Posted on by Holly Cain

RELATED: Alex Bowman’s time to shine


TALLADEGA, Ala. — Talladega’s favorite son, Dale Earnhardt Jr., won’t be racing this weekend but much to the pleasure of his massive fandom, he will be trackside helping his Hendrick Motorsports team and even working in the MRN radio and NBCSN television booth during Sunday’s Hellmann’s 500.


Earnhardt, who is sidelined for the remainder of the season while he recovers from concussion-like symptoms, was a popular sight in Talladega’s garage Friday afternoon.


He shared his thoughts in an impromptu interview outside his team’s hauler just before opening Sprint Cup Series practice.


Earnhardt seemed eager to return to the announcing booth during the race — something he’ll do on both radio and television.


“It gives me an opportunity to see the racing from a different perspective and that’s an opportunity to learn something about the sport,” Earnhardt said. “It’ll be fun. It’ll be a neat experience.


“I’ve been in the booth before and had a great time at Michigan this year for the XFINITY race. I won’t be doing the whole race [Sunday], but … I’m glad I have the opportunity and to be able to still kinda be around and be a witness to what’s happening at the race track. It’s better than sitting at home.


“I don’t really get nervous any more,” Earnhardt added with a smile. “The only thing that ever made me nervous was driving race cars. I don’t feel nervous. I feel good about going up there. What’s the worst thing that could happen, right?”


Earnhardt was very complimentary of Alex Bowman, who along with veteran Jeff Gordon, has been filling in for him in the No. 88 Mountain Dew Chevrolet.


In six starts for Earnhardt, Bowman has a pair of top-10 finishes. He scored his best showing of seventh place last week at Kansas — while suffering from a stomach bug that made him so sick, the 23-year-old was on a stretcher getting an IV after the race.


“The night before [the race] was a terrible evening as far as how he felt even getting a good night’s sleep,” Earnhardt said. “I was very surprised he was as competitive as he was, as bad as he felt. He was very nauseous throughout the race. He was a real trouper. Most of those guys on track have that grit and determination.


“But he can do it. And he’s capable and belongs out there.”


This weekend’s race at Talladega will be a new challenge for Bowman. However, Earnhardt has high expectations.


“I think he’s going to do great,” Earnhardt said. “He’s going to have fun and he’s going to really enjoy the car because it’s going to be competitive. We’ll sit down and talk a lot and give him all the opportunities and understanding he can. He’s already had some experience so some of the things we’ll talk about will already make sense to him.


“I’m looking forward to sharing what I can throughout the weekend to help him. I’ve told him from the start, now that’s he’s getting more opportunities and I’m out of the car for the rest of the year, he’s able to kind of relax and realize he doesn’t have to bottle up lightning for one particular weekend. He’ll have a lot of opportunities this year to show what he can do.


“He did that last weekend and pretty much every time he’s been in the car he’s shown he’s fast and very capable and I expect that this weekend.”

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: Qualifying order

Qualifying at Talladega Superspeedway has undergone a few different formats over the past five years. The rules for this weekend’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races are the same as last year. 


There will be two rounds of qualifying with drivers turning one timed lap. The top 12 will advance to the final round. Each driver will take a warm-up lap, the timed lap and a cool-down lap before returning to pit road. In the Sprint Cup Series, this is different from the procedures at intermediate and short tracks or road courses. For the most part, the Camping World Truck Series uses single-truck qualifying.

Based on practice speeds, vehicles will line up on pit road for the first round — rather than nose in or nose out in a pit stall — and NASCAR will release drivers at a predetermined interval. The sanctioning body reserves the right to have more than one vehicle on track at a time. It’s likely that two vehicles will be on track at the same time, but the second vehicle won’t impede or help the one it follows on track.

Following each lap, NASCAR will impound vehicles, and there will be a 10-minute break between rounds. Only during that break may teams make adjustments, and they will only be allowed to adjust tape and use a cool-down unit at that time.

The final round qualifying order will be set from slowest to fastest speeds in the first round with starting positions 1-12 determined by the fastest laps in that second session.

