Having been successful at the biggest stages in NASCAR, Dale Earnhardt Jr. knows how to handle big moments. He’s one of the most notable and loved NASCAR drivers in history. Earnhardt has been semi-retired, enjoying life after racing with his wife and family.

Having a lifetime’s worth of experience handling the limelight, the racing legend still gets nervous sometimes. Earnhardt explained how his legacy as a NASCAR legend made him nervous about a potential addition to his growing family.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. is semi-retired from NASCAR

It will be four years in April since Dale Earnhardt Jr. semi-walked away from NASCAR as a full-time driver. He walked away from the sport for many reasons, but the most important one being his health. He suffered multiple concussions throughout his career, which took a toll on him. Earnhardt also had the desire to start a family with his wife, Amy.

Despite his retirement, Earnhardt Jr. subtly returned to racing. He participated at Richmond Raceway in 2018, Darlington Raceway in 2019, and Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2020.

He is also in the Broadcast booth, being a NASCAR analyst for NBC. Earnhardt also hosts his own podcast show, the Dale Jr. Download. Perhaps the most enjoyable part of Earnhadrt’s life is his growing family.

Earnhardt and his wife already have one child, Isla Rose Earnhardt. That is Earnhardt’s pride and joy, as he enjoys spending time with her every day. 

“There is a love and a feeling about being the father of a daughter that I can’t even hardly put it into words. Isla is now, just in the last probably several weeks, is constantly saying how much she loves me. She loves her daddy and loves to be up against her dad and wants her dad to tuck her in at night,” said Earnhardt, per USA Today. 

The Earnhardts continued to grow their family, having a second child. Before their child was born, Earnhardt dealt with some pre-birth nervousness. He was worried about the child’s gender and what immense pressure that could bring.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. was nervous about the gender of his second child

Knowing the gender of a child is a beautiful thing. It’s become such a big deal that gender reveal parties are somewhat mandatory nowadays. In Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s case, he was excited but also reasonably nervous. The racing legend’s apprehension came from the possibility of his second child being a boy.

“I’ll be honest with you, and I don’t know how people will receive this. I was worried — I’ve gotta choose my words wisely here — I was super worried about having a son,” said Earnhardt per the Dale Jr. Download.

Earnhardt knows the expectations and pressure that would come if his child was a boy. Being in a racing family, his son would be expected to do the same, which was nerve-wracking for Earnhardt. 

“The expectations and people’s hopes of who he would become or might become were gonna be just really unrealistic and challenging and, at times, even unfair maybe. And so there was a part of me that was a little nervous about that, about having a son and being the focus of how I raised him and who he was and who he was going to be,” said Earnhardt.

It fair that Dale Earnhardt Jr. had these initial reservations about having a son. He is the son of a racing legend, which makes his words even more genuine. He had to spend the early parts of his career trying to get himself out of his father’s shadow. If he were to have a son, he would spend parts of his career doing the same. That kind of pressure he didn’t want for his son.

Earnhardt Jr. is still a #GirlDad

Luckily for Dale Earnhardt Jr., he can breathe a sigh of relief pertaining to his nervousness about his child’s gender. They would be having a girl, making it a three to one edge in the girl/boy count in the Earnhardt household. Earnhardt was ecstatic about having two daughters.

“It’s just the most amazing thing, and to have another dose of that [girl] ingredient in the household, I’m all about it. So Amy’s great, Isla’s great, and we’re going to add to that. We’re going to bring more of that into our home, and I just can’t wait,” said Earnhardt.

The family welcomed their second daughter, Nicole Lorraine Earnhardt, in October of 2020. When the family came home with their newest addition, Earnhardt Jr. shared a touching story about Isla bonding with her new sister.

“(Nicole) was in this little rocking bassinet thing, and she’s like, ‘Can I rock her?’ I was like, ‘Yeah, just very gently.’ She got down on her knees and [put] her chin on the edge of the bassinet and was just looking at her, and it was a great moment,” said Earnhardt per SportingNews.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. is a legendary racer, notable sports figure, and broadcaster. Yet, he still got nervous over his child’s gender reveal. Having the family history he has, the nerves were warranted. However, he isn’t out of the woods yet. Maybe one of his daughters will continue the racing tradition in the family.