Bobby Earnhardt, the grandson of the NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt, made an uncanny comparison to his grandfather. While speaking about the seven-time Cup champion, he compared him to Cleetus McFarland, the YouTuber-turned driver, something that raised a lot of eyebrows.

"Cleetus reminds me a lot of him, taking care of the fans, and he will stay inside for hours, and somebody, everybody gets an autograph," Earnhardt told Frontstretch. "That’s what I like to see, and I am glad he is in the sport, and I hope he continues to be in ARCA, O’Reilly, and Truck. I mean, he is just really good for the sport, and I look forward to a lot of success with him.”

Notably, Earnhardt was one of the most popular drivers in NASCAR, who had an ample fan following. From fans rooting for him in races to making him the most popular driver on multiple occasions, there was no competition.

Keeping the racing statistics aside, one such driver who has an ample fan following is Cleetus McFarland. The YouTuber has over 4.7 million subscribers on YouTube, and millions more on Facebook, Instagram, and X.

Bobby's comparison centers on McFarland's fan-first approach during his transition into NASCAR Truck racing. Similar to Earnhardt, McFarland is also known to be caring for his fans, as seen on several occasions on social media and during races. While there is no question about his popularity, his racecraft still comes under it.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. lauded NASCAR's decision to block Cleetus McFarland

Despite allowing him to make his debut in the NASCAR Truck and the O'Reilly Auto Parts Series in 2026, the governing body blocked him from running at Talladega, a Superspeedway track. Earnhardt, appreciating the decision, said in the Dale Jr Download podcast:

"I saw enough to not approve him for Daytona or Talladega in the O’Reilly series. Was not present and in person for any of this, but I watched the YouTube video from the truck test with Niece. I watched the YouTube video of his O’Reilly test with RCR. And then I watched the race. And in all three of those, he busted his a**.”

Cleetus McFarland did not arrive in NASCAR from a racing background and barely followed any traditional ladder to be where he is today. He's just had a handful of races in the lower-tier series before his thoughts about racing on a Superspeedway until NASCAR blocked it.

You can read more on the Daytona Racing Digest!

Written by

Sabyasachi Biswas

Edited by

Suyashdeep Sason