Posted on by Staff Report

Final practice: Results


Pos Car Driver From Lap To Lap Avg Speed
1 18 Kyle Busch (C) 11 20 195.398
2 20 Matt Kenseth (C) 11 20 195.348
3 78 Martin Truex Jr. (C) 3 12 195.314
4 11 Denny Hamlin (C) 3 12 195.314
5 5 Kasey Kahne 2 11 193.453
6 99 * Ryan Reed (i) 2 11 193.394
7 88 Alex Bowman (i) 2 11 193.376
8 48 Jimmie Johnson (C) 2 11 193.348
9 24 Chase Elliott # (C) 2 11 193.133


Practice 1: Results

Pos Car Driver From Lap To Lap Avg Speed
1 16 Greg Biffle 2 11 195.657
2 44 Brian Scott 4 13 194.855
3 95 Michael McDowell 2 11 194.531
4 4 Kevin Harvick # (C) 4 13 194.201
5 43 Aric Almirola 3 12 194.173
6 88 Alex Bowman (i) 8 17 193.979
7 22 Joey Logano (C) 5 14 193.941
8 24 Chase Elliott # (C) 7 16 193.927
9 10 Danica Patrick 3 12 193.909
10 48 Jimmie Johnson (C) 3 12 193.895
11 21 * Ryan Blaney # 3 12 193.886
12 47 AJ Allmendinger 6 15 193.883
13 5 Kasey Kahne 7 16 193.849
14 42 Kyle Larson 7 16 191.233
15 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 2 11 191.115
16 6 Trevor Bayne 2 11 191.073
17 3 Austin Dillon (C) 6 15 189.066
18 2 Brad Keselowski (C) 1 10 188.422
19 1 Jamie McMurray 24 33 187.786
20 34 Chris Buescher 1 10 185.131

— Car must run 10 consecutive laps on the track to be included in the above charts. (C) indicates driver is in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. (#) indicates Sunoco Rookie of the Year Candidate. (*) indicates driver required to qualify on time. (i) indicates ineligible for Sprint Cup championship points.

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: Practice 1 | Practice 2 | Top 10-lap consecutive averages
MORE: See the Chase Grid

 

Jimmie Johnson topped the leaderboard in the final NASCAR Sprint Cup Series practice session Friday at Talladega Superspeedway, going 196.386 mph in the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet.


Right behind him was Matt Kenseth in the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota at 196.338 mph.


Rounding out the top five were Chase Elliott in the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet at 196.334 mph, Carl Edwards in the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota at 196.330 mph and Alex Bowman in the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet at 196.330 mph.


Chase drivers Kevin Harvick (already guaranteed to advance to the Round of 8) and Brad Keselowski opted not to participate in the second practice session Friday.

 

All told, 25 cars took the track for the final session before Saturday’s qualifying at 4 p.m. ET (NBCSN/NBC SportsApp). Edwards felt a vibration in his car, and his No. 19 team changed the transmission in an effort to fix it.


In the first practice session earlier in the day, Roush Fenway Racing dominated with Greg Biffle logging the fastest time in his No. 16 Ford at 198.949 mph.


Right behind him was AJ Allmendinger in the No. 47 JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet at 198.327 mph.


Chris Buescher was third in the No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford at 198.261 mph, while two more Roush Fenway Racing drivers rounded out the top five with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. in the No. 17 Ford at 198.261 mph and Trevor Bayne in the No. 6 Ford 198.105 mph.


Sprint Cup Series leader Johnson was 15th-fastest in the No. 48 Chevrolet at 195.632 mph.

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: How qualifying works at Talladega

