Dale Earnhardt Jr. gets a new sponsor and talks about flipping his truck

Dale Earnhardt Jr. meets with the media Friday at Richmond International Raceway. (Getty Images)
Dale Earnhardt Jr. meets with the media Friday at Richmond International Raceway. (Getty Images)
Dale Earnhardt Jr. meets with the media Friday at Richmond International Raceway. (Getty Images)

There are few things Dale Earnhardt Jr. has needed to worry about during the 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup season.  NASCAR’s most popular driver has three wins, enters Saturday’s race at Richmond second in the championship points and it firmly seeded in this year’s championship Chase.  He also doesn’t need to worry about sponsorship for next season.  At the start of August, on of his primary sponsors, the Army National Guard announced they would not be in motorsports next season. The move is somewhat controversial as according to the Hendrick Motorsports team, the Guard has a contract through the 2015 season.

Friday however, Nationwide Insurance, which is dropping its title sponsorship of NASCAR’s number two touring season next year, was announced that it will increase its involvement next season to become primary sponsor of Earnhardt and the No. 88 Chevy for 21 Sprint Cup races  including the season opening Daytona 500. The team released a statement to coincide with the Nationwide announcement indicating that the discussion of the Army National Guard sponsorship may not be over.

“Representing the National Guard and its Citizen Soldiers is an extraordinary honor and source of pride for our entire organization. Communication is ongoing with regard to the future of the sponsorship, which is contracted through the 2015 season.” MORE>>>

Greg Engle
About Greg Engle 7421 Articles
Greg is a published award winning sportswriter who spent 23 years combined active and active reserve military service, much of that in and around the Special Operations community. Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.