Dale Earnhardt Jr. returns not only to its race roots, but also to NASCAR’s race roots.
He has announced that he will be racing in the August 31 late model event, which will help reintroduce North Wilkesboro and its great old half-mile speedway to the stock car world.
His car will bear the logo and colors of Sun Drop soda, which sponsored his teen when he raced late models at the historic track in northern North Carolina.
“I used to come to North Wilkesboro so many times as a kid,” said Earnhardt Jr. during his announcement. “It’s a special place. I never thought I’d get another chance to race around here.
“I wouldn’t want it any other way to put this program together with Sun Drop, who sponsored my late model in ’93. They were with my father for years and one of my first sponsors.”
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NASCAR’s top series raced at North Wilkesboro from the inaugural “strict stock” season in 1949 until 1996, when modern scheduling desires left the small, rural circuit in the rear-view mirror.
The track fell into disrepair until recent renovations brought it back into racing form. Much of the funding came from federal money allocated to the state of North Carolina as part of a pandemic emergency package.
The August 31 race is sanctioned by the CARS Tour, a series that leads three different late-model divisions through the Carolinas and Virginia. It has been around since 2014.
Earnhardt Jr. retired from full-time racing in 2017, after 18 full-time Cup Series seasons, 26 wins and numerous “Most Popular Driver” awards. Before that, he won back-to-back Busch Series (now Xfinity) championships in 1998-99.
Before that, he raced a handful of Busch Series races and also raced late models in the Southeast, including at North Wilkesboro. As a racing history enthusiast, this was a natural fit for Junior.
“Seeing the Sun Drop Chevy again in Wilkesboro will bring back some great memories for me,” he said.
For the past five seasons, he has raced once a year in the Xfinity Series, where he owns a race team. This year he is happy to add another event to his calendar.