# Car Driver Team
1 32 Bobby Labonte VisoneRV.com Ford
2 93 * Matt DiBenedetto Dustless Blasting Toyota
3 7 Regan Smith Golden Corral Chevrolet
4 46 Michael Annett Pilot Flying J Chevrolet
5 55 * Reed Sorenson Toyota
6 35 * David Gilliland Dockside Logistics Ford
7 1 Jamie McMurray Cessna Chevrolet
8 83 Jeffrey Earnhardt # Starter Toyota
9 23 David Ragan sweetFrog Toyota
10 15 Clint Bowyer 5-hour Energy Chevrolet
11 41 Kurt Busch (C) Haas Automation/Monster Energy Chevrolet
12 31 Ryan Newman Caterpillar Chevrolet
13 3 Austin Dillon (C) American Ethanol Chevrolet
14 22 Joey Logano (C) Shell Pennzoil Ford
15 21 * Ryan Blaney # Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center Ford
16 43 Aric Almirola Smithfield Ford
17 2 Brad Keselowski (C) Miller Lite Ford
18 14 Tony Stewart Rush Truck Centers/Mobil 1 Chevrolet
19 10 Danica Patrick Nature’s Bakery Chevrolet
20 13 Casey Mears GEICO Chevrolet
21 11 Denny Hamlin (C) FedEx Ground Toyota
22 42 Kyle Larson Energizer Chevrolet
23 78 Martin Truex Jr (C) Bass Pro Shops/TRACKER Boats Toyota
24 18 Kyle Busch (C) Snickers Halloween Toyota
25 99 * Ryan Reed(i) Lilly Diabetes/American Diabetes Association Ford
26 27 Paul Menard SYLVANIA/Menards Chevrolet
27 88 Alex Bowman(i) Mountain Dew Chevrolet
28 5 Kasey Kahne UniFirst Chevrolet
29 19 Carl Edwards (C) Subway Toyota
30 24 Chase Elliott # (C) NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet
31 20 Matt Kenseth (C) DeWalt Flexvolt Toyota
32 48 Jimmie Johnson (C) Lowe’s Pro Services Chevrolet
33 4 Kevin Harvick (C) Jimmy John’s Chevrolet
34 38 Landon Cassill FR8 Auctions Ford
35 44 Brian Scott # Goody’s Ford
36 95 Michael McDowell KLOVE Radio Chevrolet
37 6 Trevor Bayne AdvoCare Ford
38 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr Zest Ford
39 34 Chris Buescher # Love’s Travel Stops Ford
40 47 AJ Allmendinger Kroger/Scott Products Chevrolet
41 16 Greg Biffle Cheez-it Ford


*Driver is required to qualify on time, (i) ineligible for driver points in this series

Posted on by Team Release

TALLADEGA, Ala. — Roush Fenway Racing has signed a multi-year renewal agreement for driver Ryan Reed to continue to pilot the No. 16 Lilly Diabetes Ford Mustang in the NASCAR XFINITY Series. Reed, who five years ago was told he would never race again after being diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, qualified for the 2016 inaugural XFINITY Series Chase and scored his first victory in the series last season at Daytona.

“We are very excited to continue our program with Lilly Diabetes,” said Reed, who will make his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series debut this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway. “Not only to continue to drive the No. 16, but more importantly, the opportunity to encourage and educate people who are living with diabetes and those who care for them. We will continue to share the message about diabetes awareness, specifically the importance of talking to doctors as well as proper nutrition and daily exercise.”

Reed will look to make history this weekend as the only driver actively managing his diabetes to race at the Sprint Cup level. The Bakersfield, California native manages his diabetes through a strict diet and exercise program, the use of a wireless glucose monitoring device to provide in-race, real-time data, and consistent communication with his medical team in California.

“Through sharing his diabetes story with NASCAR fans throughout the country over the past three years, Ryan has inspired thousands of people affected by diabetes to live healthier lives and take an active role in managing their health. Lilly Diabetes is proud to renew our sponsorship so together we can continue to make a difference in people’s lives,” said Mike Mason, vice president, U.S., Lilly Diabetes.

“Like NASCAR, Lilly has been an American institution for generations. We introduced the world’s first commercialized insulin in 1923, and our innovative medicines and education programs have helped people with diabetes ever since. This sponsorship is another step forward in our drive to help more people who have the disease or care for someone who does.”

Reed posted career highs in Chase races at Kentucky and Dover to advance to the ‘Round of 8’ in the NASCAR XFINITY Series Chase at Charlotte. He is currently only two points outside of the top four, with two races remaining before the series champion is decided in the season finale at Homestead.

Roush Fenway Racing is the winningest team in NASCAR history, fielding multiple teams in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NASCAR XFINITY Series competition with drivers Greg Biffle, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Trevor Bayne, Ryan Reed, Chris Buescher and Bubba Wallace. Now in its 29th season, Roush Fenway is a leader in driver development, having launched the careers for many of the top drivers in the sport. Off-track, Roush Fenway is a leader in NASCAR marketing solutions, pioneering motorsport’s first team-focused TV show and producing multiple award-winning digital and experiential marketing campaigns. Roush Fenway is co-owned by Jack Roush, the winningest team owner in NASCAR history and Fenway Sports Group, parent company of Major League Baseball’s Boston Red Sox and English Premier League’s Liverpool F.C. Visit RoushFenway.com, circle on Google+, become a fan on Facebook and Instagram and follow on Twitter at @roushfenway.

