver went all the way to the Dale Earnhardt Tribute Plaza located in Kannapolis, North Carolina.

During his visit to the iconic place, an emotional Gordon stated, “as much as he messed with me, somehow on the inside I always thought that it was a sign of respect.”

“He would have not said anything at all if he didn’t care. I respected the heck out of this guy. Loved racing with him. Hated it at times but no, overall my experience with Dale was incredible.”

“I miss him. And a lot of people do.”

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What memory do you have of Earnhardt?