NASCAR

Nobody was happier to see Aaron Rodgers' insane comeback Sunday night than Danica Patrick ... 'cause she showered her man with praise after the win -- calling him the greatest of all time!!

The ex-NASCAR driver had a luxury box seat to Rodgers' rollercoaster ride against the Bears ... with cameras showing her nervous during Aaron's injury and shock during his comeback.

When the game was over -- and the injured QB had led his team from down 20-0 to a 24-23 win on one healthy leg -- she took to social media.

The pic was of a Lambeau Field T.V. -- complete with a goat emoji and the words, "Unreal baby."

FYI ... this ain't the first time Danica's celebrated her man's Packers greatness -- remember the custom bottle of champagne she popped after he inked his mega deal?!

Seems like Aaron's not the only one angling for a ring this season ...

By the way ... Randall Cobb -- the dude who caught the game-winning, 75-yard touchdown from Rodgers -- had quite the postgame celebration too ... giving his newborn baby the game ball!!

The baby boy -- Caspian Cyrus Cobb -- is barely a month old ... but little man's already got a piece of Packer history for the rest of his life.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. just got REAL candid about his relationship with his wife -- admitting they were crashing and burning in a big way ... until they started going to couples therapy.

"Every day was like grinding gears,” Earnhardt said about his relationship with Amy Reimann ... "Just a lot of tension and disagreement and misunderstanding."

Dale and Amy started dating back in 2009 -- and got married in 2016 -- but it wasn't always sunshine and rainbows.

"There were great times -- and then there were days when we would both sort of withdraw and get frustrated with each other and not communicate and hold grudges and, 'I'm gonna show you!'”

Dale fought back tears as he opened up on "In Depth with Graham Bensinger" -- explaining how things finally turned around when they sought professional help from a woman named Jane.

"Jane was the reason why we were married. Jane is the reason why we're having a family. And, Jane is the reason why every day is way better."

The couple just welcomed their first child -- a baby girl named Isla Rose -- back in May ... and Dale says even though they still get regular checkups with their therapist -- they're a very happy family now.

Question: What would YOU do if your boyfriend just signed a $134 MILLION contract?!?!

Answer: POP BOTTLES LIKE A BOSS, SON!!!!

That's what Danica Patrick did Wednesday night -- after her man, Aaron Rodgers, inked the richest contract in NFL history.

Check out the custom bottle of Armand de Brignac Ace of Spades champagne -- engraved with Aaron's name -- surrounded by yellow and green balloons, Green Bay Packers colors.

Danica commented, "Big day."

Yeah, she's right.

But, Danica ain't hurting for cash either ... she reportedly made around $13 MIL of her own in 2017, according to Forbes.

By the way ... these two have been an item for nearly a year -- with Danica rolling out to his games in Green Bay and Rodgers returning the favor at her races. Aaron even came to her defense after she got grilled for her ESPYs performance last month!!

NASCAR star Kasey Kahne says he's stepping away from being a full-time driver -- explaining the grind is taking too much of a toll on his personal life.

"I've thought about this decision for many months, if not longer," the 38-year-old said ... "It's time for me to step away from racing in NASCAR full time."

Kahne says he's "at ease" with his decision because when it comes down to it -- "The highs didn't outweigh the lows and the grueling schedule takes a toll on your quality of life."

"I need to spend more time doing the things I enjoy and love and that's spending time with [my son] Tanner and my sprint car teams."

"I've had a great career in racing and met so many amazing people and fans along the way, some that I'll remain in touch with for life. We still have some work to do this year in the #95 and I look forward to finishing the season with this team."

Who needs CSI when you have the Internet?

The cops who arrested NASCAR honcho Brian France found 5 oxycodone pills on him during the bust and used the website Drugs.com to identity them ... this according to court docs obtained by TMZ Sports.

The Sag Harbor PD says the pills -- yellow in color, labeled T194 -- came right up on the website ... which touts its "pill identifier" feature on the home page.

Don't worry, the cops also submitted the pills to the lab for confirmation.

There's more ... cops say France's blood alcohol level was .19 -- more than twice the legal limit in New York when he was busted at 7:08 PM on Sunday.

During the arrest, France had slurred speech, glassy eyes and was unsteady on his feet.

