Dale Earnhardt Jr. reveals emotions of having JR Motorsports car in Cup Series at Daytona 500
It’ll be a bit of a different weekend for Dale Earnhardt Jr. this weekend at the Daytona 500, as he now has a car competing in the Cup Series for the first time.
JR Motorsports entered Justin Allgaier from the Xfinity Series into the Daytona 500, giving Earndhardt’s team a shot on the big stage. Ahead of Wednesday’s practice racing, Earnhardt opened up on what it meant to him.
“It’s awesome. You know, dream of mine to be in the Cup garage as an owner, so it’s pretty special to finally have that opportunity,” Earnhardt said on an FS1 broadcast. “Especially it’s the biggest race of the year.”
The initial report that Justin Allgaier would run the Daytona 500 came from the AP’s Jenna Fryer.
Allgaier’s attempt to make the field at the Daytona 500 is in partnership with 10-time Grammy Award-winning artist Chris Stapleton, whose whiskey label Traveller Whiskey will sponsor the JR Motorsports Chevrolet.
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The deal came together when Stapleton reached out to Hendrick Motorsports owner Rick Hendrick about a collaboration with Traveller Whiskey. Hendrick put the “White Horse” singer in touch with Earnhardt, as he also has an ownership stake with JR Motorsports.
Earnhardt, a two-time Daytona 500 champion, has long had a dream of entering the “Great American Race” as a car owner. Thanks to Hendrick and Stapleton, that dream will become a reality on Sunday, Feb. 16.
Now the goal is to run well on the track. That is a significant undertaking.
“A lot of preparation in the car, but it’s time to get to work, get to business with practice and everything,” Earnhardt said. “Go out there and see what the car can do. Glad we got some practice. Certainly with a brand new car you’ve got bugs and things to work out, streamline everything to get it doing what it’s supposed to do. But hopefully by tonight we’ve got the speed we need.”