Dale Earnhardt Jr. finishes 25th in final NASCAR Cup race before retirement

Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s NASCAR Cup Series career came to an end Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway with an 25th-place in the Ford EcoBoost 400.

Starting at the rear of the field due to a mechanical change before the race, Earnhardt worked his way through the field but fell a lap down to the leaders on Lap 56 of 267. He was in position to get back on the lead lap but was hurt by a caution, slowing his momentum.

Martin Truex Jr. won Sunday's race to capture his first NASCAR championship. Kyle Busch was second.

Earnhardt made his first career Cup Series start on May 30, 1999, at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Since then, the Kannapolis, North Carolina, native has 26 Cup Series wins, which include four wins at Daytona and six at Talladega, Earnhardt has 24 Xfinity Series wins and back to back titles in the second-tier series (then the Busch Series).

A 14-time most popular driver award recipient, Earnhardt has won the exhibition All-Star Race twice and is a five-time winner of the Daytona 500 qualifying race.

Junior said during an emotional retirement press conference earlier this year he still plans to race two Xfinity Series races in 2018 with the team he owns and still plans to be involved in NASCAR.