The NASCAR offseason has been a tough one for everyone in the industry. On Dec. 18, Greg Biffle, his wife, their two kids and three others were killed in a plane crash at Statesville Regional Airport. Ten days later, Denny Hamlin’s dad, Dennis Hamlin, died from injuries sustained in a fire at his residence in Winston-Salem.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. raced against Biffle. He shared a relationship with him off the track after they both retired from full-time competition. Hamlin is a friend of Earnhardt’s and a member of the Dirty Mo Media podcast family. Earnhardt, speaking Tuesday on his “Dale Jr. Download” podcast, reflected on both tragedies.
“That was really tough,” Earnhardt said. “… It was hard, and I can’t imagine what it must be like for his family, his friends, his close friends, his family members, and I’m sure they all feel absolutely devastated. We’re thinking about them. Also want to give a minute to mention Denny Hamlin and what he had to experience and go through with his father, the house fire, and his mom. I don’t have any first-hand knowledge or information but I’m hoping that his mom is doing well.
“Tragically losing a parent, I mean, Denny had been open and vocal about his dad had an illness that’s he’s been dealing with and things weren’t looking real good long-term in that situation. Then to tragically lose him like that in a house fire, just scary. That is super, super scary. Can’t imagine how terrifying that might have been and sad for Denny to have to go through this.”
Dale Earnhardt Jr. shares stories of interactions with Denny Hamlin, Greg Biffle
Earnhardt talked about his friendship with Hamlin, which began more than 20 years ago. Hamlin, looking to get a ride in NASCAR, had a meeting with Joe Gibbs Racing ahead of the 2004 Daytona 500. Hamlin had nowhere to stay; Earnhardt had a couch on his bus, ready for Hamlin. Earnhardt won the Daytona 500 and Hamlin carried the trophy back to the bus.
“And then he would go on to become Denny Hamlin,” Earnhardt said.
As for Biffle, Earnhardt admitted he didn’t truly get to know him until after his racing career. Earnhardt is grateful he did, sharing stories of his interactions with him in recent years.
“We never had a problem on the racetrack, we raced fine,” Earnhardt said. “When I retired and we both kind of started slowing down at the same time, I started seeing him more and Amy wanted to do some of the stuff with the animal hospitals that Greg was involved in. We would go and hang out and see Greg. We would run into each other at the lake with our boats.
“… I got to know him — we all got to know him watching him do some YouTube, his dirt race on his farm, become friends with Cleetus [McFarland]… I think we all got to see the true individual that he is.”
A Gathering of Remembrance for Biffle and those killed in the plane crash is scheduled for Friday at Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte. The memorial, open to the public, begins at 11 a.m. ET. It will stream live on NASCAR.com, Facebook, YouTube and The NASCAR Channel.