Posted on by Pat DeCola

RELATED: Ailing Bowman presses on, nabs career-best finish


With Dale Earnhardt Jr. slated to miss his first Sprint Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway since he broke into the big leagues full time as a rookie in 2000, many wonder which driver will replace the superspeedway ace as the one to beat in Sunday’s Hellmann’s 500 (2 p.m. ET, NBCSN/NBC Sports App).


How about, you know, the guy actually replacing him?

Fresh off a seventh-place showing at Kansas Speedway on Sunday, Alex Bowman is set to drive Earnhardt’s No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet for the third consecutive week and the seventh time this season as the driver recovers from concussion-related symptoms. This weekend is perhaps Bowman’s most significant start of the year.

Because it’s at Earnhardt’s own Talladega.


RELATED: Earnhardt-Talladega streak to continue Sunday

“He’s got a couple fans out there,” Bowman told NASCAR.com at Kansas. “Man, I’m excited about (racing at Talladega). Speedway racing is always stressful, but … (Hendrick Motorsports) brings such fast race cars to the race track and their speedway stuff is amazing. Always fast. Especially the 88. So, just really looking forward to having a chance to win.

“I’m going to sit Dale down and have a couple-hour conversation with him about speedway racing. If there’s a speedway racer left in this garage, it’s him, for sure.”

The man’s got a point. 

From a wins standpoint, Talladega ranks as Junior’s best track with six, only closely followed by four wins at Daytona, another Earnhardt cornerstone — and another superspeedway.

Bowman’s ‘Dega stats don’t match Junior’s, of course, but he did pilot the No. 7 Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet to a 16th-place finish just last year. 

And while it’s almost jarring to hear a driver say that he is “excited” for Talladega, it’s unsurprising coming from Bowman, who’ll have the roar of the crowd on his side — a fanbase that has named the man he’s replacing NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver for 13 years running.

“Junior Nation has been great,” said Bowman, 23. “It’s been really cool; they’ve just been really supportive. Every now and then there’s one fan that hates me, but for the most part they’ve been awesome. Casey Mears fans hate me after (Charlotte), because apparently it was my fault that we blew a tire and wrecked him, but Junior Nation has been awesome.” 


RELATED: Dale Jr. to join broadcasts for Talladega, Martinsville

Not only does Bowman have full access to Earnhardt’s Talladega insight, a wealth of knowledge so deep it likely needs its own Dewey Decimal System, he’s sharing substitute driving duties with a four-time Sprint Cup champ and six-time ‘Dega winner in Jeff Gordon.

“It’s been really cool (to share a ride with Gordon). Jeff was my favorite driver growing up when I was a kid,” Bowman said. “It’s been really good to learn from him. He’s an open book. All five of my teammates are complete open books. It’s great to lean on them and learn as much as I can, but Jeff just has so much experience and has a really interesting view on a lot of things. 

“It’s been a great time just listening and observing and learning everything I can from him.”

The lessons taken at “Gordon Drivers Ed, Inc.” appear to be working, too. 

While the final results might not show the whole picture, Bowman, at times, has looked like the more competitive driver behind the wheel of the No. 88, and owns the car’s best finish — seventh — since Earnhardt placed second at Pocono way back in June.

Bowman says that some people joke with him and say “Oh, I’m glad to see you’ve finally learned how to drive.”

He’s always known how to drive, it’s just been more about opportunities. 

And if luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity, “Bad Luck Bowman” — a driver that once learned he’d been fired via Twitter — knows the magnitude of the opportunity presented to him this weekend and in his remaining races.

And you can be sure he’ll be prepared.

“I hope (this opportunity has put my name out there),” Bowman said. “We’ve talked to a lot of people and it always comes back to money. It’s always ‘Well, do you have any sponsorship?’ ‘Do you have any funding?’ I don’t, so it’s just … the sport’s such a business at this point that it really kind of limits what I can and can’t get into and that’s what’s limited what I can and can’t get into for the last four years.

“I don’t have anything lined up (for next year yet). I think my role that I had at Hendrick Motorsports before all this happened is still going to be the same. Still being a part of the team, still doing all the simulator stuff and helping as much as I can. I don’t think that will change. Obviously, when Dale comes back and all that, I don’t really know what that leaves for me as far as driving anything. 