France was booked for drunk driving and criminal possession of a controlled substance.

If convicted on both counts, he faces up to a year in jail and loss of driving privileges for a year.

Brian France -- CEO and chairman of NASCAR -- says he will be taking an indefinite leave of absence after his DUI and oxycodone arrest.

TMZ Sports broke the story ... France was busted in the Hamptons on Sunday evening. Cops say he was drunk and illegally in possession of prescription oxycodone pills.

France -- widely considered one of the most powerful people in pro sports -- has issued a statement apologizing.

"I apologize to our fans, our industry and my family for the impact of my actions [Sunday] night. Effective immediately, I will be taking an indefinite leave of absence from my position to focus on my personal affairs."

NASCAR says Brian's uncle, Jim France, has "assumed the role of interim chairman and chief executive officer."

Story developing ...

9:54 AM PT -- NASCAR has issued a statement to TMZ Sports saying ... "We are aware of an incident that occurred last night and are in the process of gathering information."

"We take this as a serious matter and will issue a statement after we have all of the facts.”

Brian France -- the CEO and Chairman of NASCAR -- was arrested for DUI on Sunday evening in The Hamptons and cops say he was also in possession of oxycodone .. TMZ Sports has learned.

The 56-year-old -- one of the most powerful people in professional sports -- was initially stopped in Sag Harbor, NY while driving a 2017 Lexus. Cops say he blew through a stop sign at 7:30 PM.

During the stop, we're told officers suspected France was intoxicated and conducted a field sobriety test ... which France bombed.

We're told France's blood alcohol level was more than TWICE the legal limit. Cops say during the stop, they found oxycodone pills during a search of his person.

France was arrested and hauled to a nearby station where he was booked for DUI and criminal possession of a controlled substance in the 7th degree. France spent the night in jail and was released Monday morning after his arraignment.

And sources tell us ... during the process, France was name-dropping all of the powerful people he knew and even mentioned his relationship with President Donald Trump.

The France family is racing royalty -- Brian's grandfather Bill France Sr. (aka Big Bill) founded NASCAR back in 1948 and ran the organization. Brian's father took over the role from 1972 to 2000.

Brian has been CEO since 2003.

Sag Harbor is one of the most exclusive communities in the Hamptons -- where stars like Billy Joel have homes.

And, as one local puts it, "It's so stupid to drive drunk in the Hamptons. They have police checkpoints everywhere and police are always looking for drunk drivers."

Story developing ...

Here's racing star Josef Newgarden giving Danica Patrick's racing career the respect it deserves ... praising Danica as a trailblazer, who opened the door up for generations of women racers.

All while standing next to his solar hot girlfriend.

First things first ... we got Newgarden -- the 2017 IndyCar series champ -- and asked what Patrick's legacy to the sport would be, and he couldn't have been more gracious.

"Danica's been great for our sport, I think to me someone who was a leader for not just female race car drivers, but female engineers and female fans of the sport."

Second things second ... Josef did all this praising while standing next to his GF, Ashley Welch, and we gotta say GOOD LORD she's fine.

Doing a nice thing doesn't ALWAYS pay off ... just ask Dale Earnhardt Jr., who says he crashed his Jeep while helping a guy who got stuck in the snow.

We got the NASCAR legend out in NYC and wanted to know if world-class drivers like him ever get into fender benders in the real world.

"I ran into a pine tree with my Jeep in the wintertime," Dale says ... "going through the snow."

And, how the hell did that happen?

"I just pulled a guy out of a ditch and drove him down the road about 2 miles ... and then I hit a tree."

Chase Elliott's day job is driving a race car 200 freakin' MPH ... but he tells TMZ Sports that ain't nothin' compared to his gig this weekend ... judging the Hooters pageant!!

We talked to the NASCAR star days before this weekend's 22nd Annual Hooters International Pageant in Charlotte, NC -- featuring 80 of the hottest Hooters girls from around the world -- which Elliott is judging.

So, how does meticulously grading dozens of hot chicks compare to driving a race car at ridiculously high speeds?

"I feel like it has to top it, for sure. The challenge of judging that many beautiful ladies is pretty difficult."

