NASCAR Cup Series

Why Carl Edwards stepping away from racing isn't a complete surprise

Published Jan. 10, 2017 3:11 p.m. ET

Tom Jensen

Let’s face it, the timing of Carl Edwards’ decision to step away from NASCAR and leave Joe Gibbs Racing at the height of his career is shocking.

Edwards is only 37 years old and is coming off a season in which he was 10 laps away from winning a championship. And with the Daytona 500 less than seven weeks away, the timing of his decision is curious, to say the least.

Multiple sources confirmed to me that Edwards has no health issues and instead wanted to pursue other interests.

Whether this turns out to be a permanent retirement remains to be seen.

Yes, the timing is odd and surprising, but Edwards’ decision isn’t.

NASCAR bills itself as a family sport, and for fans, it is. It is a fantastic sport to bring your family to and enjoy. No question about it.

If you work in the sport, though, the grind is brutal: 38 races every year from the Florida Keys to New Hampshire to Northern California, plus testing. There are myriad sponsor obligations, which seem to increase every year, as teams add more and more sponsors.

Add in NASCAR-mandated media appearances and press conferences, plus team and fan club events and it can be overwhelming.

This isn’t a 9-to-5, Monday through Friday gig. It’s your life and it’s all-consuming.

Racing 38 weekends a year means you miss a lot of family time and events. You can’t physically be there when your kids appear in a school play or go to prom or pitch in a Little League game. You just can’t.

And that takes its toll on your home life. I don’t care who you are, it strains every relationship you have at home.

Now imagine doing that for 13 years, as Edwards has done.

To fans “getting to go to races” is glamorous; to drivers, it’s their job and it’s a damned hard one. Yes, they are richly compensated. But I guarantee you, they earn every dime.

On Wednesday, Edwards will speak about his future plans, so I’m not going to speculate on his motivations.

But he is an intensely private guy, someone who is warm and charming in public but definitely puts up a wall around his private life, which is absolutely his right to do. There’s nothing wrong with that.

Presumably, money won’t be an issue and he’ll get to step away and enjoy his family and his privacy at a much, much saner pace than he did when he was racing 38 weeks a year.

Whatever his next move, Edwards certainly has established an impressive body of work in NASCAR. He owes no one in the racing community anything, and his choice to step away — whether temporarily or permanently — that’s his right. And he’s exercised it.

Good luck in the future, Carl.

We’ll miss you.