“I don’t know what the future holds there. I don’t have anything going forward, really.”


In the short-term, at least, he’ll have the full support of Junior Nation at Talladega.

Posted on by RJ Kraft

RELATED: Series standings | Chase Grid | All you need to know for Talladega

The Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup elimination-style format is in its third year and the 2016 postseason marks the last time that Talladega Superspeedway will serve as a cutoff race for the Round of 12 as the playoff field drops to eight drivers. The Talladega and Kansas Chase races will flip-flop their spots on the schedule in 2017, making Kansas the Round of 12 cutoff race.

In previous years, “The Big One” has wreaked havoc on the postseason picture, leaving drivers who looked like near-locks to advance on the outside looking in as the championship battle continued. Bad luck at Talladega always seems to find at least one Chase driver.

In the past two years, the driver second in points (and the first driver not locked in by a win) entering Talladega has failed to advance. Both times that has been a Joe Gibbs Racing driver; Kyle Busch in 2014, Denny Hamlin in 2015. This year, Matt Kenseth, a JGR driver, enters Sunday’s Hellmann’s 500 (2:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) in that same position. Will bad luck strike JGR three years in a row? NASCAR.com examines how the Chase eliminations played out at Talladega the past two years.

(*) on chart indicates that driver won a Round of 12 race to lock up a spot in the Round of 8.

Standings entering 2014 Talladega Chase race

Rank Driver Points
1. Joey Logano 3088*
2. Kyle Busch 3082
3. Kevin Harvick 3081*
4. Ryan Newman 3077
5. Carl Edwards 3076
6. Jeff Gordon 3074
7. Denny Hamlin 3073
8. Kasey Kahne 3057
9. Matt Kenseth 3056
10. Brad Keselowski 3038
11. Jimmie Johnson 3031
12. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 3031

Standings after 2014 Talladega Chase race (pre-points bump)

Rank Driver Points Race finish
1. Joey Logano 3121* 11th
2. Kevin Harvick 3117* 9th
3. Ryan Newman 3117 5th
4. Denny Hamlin 3100 18th
5. Matt Kenseth 3099 2nd
6. Carl Edwards 3099 21st
7. Jeff Gordon 3093 26th
8. Brad Keselowski 3085* 1st
9. Kasey Kahne 3090 12th
10. Kyle Busch 3086 40th
11. Jimmie Johnson 3053 24th
12. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 3045 31st

Keselowski needed a win to advance and got it, holding off a charging Kenseth and getting past Newman on the final lap. Without the victory, Keselowski would have come up five points short of advancing. A wreck just after the midpoint of the race saw Kyle Busch’s title hopes go by the wayside. Kenseth’s runner-up finish vaulted him into the eight drivers who advanced. A 12th-place finish ultimately left Kahne missing the cut by three points. Johnson and Dale Jr. combined to lead 115 of 194 laps but both got caught toward the back of the pack late. 

Standings entering 2015 Talladega Chase race

Rank Driver Points
1. Joey Logano 3095*
2. Denny Hamlin 3082
3. Kurt Busch 3077
4. Carl Edwards 3076
5. Kevin Harvick 3071
6. Brad Keselowski 3071
7. Jeff Gordon 3071
8. Martin Truex Jr. 3070
9. Kyle Busch 3064
10. Ryan Newman 3062
11. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 3039
12. Matt Kenseth 3035

Standings After 2015 Talladega Chase race (pre-points bump)

Rank Driver Points Race Finish
1. Joey Logano 3142* 1st
2. Carl Edwards 3115 5th
3. Jeff Gordon 3113 3rd
4. Kurt Busch 3112 10th
5. Brad Keselowski 3111 4th
6. Martin Truex Jr. 3107 7th
7. Kevin Harvick 3101 15th
8. Kyle Busch 3098 11th
9. Ryan Newman 3095 12th
10. Denny Hamlin 3090 37th
11. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 3083 2nd
12. Matt Kenseth 3054 26th

An issue with the roof hatch combined with his involvement in an end-of-race wreck knocked Hamlin out of the Chase. Dale Jr. led a race-high 61 laps but couldn’t edge past Logano before the caution came out to end the race. The end-of-race wreck came amidst engine woes for defending series champion Harvick and sparked questions that he intentionally caused a pileup on a restart; NASCAR found no wrongdoing on the No. 4 team’s part. The Chasers were a bit more aggressive in terms of positioning than in 2014. Truex had to overcome starting at the back of the field after his qualifying time was disallowed for dipping below the double-yellow line during his qualifying lap. 

