Darrell Waltrip to Step Back After Brain Disease Diagnosis

Darrell Waltrip and his family said he has been diagnosed with frontotemporal degeneration, a progressive brain disease, and that he will step further away from public life. The 79-year-old former NASCAR driver and broadcaster has also been diagnosed with possible chronic traumatic encephalopathy, which the family said was likely related to injuries from his racing career. In a family statement released Wednesday, the family described Waltrip’s noticeable symptoms as minor and said he was spending time with his wife, Stevie, their two daughters and three grandchildren. The statement said the disease would progress, but did not specify the diagnosis’s severity or how it may affect his activities over time. The CTE diagnosis was described as possible, not confirmed. The family characterized its connection to racing injuries as likely. No medical records or clinician’s account were provided in the reports, and the available information does not establish the diagnosis’s severity or the basis for linking CTE to Waltrip’s racing career. Waltrip won 84 NASCAR Cup Series races and three championships, in 1981, 1982 and 1985. He competed from 1972 to 2000 and won the 1989 Daytona 500.