The three inductees to the NASCAR Hall of Fame for the class of 2027 are all in. And Dale Jr., who was on the voting panel, shared his thoughts on those inducted as well as the posts he brought to the discussion.

The 2022 Hall of Fame inductee congratulated Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton, and Larry Phillips via social media. For Harvick, he wrote — "Well deserved"; for Burton — "The Mayor," and for Larry Phillips, he wrote — "He finally got it." 

Dale Jr. shared his excitement for the winners, as well as a detailed breakdown of the discussions surrounding each nominee for the NASCASR HOF Class of 2027. The 26-time Cup race winner posted a video on Dirty Mo Overdrive.

Speaking about Harvick, he said, "Kevin Harvick was an automatic for me. I don’t know how anybody couldn't have marked him down. And I’m certain that probably 99 per cent of people in the room did."

Harvick retired in 2023 with the 2014 Cup Championship and 60 wins under his belt. Since then, he has been an active voice for the sport through podcasts and broadcasting.

While Harvick was a straight pick, Dale Jr. said, "There was a lot of debate about the rest of it. Larry Phillips has been in this deal for a long, long time. And there was a lot of conversation around some of the people that we’re in the pioneer ballot with Larry, and I asked some questions myself about Herb Nab."

Dale Jr. pointed to the legendary crew chief who got two championships in three years and finished second thrice in a row before that with 92 race wins. But it was Larry Phillips, who was the first driver to win five NASCAR Weekly Series national championships, who was finally inducted into the NASCAR HOF.

Dale Jr. On NASCAR HOF Recognizing Jeff Burton’s Impact

Dale Jr. said that there were a lot of people who were being discussed amongst them. The top names were those of Ray Elder, Neil Bonnet, and Jeff Burton, with Burton being the standout nominee for the third inductee in 2027. 

"There were a lot of great things said about Jeff Burton. And one of the things that kind of struck me about Jeff Burton was he had a lot of wins in the O'Reilly Series, a lot of Cup wins, all the great success he had on the racetrack. But what he did off the racetrack, I don’t think a lot of people know."

Junior pointed out how Burton was called "The Mayor" because he was often the advocate for drivers' well-being and safety, a role his father, Dale Sr., was recognized with before his tragic passing. Dale Jr. also spoke about the drivers' council, which Burton ran. 

"Over the last several years, the drivers have tried to organise, how many times, all the way back into the 70s. Even before that, with Curtis Turner, and NASCAR would deny it every time, not allow it, even ban you from trying to do that."

But under Burton's leadership, the drivers' council was successfully formulated in 2022, and it was a well-oiled machine.

"And he was one of the main reasons why the council actually worked this time," Dale Jr. added. "Because they allowed him to be the voice. And NASCAR trusted that. So he’s just done a lot of good stuff. Jeff Burton really influenced the sport."

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Written by

Debrup Chaudhuri

Edited by

Yask Kotak