Dale Earnhardt Jr. expected to run No. 88 on Hendrick Chevrolets

[6 Shooter]

LOUDON, N.H. – Dale Earnhardt Jr. will drive the No. 8 again next season. In fact, he’ll drive two of them.

During a news conference Wednesday in Dallas, Earnhardt Jr. and Hendrick Motorsports officials will announce Earnhardt Jr. will drive the No. 88 beginning next season, The Charlotte Observer and ThatsRacin.com have learned.

The sponsor and car number announcement will complete the final puzzle to the seasonlong courtship of the services of NASCAR’s most popular driver.

The Observer and ThatsRacin.com have previously reported that Earnhardt Jr.’s sponsor for next season would be PepsiCo, which is the parent company of Pepsi, Frito-Lay, Tropicana, Gatorade and Quaker.

Hendrick officials - as has been the case throughout the process - declined to comment Friday on Earnhardt Jr.’s sponsor and car number search.

Robert Yates Racing currently fields the No. 88 in Nextel Cup Series competition and would have to relinquish the number for Hendrick to use it. Yates co-owner Doug Yates did not immediately return a call for comment on Friday.

The No. 88 is already trademarked for racing with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office by Earnhardt Jr. through his JR Motorsports company, which coincidently fields the No. 88 Chevrolets in the Busch Series.

The No. 88 already has a history with a PepsiCo product in the Cup series. From 1976 through the 1980 season, NASCAR star Darrell Waltrip drove the No. 88 with Gatorade as the sponsor.

Throughout the summer, Hendrick has applied for various trademarks for possible car numbers for Earnhardt Jr., including the Nos. 38, 81, 82, 28 and 51. The most recent was the No. 28 applied for on Aug. 31.

“I’ve done about as good as I can do about narrowing it down and what not,” Earnhardt Jr. said Friday at New Hampshire International Speedway.

“It’s going to be a lot of fun to really see the reaction of the fans and I hope that they really enjoy what we’re going to do.

“We’ve been having a lot of fun with design and with the approach and sort of forming what our identity is going to be on the race track and off the race track. It’s going to be lots and lots of work.”

Earnhardt Jr. has driven the No. 8 since he debuted fulltime in the Cup series in the 2000 season. He announced earlier this summer he was leaving Dale Earnhardt Inc. at season's end.

Article

 

[Tuna]

Too bad they can't use the 'decimal' number that Jr. used in the spoof ad - 6.3 as I recall.

 

[jrose7004]

Too bad he'll have to overcome the image of Dale Jarrett driving the old 88.

 

[6 Shooter]

Remember, Dale Jarrett drove #88 to a Championship!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_NASCAR_champions
​

L8TR - D

 

[Glensgages]

Too bad he'll have to overcome the image of Dale Jarrett driving the old 88.

..... it'll be pretty-hard to 'stroke' for 450 miles at Talladega and Daytona in Hendricks-prepared equipment.....


I 'think' Junyah changed his number to 6.7 in that commercial.

 

[rascal_rascal_99]

yep, 6.7, I wish he'd actually run that number, I think it'd be one of the greatest...well...funniest and most ironic things anyways in motorsports history!

 

[Glensgages]

yep, 6.7, I wish he'd actually run that number, I think it'd be one of the greatest...well...funniest and most ironic things anyways in motorsports history!

..... although it'd be quite-funny, I doubt NASCAR/Fudge-Hammer France would let him run a numeral with a decimal-point in it:
besides, because it was a Budweiser commercial, A-B might have trademarked that number.
:confused

There are STILL some links at jayski that say Junyah will wear #3 at HMS.....
:W

 

[rascal_rascal_99]

I'm not sure that they could trademark the number...could they? If nascar owns all the numbers, wouldn't they own zero to infinity, decimal numbers included? You do have a good point and I imagine if Jr did petition to run 6.7 Budweiser would be drooling over the thought of a lawsuit of some kind.

I imagine there will be rumours and such pointing towards Jr running the number 3 until he either finally does run it or retires (in which case there will be an unending supply of rumours about him coming out of retirement to race one final season with gm goodwrench and wrangler as cosponsers...remember this years from now race fans, you heard it here first!).

