Dale Earnhardt Jr. is planning to race on the Darlington Raceway in South Carolina next weekend on Aug. 31, and hopes to be fully recovered from the plane crash injuries he suffered last week in order to participate.
Earnhardt escaped from the plane crash along with two pilots and his family, after the plane coursed off the runway of Elizabethton Municipal Airport in Tennessee on Aug. 15.
He answered a Twitter post by a fan who asked if he’d still race next week after the crash last week.
“With the events of last week are you still racing at @TooToughToTame next week?” wrote the fan.
“Yes. I plan on driving still,” wrote Earnhardt. “My lower back is bruised up real bad. Lots of swelling and I just need that to go down and the pain to chill out. I been treating the area every day solely to get well to race. I have a plan B but hope not to use it.”
Yes. I plan on driving still. My lower back is bruised up real bad. Lots of swelling and I just need that to go down and the pain to chill out. I been treating the area every day solely to get well to race. I have a plan B but hope not to use it. https://t.co/O1J7jZU4kR
— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) August 22, 2019
Several Twitter users expressed excitement, but at the same time were urging him to take care of his health.
A Twitter user asked, “What is Plan B?…Cortizone shot?” to which Earnhardt responded, “Someone else drives the car.”
Someone else drives the car
— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) August 22, 2019
An Elizabethton Fire Department official told People that Earnhardt and his wife were taken to a hospital and didn’t have serious injuries.
A senior investigator for the National Transportation Safety Board, Ralph Hicks, said in a press conference: “the airplane basically bounced at least twice before coming down hard on the right main landing gear. The airplane continued down the runway off to the end, through a fence and it came to a stop on Highway 91,” reported People.
Earnhardt wrote on Twitter on Aug. 19:
“Amy and I want to thank everyone who has lifted us up with phone calls, messages, and prayer since last Thursday. We are truly blessed that all on board escaped with no serious injuries, including our daughter, our two pilots and our dog Gus,” he wrote.
“With respect to the investigation, we will not be speculating or discussing the cause of the accident. I am thankful for the quick response of my pilots, local law enforcement, emergency personnel, and hospital staff. Lastly, Amy and I continue to be very appreciative of the privacy extended to us to process everything. It has been important to do that together and on our own time.”
— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) August 19, 2019
Earnhardt won 15 times in a row NASCAR’s most popular driver award from 2003 to 2017, he is now retired from NASCAR and is a racing analyst.
Darlington would be Earnhardt’s only race this season.
