When Dodge officially left NASCAR in 2012, many fans believed that this marked the end of the OEM and speed racing era. Thankfully, it didn’t. Early this season, the conversation between RAM and NASCAR gained traction with the company finally confirming its comeback to stock car racing during the race weekend at Michigan International Speedway. While the Truck series deal is still up, it looks like RAM’s return to the Cup series faces a villain; a villain that irks even the legend, Dale Earnhardt Jr.The NASCAR Cup Series charter system has been a topic of heavy debate among fans and within courtrooms. Well, courtroom discussions ignited due to 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports filing an antitrust lawsuit against the sport in late 2024. The teams refused to sign the latest charter agreement, claiming NASCAR ‘monopolized’ the sport with the system. Now, their date for the trial is set for December 1st, 2025, but the implications of the charter system have been stark since its introduction, and now, RAM opened up on how that affected their Cup Series ambitions.Charter system stalled RAM’s aspirationsIntroduced in 2016, the NASCAR charter system aimed to provide stability and long-term value to Cup Series teams. Charters guarantee entry into every race and a share of the purse, forming the foundation of a team’s business model. With only 36 charters available, teams highly seek them and often liken them to sports franchises in other leagues. Currently, prices have soared past $45 million, and veterans of the industry have pointed out how detrimental this could be for new teams or manufacturers trying to enter the sport, and their concerns are turning out to be true.In April, during an exclusive with journalist Jordan Bianchi, Dale Earnhardt Jr. said of this system: “It has created a very, very challenging barrier of entry for anyone that’s not a billionaire.” Think about it, when NASCAR launched charters in 2016, it provided them to teams at no cost. Now, these charters have become highly valuable assets, increasing in worth by more than 11 times. And that seems to worry the newest upcoming Truck Series OEM, RAM, as well, resulting in a sarcastic reaction from Earnhardt Jr on X.In his recent interview with Kevin Harvick, RAM president Tim Kuniskis shared one worrying update: the OEM was “really far down the path” of talks with NASCAR before someone mentioned the Cup Series’ charter system, which served as a “wake-up call so that’s making us slow down a little bit,” as Kuniskis said. Before this bombshell dropped, RAM, which spun off from Dodge in 2009, was set to join the Cup Series as early as 2027. However, it seems that it will take more time, based on the latest update, with the Truck Series being their first step.In response to the news, Dale Earnhardt Jr. replied with a GIF of Michael Scott nodding in agreement from the show The Office, indicating that he understood why it happened. He also shared his perspective in the aforementioned interview with Bianchi, explaining that despite feeling “torn in two” about the system, he “can’t risk my kids’ inheritance and future on some idea of my own; that’s a selfish thing.” pic.twitter.com/Z8FOltQU16— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) June 19, 2025Dale Earnhardt Jr. has owned an Xfinity Series team, JR Motorsports, for decades now, but fans always wondered why he never made the move up to the Cup Series with his team. While Xfinity Series success has been plenty, with multiple championships under their belt, the cost of Cup Series charters simply drove the veteran away. After finally announcing JRM’s Cup debut ahead of the 2025 Daytona 500, Junior mentioned that he is open to entering a car more frequently, but only if he has a partner or sponsor. RAM also felt the same way, which is why they decided to join the Truck Series to dip their toes into NASCAR.RAM will rejoin NASCAR next year in the Truck Series, becoming the first new manufacturer to enter at the national level since 2007. Kuniskis has set ambitious goals for the Truck Series, promising 25 product announcements over the next 18 months. He stated that RAM will launch its trucks aggressively to be disruptive.However, there’s another disruption that the return of RAM caused in the NASCAR world with a burning question: Is Cleetus McFarland RAM’s newest driver?Tim Kuniskis addresses Cleetus McFarland rumorsAccording to a June 1, 2025, report by SBJ, RAM was rumored to have hired YouTube star and ARCA driver Garrett Mitchell, A.K.A Cleetus McFarland, for a potential new NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series team, pending the completion of talks for RAM’s entry into the sport in 2026. While McFarland had not revealed his plans for the following year, sources indicated he was a candidate for the new RAM team. However, during his interview with Kevin Harvick, Tim Kuniskis showed regret that such a rumor even started.“I don’t know where that came from,” Kuniskis said during the podcast with Harvick. “People suspected that we had something to do with that. We actually had absolutely nothing to do with it.” Kuniskis mentioned that he has had minimal, if any, interaction with the rookie from the ARCA Menards Series. This statement was certainly necessary. The rumors about Cleetus McFarland joining the RAM team in 2026 gained significant traction, to the point that NASCAR on FOX analyst Michael Waltrip even brought it up during the Truck Series race at Michigan.Kuniskis added, “I hope that didn’t cause any problems for him because, honest to God, we had absolutely nothing to do with it. I don’t know him. I talked to him one time casually… I know who he is. I’ve seen the stuff that he does.” With only a limited number of months left, Ram has a narrow timeframe to prepare for Daytona in 2026, and fans are eager to see what they put together as a brand-new OEM finally graces the sport.What are your expectations for RAM’s Truck Series ambition in 2026? Let us know in the comments!The post Dale Earnhardt Jr. Reacts as RAM Boss Reveals Troubling Details Behind Cup Series Refusal appeared first on EssentiallySports.