Hendrick Motorsports announced Tuesday that driver Dale Earnhardt Jr has decided to retire after the 2017 season.
The 42-year-old Earnhardt has 26 wins in 603 starts including Daytona 500 victories in 2004 and 2014 as well as 14 consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Most Popular Driver awards.
Earnhardt missed the final 18 races of 2016 because of a concussion and only has one top-10 finish this year in eight starts currently sitting 24th in the season standings.
Hendrick Motorsports did not announce a replacement for Earnhardt, whose contract expires at the end of this season.