JACKSONVILLE, NC – NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt, Jr. will compete at New River All American Speedway for the first time in Saturday night’s National Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram 250.
Earnhardt, more commonly known by his nickname “Dale Jr.,” will drive the iconic no. 3 made famous by his father, the late Dale Earnhardt, Sr., in a zMAX CARS Tour entry sponsored by Bass Pro Shops. Saturday’s race marks the third time the 2021 NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee has competed in the zMAX CARS Tour presented by Soundgear, a series he co-owns along with Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton, and Justin Marks.
“I’m a huge fan of the CARS Tour and local short-track racing,” Earnhardt said. “The competition, the tracks, and the drivers are some of the best around. These regional series are vital to the quality of racing you see at the top level – it’s the heartbeat of motorsports in North America.”
During his time as a full-time competitor on the NASCAR circuit, the third-generation driver won 26 races in the Cup Series – including the Daytona 500 in 2004 and 2014, as well as two Xfinity Series championships (1998, 1999). He won the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) Most Popular Driver Award 15 times (2003-2017) during his storied career.
Earnhardt retired from racing full-time at the conclusion of the 2017 season and began his career in broadcasting. Now, he hosts the Dale Jr Download podcast on Dirty Mo Media and owns JR Motorsports, fielding cars in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and zMAX CARS Tour.
In recent years, Earnhardt has competed in a variety of events in a Late Model Stock Car as well as in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Along with his two starts in the CARS Tour, Earnhardt has also competed in a handful of races at Florence Motor Speedway in South Carolina – one of the tracks he cut his teeth on early in his career.
The zMAX CARS Tour presented by Soundgear is the headline act of New River All American Speedway’s opening weekend. The Grand National Super Series will also be in action along with Legend Cars, and Bandoleros. The green flag will fly at 7:00 pm. Tickets, schedules, and other information about the event can be found at newriverspeedway.com/carstour. Along with Saturday’s race, the Ronnie Hetu Memorial will be held on Friday night at 8:00 pm.
New River All-American Speedway is Jacksonville’s Action Attraction featuring racing and other events. For more information about New River All-American Speedway, check out the speedway’s website, like/follow “New River Speedway” on Facebook and/or follow @newriverswy on X (formerly known as Twitter).
