The 2004 EA Sports 500 was a NASCAR Nextel Cup Series race that took place on October 3, 2004, at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Alabama.

Following the race, Earnhardt Jr. was asked about the importance of his then-fifth win at Talladega, to which he replied, "It don't mean shit right now.

"[4] He was fined $10,000 and docked 25 driver points for the violation; without the penalty, he would have still finished fifth in that year's championship, finishing only six points behind Mark Martin for fourth.

Earlier in the year, NASCAR president Mike Helton warned drivers to not use profanity during radio and television interviews (in light of the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy).

[5] A similar penalty was delivered to Johnny Sauter after he swore during a radio interview that occurred after a Busch Series race at Las Vegas in March,[6] as well as Ron Hornaday Jr. for comments following a Busch race at Dover in June.