Standings entering 2016 Talladega Chase race

Rank Driver Points
1. Jimmie Johnson 3082*
2. Matt Kenseth 3074
3. Kyle Busch 3072
4. Carl Edwards 3069
5. Kurt Busch 3062
6. Martin Truex Jr. 3058
7. Kevin Harvick 3048*
8. Joey Logano 3045
9. Austin Dillon 3045
10. Denny Hamlin 3039
11. Brad Keselowski 3038
12. Chase Elliott 3020

Posted on by Nascar

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Richard Childress went all in. He wagered everything — his yesterday, his today and his tomorrow.

He bet it on a late-season deal with a driver who was a maverick, and he bet it on nothing more than a sliver of a sponsorship.

And at the end of that 1981 season, less than a dozen races after the relationships began, the driver and the sponsor departed.

The story could have ended there. Driver gone, sponsor gone and Childress, who had tried to scratch out a living as a racer before going the ownership route, hopelessly broke and perhaps finished with NASCAR.

But it didn’t.

Two years later, both Dale Earnhardt and Wrangler reunited with Childress. The union produced a pair of championships and a slew of wins, and set Childress and Earnhardt on a path of success rarely seen in NASCAR.

“I borrowed everything I could on my home; I sold everything I had that I thought I could sell just to run Dale those 10 races,” Childress said Wednesday during a celebration at Wrangler’s headquarters here in Greensboro. “At the end of it, I was just in debt. I had borrowed money from some folks and everything just to run those 10 races.”

It’s fitting that the celebration of the region’s textile community, dubbed Jeansboro Day, took place this week, just as NASCAR’s premier series prepares to return to Talladega Superspeedway this weekend. Because it was at Talladega in the summer of ’81 that all the pieces first came together that would unite Childress, Earnhardt and Wrangler.

“I had already talked to Dale at the track earlier that day,” Childress said, “and put our deal together.”

Later, at the long-gone Anniston Inn just east of the track, he met with Phil Holmer of Goodyear, Wrangler officials and Joe Whitlock, who handled Earnhardt’s public relations at the time.

Earnhardt had won the 1980 title while driving for team owner Rod Osterlund, but when the team was sold mid-season to J.D. Stacy in ’81, the driver wanted out. A deal to run the final 11 races of the season was struck, with Childress and Wrangler.

By year’s end, Earnhardt had managed six top-10 finishes, but the strong runs were offset by mechanical issues and parts breakage.

“We ran good, but I knew we didn’t have what it took to run him for a championship,” Childress said.


Dale Earnhardt talks with Richard Childress after the two reunited in 1984.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. remembers that season, in particular his father’s second start with Childress.

“I remember the race at Bristol where you had the accident on pit road that second race that dad drove for you in 1981,” Earnhardt Jr. said Wednesday. “I was there. I know that because one of my most favorite photos of me and my father, they basically had these two tires stacked on top of each other and I’m standing in the wheel to get a better perspective to watch the race. I must have been 7 years old.

“But Dad is standing with me and we’re both watching the rest of the race; the car is in the background too damaged to continue. But my favorite photo of me and my father actually happened that day at Bristol.”

At the suggestion of Childress, Earnhardt left at the end of the year, taking the Wrangler funding with him to sign with veteran team owner Bud Moore.

Childress hired driver Ricky Rudd, and a late deal put Piedmont Airlines on the car and helped stabilize the organization. Wrangler officials, knowing his dire financial situation, had kicked in an extra $50,000 at year’s end to help Childress keep his operation upright.

“That really helped me going into the following year,” Childress said.

What would have he done without it?

“It’s hard to say,” he said. “I never look back. I just look ahead and that was one of those deals that helped me look ahead. I don’t know where we would have been without it.”

Before the ’84 season began, Childress said Wrangler officials wanted to reunite, with Earnhardt once again driving the No. 3 Chevrolet.

The Earnhardt/Moore union had produced just three wins over the course of two years. Childress was more than willing to agree.

“I’ll never forget Bud told me at Riverside, ‘Boy, that boy will break you,'” Childress recalled Moore telling him of Earnhardt.

Instead, the pair flourished.