FYI -- Chase isn't the only athlete getting in on the fun. UFC star Ovince Saint Preux (who we also talked to), NFL player Mario Addison and NASCAR driver Ryan Blaney are also judging.

While you wait for this year's contest ... enjoy some photos from last year's pageant.

NASCAR champ Martin Truex Jr. says his White House visit Monday to meet President Trump was "amazing" ... calling it a huge honor he would NEVER consider passing up.

It's a MUCH different opinion than some NBA and NFL players -- but Truex tells TMZ Sports he considers NASCAR to be "very patriotic" and he's proud to be an American.

Truex was invited to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. after winning the 2017 Cup Series title -- and on his way out, he RAVED about the experience.

"Oh my God, it was amazing. The president was an unbelievable host. He showed us everything that he didn't have to show, so it was really cool."

We mentioned the controversy with other athletes boycotting Trump's White House -- and Truex said the thought of turning down Trump never crossed his mind.

"I mean, I think it's a huge honor. Huge honor for me and my team and for them to invite us was amazing, so I would never pass it up."

Jared Leto's new album promotion got a serious fuel injection when he hooked up with NASCAR ... and Momma, he's going fast!!!

The Thirty Seconds to Mars frontman made a pit stop in Fort Worth, TX on Wednesday during his cross-country hitchhike to pump up the band's new album, "America." Jared bummed a ride with NASCAR Xfinity Series star Tyler Reddick to Texas Motor Speedway ... after the obligatory burnout, of course.

Danica Patrick might be hinting at some long-term relationship goals with her boyfriend, Aaron Rodgers, 'cause she apparently loves getting older ... with her man by her side.

Danica rang in her 36th birthday Sunday with the Packers QB front and center for a group photo. The party looked pretty fun -- it was unicorn-themed ... for the ladies, anyway.

The soon-to-be retired race car driver shared a few photos of the shindig from over the weekend, in which all of her girlfriends were wearing unicorn hats and were sipping what looked like champagne. The guys went hat-free, but were also all smiles in celebration.

She captioned her photos ... "I love getting older!!!!!!!!!!! Super grateful for all the love around me in my life! People, work, opportunities, dreams.....full heart space." She went on ... "Don't forget to dream big for the things you want in your life."

Sounds to us like Danica's pretty happy with Aaron, who she's been dating since at least December. And with a stud like that in her life, why wouldn't she be stoked to cross off another year?

Congrats!

CARS! WE'RE TALKING ABOUT CARS!!!

... 'Cause Caitlyn Jenner and NASCAR stud Kurt Busch spent some time checking out each other's hot rides in front of Nobu in Malibu Monday night and we've got the video!!

Caitlyn arrived in her $176k tricked out purple Porsche 911 GT3 RS (NICE!) ... and Kurt showed up in his $500,000 Ford GT supercar (REALLY NICE!).

Both Caitlyn and Kurt are car fanatics -- and were both impressed with each other's whips.

We're told Jenner and Busch know each other through mutual friends and Kurt has invited Caitlyn to some of his events.

The bigger question ... who would win in a race?

Caitlyn's Porsche can go from 0 to 60 in 3.1 SECONDS!

Kurt's Ford GT? 2.9 SECONDS!!!!!!

Can't come out of retirement if you never officially retired, right? That's what NASCAR legend Jeff Gordon's telling TMZ Sports.

Gordon hasn't competed in NASCAR since 2016 season -- but there have been rumors of a comeback ... so when we got him out at LAX we had to know if there was any truth to the chatter.

"Anything's possible," Gordon told us ... "I'm not retired. I'm just doing something different."

That "something different" includes running a racing team and broadcasting duties for FOX -- but Gordon definitely hasn't ruled out a return to the track.

Things are heating up FAST for Aaron Rodgers and Danica Patrick -- the couple just shot down to Mexico for a romantic beach vacation ... just days after the Daytona 500.

The two were spotted cozying up together at a fancy resort in a Mexican beach town -- cuddling, kissing ... you know, doing all the things couples do on beach vacations.

Aaron and Danica have only been dating for about 2 months -- but things seem pretty serious. They've been spotted around Arizona together and he flew out to Florida this past weekend to watch Danica's final NASCAR race.