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CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 12: Team owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. addresses the media during the NASCAR Championship Format Announcement at NASCAR Productions Facility on January 12, 2026 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by David Jensen/Getty Images)

Dale Earnhardt Jr. became one of the loudest voices reacting to NASCAR’s latest penalty decision after the Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway. NASCAR fined Ryan Preece $50,000 and deducted 25 driver points after officials ruled he intentionally wrecked Ty Gibbs during the Würth 400.

The ruling immediately sparked debate across the garage because NASCAR did not penalize Kyle Busch after his separate late-race incident with John Hunter Nemechek. Fans quickly questioned why one driver faced punishment while the other avoided penalties. Earnhardt Jr. also admitted he did not expect NASCAR to penalize either driver after Sunday’s race.

Why NASCAR Penalized Ryan Preece

The Ryan Preece penalty came after NASCAR reviewed an incident from Lap 101 of the race. Preece made contact with Gibbs’ No. 54 Toyota, sending the Joe Gibbs Racing driver into the outside wall.

NASCAR later confirmed that officials used race footage, SMT data, and radio communications to determine that the contact was intentional. The penalty dropped Preece to 13th in the NASCAR Cup Series standings during an important point in the season.

After the crash, Gibbs told his team over the radio that he would “get him another time.” NASCAR’s investigation mainly focused on comments made by Preece before the contact happened.

That decision quickly raised questions among fans and drivers because NASCAR later treated another incident differently.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Reacts To NASCAR Decision

Earnhardt Jr. shared his reaction on Dirty Mo Media soon after NASCAR announced the decision. The NASCAR Hall of Famer said he did not expect officials to penalize either driver after the incidents at Texas.

“Just seeing the news that NASCAR penalized Ryan Preece for what happened Sunday during the race, and no penalty for Kyle Busch. We already put out our video with our thoughts. I didn’t think either one would get penalized.”

The former Cup Series driver then explained why he disagreed with NASCAR’s decision.

“I honestly don’t agree with this one. If you’re not going to penalize Kyle, which I didn’t think they would, I don’t think you can penalize Preece.”

The two-time Daytona 500 winner also discussed the in-car footage from the incident involving Gibbs.

“If you watch the in-car footage, the 54 just drives across his nose. Even though we know what Preece said over the radio and after the race, he could still argue that, in that moment, the 24 cut him off and came down in front of him.”

The comparison between the two rulings quickly became one of the biggest NASCAR news stories coming out of Texas.

Why Kyle Busch Was Not Penalized

The NASCAR decision involving Busch became another major talking point after the race weekend. Busch made contact with Nemechek under caution during the closing laps, causing visible damage to the No. 42 car.

Despite the contact, NASCAR did not issue penalties against Busch. Officials reportedly found no clear radio admission or enough telemetry evidence to prove the incident was intentional.

That difference in rulings became impossible to ignore for many fans online. Some believed Preece’s radio comments played a larger role in the punishment than the actual contact itself.
Earnhardt Jr. later admitted the final ruling surprised him.

“I’m just really, really surprised by this decision. This is quite an interesting turn of events. I didn’t see this one coming.”

RFK Racing has not announced whether it plans to appeal the Ryan Preece penalty. As the NASCAR Cup Series heads into the next race weekend, the debate surrounding NASCAR penalties and officiating consistency continues across the garage.