A Legacy Continues

In 2010, Earnhardt brought the brand back to the race track for a one-off race, winning the XFINITY Series event that summer at Daytona International Speedway. The car, prepared by his own JR Motorsports group, sported the No. 3 and a paint scheme similar to his father’s.

He continues to serve as a spokesperson for the company, and says it is “amazing” that the relationship has endured for so long.

“My father first had Wrangler on the side of his car at the end of the 1980 season; he won the championship with Wrangler on the quarter panel of his car racing at Ontario in 1980 for the final race of the season,” Earnhardt Jr. said.

“Then he went into 1981 with Wrangler as a full-time sponsor. And we’re still working together today.

“I’m very proud of that relationship, very proud that it spanned so many years. Typically, relationships just don’t last that long. So it says a lot about Wrangler and what they get out of the sport itself; their connection to race fans and the legacy of the Earnhardt family and Richard, everything that Richard and Dad did together.”

Posted on by

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Brad Keselowski‘s winning Coke Zero 400 Ford was lightning fast.


The Team Penske driver led 115 of the 161 laps around Daytona International Speedway to win the July event at the famed superspeedway.

But he won’t be unloading that hot rod this weekend at Talladega.


“The car that we won Daytona with I saw it the other day,” Keselowski said Oct. 7 during a Team Penske luncheon at Charlotte Motor Speedway. “It’s sitting in the back and completely torn down. The body and everything is still just like it finished at Daytona. I asked the guys, ‘Are we really gonna let that car sit? Are we not gonna run that at Talladega?’


“And they said, ‘No, we’ve got a car better than that for Talladega.'”

Given Keselowski’s current circumstances heading down to Alabama for the elimination race this Sunday (Hellmann’s 500, 2 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), a fast car is a must. His 38th-place finish last week at Kansas Speedway put the No. 2 driver in a precarious position on the Chase Grid, as he sits 11th of 12 drivers and seven points behind the cut-off spot.

RELATED: Keselowski, Elliott lowest on Chase Grid

But if anyone can climb out of the hole holding the checkered flag, it’s Keselowski. The 32-year-old veteran has a field-high four wins at Talladega, including the spring race earlier this season.


For Keselowski, his past success paves the way for future conquest.


“There’s a self-fulfilling prophecy to plate racing to when you have confidence it transcends, not just through yourself, but to the cars you’re running around, other drivers that work with you more, but also to your team, to where your team puts extra emphasis on those race and the drivers year-round cut you a little more slack because they just think you’re going to pass them anyway,” Keselowski mused. “And that creates a snowballing effect of momentum at plate tracks. So when you can have consecutive quality runs at a plate race, it almost gets easier.


“It’s kind of hard to explain and funny to explain, but I would say the success we’ve had this year on the plate tracks has put my team in a spot to where they almost put more effort on those races and developing the car and developing strategy and so forth because they have confidence that we can perform well at those tracks. And that they’re not so much of a roll of a roulette wheel.”


Keselowski isn’t the only current driver with a flair for plate racing. Six-time Talladega winner Dale Earnhardt Jr. is always considered a favorite heading down to the Deep South. But Earnhardt, who is out for the remainder of the season due to concussion-like symptoms, will be watching the Talladega chaos unfold from the sidelines — something that hasn’t happened there since Junior began racing in the Sprint Cup Series full-time in 2000.


The absence of a veteran plate racer like Earnhardt Jr. is a big deal, Keselowski says.


“There’s no doubt about it that Dale Jr. at Talladega is one of the best,” Keselowski said. “Without kind of putting in how the field feels about Dale himself in the moment, just losing one of the best drivers at the track is going to change the race. When you add in those other components and elements, I think it reduces the likelihood that you’ll kinda see the field line up single-file against the wall.

“And that itself means that the race is more taxing and an opportunity for incidents goes up dramatically.”

Multi-car incidents, tagged the “Big One” at restrictor plate tracks, are definitely no-go zones for Keselowski, who likely needs a win to advance to the next round of the Chase.

There’s no room for mistakes, no room for wrecks — and likely no room for even just “safe” finishes.

“Even being good at Talladega, it still doesn’t feel good going there with no win,” Keselowski said. “But you know you have an opportunity, especially when you have a great team and all those things. It can be tough — I think it’s tougher on the guys that go there and don’t enjoy that style of racing already.

“But for me, I look forward to it.”