Despite mid-race wreck, Dale Jr. felt Daytona "was a new beginning"

Earnhardt was caught up in a six-car accident on Lap 105 of 200, which began when Kyle Busch spun on his own at the front of the field.

Earnhardt’s No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet was damaged enough to take to the garage, which meant after a check at the infield care center, his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race since last July had come to an end.

He ended up with a 37-place finish.

“It felt awesome to lead the race,” said Earnhardt, who once for eight laps. “We had so, so much support from our fans and on social media. Just riding around during driver intros, we had so much support and they want to see you do well.

“I just hate I can’t deliver a better result and we could put a good bookend on this thing. I’m happy I feel good and I’ll be able to go to Atlanta and keep competing.”

Earnhardt still had a productive Daytona Speedweeks.

He qualified on the front row of the Daytona 500, alongside his teammate and pole-winner Chase Elliott. He led much of the second of two 150-mile qualifying races before getting passed by Denny Hamlin late in the race.

“I’m disappointed because we’re not going to get a good result today but I’m working on that. I’m trying not to get too disappointed about things,” Earnhardt said. “I’m just happy to get the opportunity to come back and drive and do it well.

“The whole weeks were a lot of fun; all the media; all the buildup. We had a sellout. Chip (Wile, track president) did an amazing job, bring in all those celebrities. It was a pretty neat deal today. It felt like it was a new beginning, of sorts, for me and the sport, I guess.

“It felt like there was a new energy. I don’t know what it was, but it felt good.”

Earnhardt credited the safety improvements his team made in his car in the offseason with the blessing of NASCAR.

“We changed some things in the interior that I feel will help me going forward. I just appreciate all the effort NASCAR has put in to safety,” he said. “I know we say that a lot but if they hadn’t put the money into the studies that they did, I probably would have gotten hurt again right there.”