Dale Jr. to Drive Dad’s No. 3 in July
Written by playerpress.com, Thursday April 29 2010
At the Nationwide Series race at Daytona in July, Dale Earnhardt Jr. will drive a replica of his Dad’s No. 3 Wrangler Chevrolet. The car unveiling was done at JR Motorsports Thursday on what would have been Dale Sr.’s 59th birthday.
Since he was killed at Daytona in a 2001 accident, his number 3 has not been used in the Sprint Cup Series. Twice before, Earnhardt Jr. has drove the No. 3 in NASCAR’s second-tier series.
“This was an idea that came up as a way to pay tribute to my dad,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “The Wrangler car is definitely in the top-10 of coolest cars that have ever been on the race track. A lot of people identify with it, and I can’t think of a better way to honor my dad and celebrate his induction into the NASCAR Hall of Fame than to bring the Wrangler colors back with the No. 3 on the side.”
On May 23, Earnhardt will be inducted as part of the inaugural Hall of Fame class.
The idea to bring the No. 3 back was a collaborative effort between Earnhardt Jr., who will use a car from JR Motorsports, Teresa Earnhardt, who controls her late husbands’ legacy, and Richard Childress Racing, the team Earnhardt drove for during the bulk of his career.
Since announcing in 2007 that he was leaving Dale Earnhardt Inc., Thursday was the first time Earnhardt Jr. has been in public with his stepmother. Dale Earnhardt Inc. is the team his late father started but has been run by Teresa Earnhardt since his death.
Kelley Earnhardt, Dale Jr’s sister said that things would be different and the DEI relationship would still be going on if her father were still alive.
“If he was here, I’m pretty sure we’d all still be together … Dale Jr. would have never left DEI,” Kelley Earnhardt said.
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