Dale Earnhardt Jr. to miss at least 2 more races

Still, he’s working on his balance, providing updates to his fans, which team owner Rick Hendrick said he appreciates. Everyone wants to see him in a race auto, but his health is first and foremost. Part of his rehab includes walking backward while moving his head in a dark room with disco lights, various basketball-type drills and an online 3D program that forces his eyes to work together. “What’s going to happen three to five years from now, nobody knows”.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.is following doctor’s orders, and they’re telling him not to hop back in a NASCAR stock auto for a while.

Doctors have not yet cleared the two-time Daytona 500 champion after an evaluation Wednesday at the University of Pittsburgh’s Sports Medicine Concussion Program. He visited them Wednesday. We are taking extra effort with the doctors, making sure he’s going to be 100%. “He’s coming along great and he wants to get back in the auto”. “William has nothing to do with Dale at all”, Hendrick said. Bowman drove for Earnhardt July 17 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, while Gordon handled the subsequent four races. Jeff Gordon will fill in at Darlington, where he has won seven races. Gordon can’t race at MI on Sunday because of a prior commitment that would prevent him from being at the track on Friday and Saturday. If he returns, it will likely take a few weeks for him to get comfortable behind the wheel once more. “You can’t just be out of it for six months and jump in and expect that to come naturally – not for me anyway”.

He reasserted at a press conference two weeks ago that he meant to return to the series and honor his contract with HMS – which runs through next season – but said timetables were premature until he was healthy.