Who has the best drivers in the world? Formula One, IndyCar or NASCAR? Dale Earnhardt Jr. thinks NASCAR has the best drivers in the world. That might be the case for some drivers, but how many of today's superstars are actually the "Best in the World." Kyle Larson might have a case for that argument.
However, how can anyone really know? It's not like Larson, F1's Max Verstappen and IndyCar's Alex Palou are ever going to race against each other in equal cars.
Dale Jr. had the now-retired Kevin Harvick as his guest for the final Dale Jr. Download episode of the year, where the two talked about plenty of topics, including Harvick's new role as a broadcaster like Earnhardt Jr.
Both drivers are on NASCAR's 75 Greatest Drivers list, which puts them among some of the best racecar drivers in the United States, but that doesn't quite mean it translates to the whole world. Only a few on that list might reach the world category.
Earnhardt took time during the podcast with Harvick to try and remind people, in his mind, that NASCAR has the best drivers in the world.
"To your point about making them rockstars of telling people they are rockstars, they're damn good at it," Earnhardt said to Harvick. "I get in that Xfinity car and I'm reminded immediately, that these guys are no joke. And imagine the leap to the Cup level, right? Of just talent, with how hard they race, they're doing it every single week and all of a sudden you jump on that escalator like 'Oh s**t, these freaking guys know where they're going, I gotta figure this out.' I love that it reminds me of just how good they are because we forget to tell people that. You get down the road and you're like, man, I haven't said that these are the best racecar drivers in the world in a long time, and I should be saying that more often!"
Though Dale is right, drivers throughout NASCAR are talented, there isn't quite a way to showcase how drivers like Denny Hamlin, Chase Elliott and Ryan Blaney would stack up against Lewis Hamilton, Verstappen and Scott Dixon.
Larson on the other hand is the big difference, because he has the opportunity of a lifetime to go and race in the Indy 500, which will pit him against IndyCar's best.
Earnhardt Jr. isn't wrong about NASCAR being as talented as ever, but unless we get some kind of motorsports in the Olympics or something like the old Race of Champions returns, we will never actually know who the Best Racer in the World is.