 

[Glensgages]

I'm not sure that they could trademark the number...could they? If nascar owns all the numbers, wouldn't they own zero to infinity, decimal numbers included? You do have a good point and I imagine if Jr did petition to run 6.7 Budweiser would be drooling over the thought of a lawsuit of some kind.

I doubt NASCAR would allow a numeral with a decimal-point, and while NASCAR might-not 'own' such-numbers, Budweiser might have to give legal-permission for Dale Jr. to 'use' that number for any adverstisement/monetary-gain.

I'd say there is a very-slight chance Junyah will get the #3 (or something other-than 88 ) for next season, simply-because when it was rumored that he wanted 38 from RYR, Yates resisted giving-away a number they'd only run for 3-4 years:
why would Yates be willing to give-up the number they've had since '96/'97?
:confused

 

[rascal_rascal_99]

With such a marketing object as Jr is for nascar, sometimes I'm a bit surprised they didn't go on and give him "08".

I'd really be surprised to see him get hold of the number 3 driving anywhere besides with RCR.

 

[jrose7004]

Remember, Dale Jarrett drove #88 to a Championship!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_NASCAR_champions
​

L8TR - D

Championship or no championship I just never liked Dale Jarrett!

 

[Glensgages]

Championship or no championship I just never liked Dale Jarrett!

2 things stand-out in my mind about Dale Jarrett:

#1- him having a heated-discussion with a young Jeff Gordon in the pits about on-track contact, caught on TV, and when Jarrett said "that happens again, and I'll put you into the wall" , to-which Gordon replied, "Yeah..... and I'll take you with me" , Jarrett, 'supposed-to-be' one of the toughest guys in the pits, was like
hnoes

#2 - spinning-out and coming to rest sideways under the flag-stand, then the in-car camera showing him un-belting himself and trying to get-out as the rest of the field raced back to take the Yellow:
if-not for Jarrett's stupidity, we wouldn't have the lame-azzed 'Lucky-Dog' and 'frozen-field' today.
:eyerole

 

[rascal_rascal_99]

2 things stand-out in my mind about Dale Jarrett:

#1- him having a heated-discussion with a young Jeff Gordon in the pits about on-track contact, caught on TV, and when Jarrett said "that happens again, and I'll put you into the wall" , to-which Gordon replied, "Yeah..... and I'll take you with me" , Jarrett, 'supposed-to-be' one of the toughest guys in the pits, was like
hnoes

Kind of funny to think about someone tucking their tail and being scared of WonderBoy isn't it? :L

My biggest problem to be honest, other than him driving a ford ofcourse, was egg head ned up in the announcers booth always talking about him and never (to me anyways) being able to say anything that was even remotely worth listening to. I always wished for DJ to blow up or wreck out for some early race excitement, plus the bonus that ned would shut up a lot for the remainder of the race.

I do have to admit though, I do enjoy all the Big Brown Truck commercials!

 

[Glensgages]

Kind of funny to think about someone tucking their tail and being scared of WonderBoy isn't it? :L

..... as I recall, Gordon wasn't even wearing his helmet!!!!!

 

[rascal_rascal_99]

I met a friend of mine's grandson one day who was probably about 5 or 6 years old at the time and wearing a racing shirt. I asked him if he like nascar and he said yes. I asked if he knew who Richard Petty was and told me "The King!" I asked if he knew who Dale Earnhardt was and he said "He's The MAN!"...so I asked him if he knew who Jeff Gordon was and he said "yeah, he's the Punk!"

I think I finally managed to pick myself up off the ground from laughing so hard about an hour later.

 

[6 Shooter]

This tuff guy?

...so I asked him if he knew who Jeff Gordon was and he said "yeah, he's the Punk!"

​

Ya know Jeff has a lot of people who don't like him, but the man can drive a racecar...​

 

[jrose7004]

Jeff certainly isn't cut from the same cloth as Dale Sr but I think his skill is equal!

 

[Glensgages]

​

Ya know Jeff has a lot of people who don't like him, but the man can drive a racecar...​

No-doubt the man can shoe a race-car..... but that picture looks-like a cross between Mr. Spock & the Joker from the Batman movie

 

[6 Shooter]

YEP...

.....that picture looks-like a cross between Mr. Spock & the Joker from the Batman movie

​

 

[6 Shooter]

NEW Dale Jr. Gear...

​

http://store.nascar.com/family/index.jsp?categoryId=2883266​