Dale Earnhardt Sr and because leftists from the South decided that he was too good to let the fascists co-opt him like they do with all other southern things, so they beat them to it.
He was just a very talented and seemingly likeable person who a lot of people loved and admired. The fact that he died young trying to win a race* probably added to his regional hero status.
You'd probably need to understand how big a deal NASCAR really is in some parts of the South to fully get it 🤷
*death actually even MORE badass, see the reply below
He didnt die trying to win, he died blocking for his teammate who was in 1st and his son who was in 2nd on the final lap of the Daytona 500 (the biggest race in NASCAR) his final words were, "Look at them boys go."