Earnhardt to drive No. 88 in 2008

Discussion in 'Racing' started by cpawfan, Sep 20, 2007.

  1. cpawfan

    cpawfan Monsters do exist

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    http://www.sportstwo.com/Story/View/RAC/HENDRICK/8595</p><h2>Earnhardt to drive No. 88 Mountain Dew car in 2008</h2> Wednesday, September 19, 2007 02:31 PM


    DALLAS (Ticker) -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. will drive the No. 88 car for Hendrick Motorsports in the 2008 Sprint Cup Series, the NASCAR team announced Wednesday.
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    Earnhardt's Chevrolet will be sponsored by Pepsi and will bear emblems of two of the company's soft drinks, Mountain Dew and Amp.
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    NASCAR's most popular driver, Earnhardt made the highly anticipated announcement Wednesday afternoon at Texas Motor Speedway (TMS) headquarters. The 32-year-old was flanked by team president Rick Hendrick, TMS president Eddie Gossage and various sponsorship executives.
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    Earnhardt had piloted the No. 8 car for Dale Earnhardt Inc. (DEI) since 2000 with Budweiser as the primary sponsor. He wanted to drive the No. 8 car for Hendrick Motorsports, but stepmother Teresa Earnhardt refused to release DEI's rights to the number.
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    Budweiser now will sponsor Kasey Kahne, the driver of the No. 9 Dodge.
    </p> Although his popularity dwarfs his success, Earnhardt is a cultural icon who has widespread appeal reaching far beyond NASCAR's die-hard fans. Merchandise bearing his name, likeness and familiar No. 8 accounted for nearly 25 percent of all NASCAR driver-licensed products.

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  2. cpawfan

    cpawfan Monsters do exist

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    http://sports.espn.go.com/rpm/columns/stor...&id=3028051</p>

    It's just a number. It's just a paint scheme. Or two.</p>But it is Dale Earnhardt Jr., so it's really not just anything. When NASCAR's most popular driver made it official with his new sponsors and new logo and new number at the Dallas Convention Center, the Chase, however briefly, took a backseat to Junior Nation.When Earnhardt Jr. said he will be driving the 88, there was a noticeable increase in camera clicks. Somehow Junior just saying he was switching to the new number was a thing that had to be preserved on film. And how many people in any sport change numbers and say that they hope it "brings some closure" to their fans?Kobe Bryant and Roger Clemens can change numbers and it's news for about a day. Teresa Earnhardt declines to sell the lease on the rights to the No. 8 to Hendrick Motorsports so her stepson can continue to drive it, and she becomes the most heinous owner in any sport. Now Junior, winless in his last 53 Cup starts, has a fresh start with history on his side. Dale Jarrett won a championship driving the 88. Darrell Waltrip won championships with Mountain Dew as his sponsor. Many others have had success with the number, as 65 Cup wins attest."Darrell Waltrip, Bobby Allison, Rusty Wallace, Ricky Rudd, Dale Jarrett -- it has a history of great drivers," Earnhardt Jr. said of the 88. "Numbers have personalities. Numbers do talk. Numbers can reach out and grab you. Some of the others we were looking at didn't do that."He gave credit to his sister, Kelly Earnhardt Elledge, for brokering the deal that brought the number from Robert Yates Racing to Hendrick."She earned her paycheck that day," he said.Next question: When does Dale Jr. earn his? He called himself the best driver in NASCAR at Wednesday's press conference. Team owner Rick Hendrick said Earnhardt isn't coming over to learn anything from champions Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson, that he already is a tremendous driver. That was true in 2004 when he won six races, finished fifth in the Chase and was poised to be NASCAR's next great driver.

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    </p>It hasn't happened. He has won twice in 99 races, which means he has won one more race than Juan Pablo Montoya over three years despite a two-year head start. Dale Jr. will be in the best equipment money can buy. He will share notes with the two drivers tied for the Chase lead who own five titles between them. In other words: No excuses. And Junior isn't interested in making any. "There's no number of wins I want to reach," he said Wednesday. "It's just that when you retire you want people to say you were great. Until I drive [Hendrick] cars and go testing, I won't really understand how it's going to be to work for him. "Seeing these cars here today, it's a chance to just start to see how great this is going to be. I want to finish this year strong and our team wants to make a statement. But I can't wait until 2008 to show these people how dedicated a race driver I am and how much I want to prove myself." What he has proved beyond the shadow of a doubt is he can move products off the shelves faster than any of his fellow drivers. That will be even easier for him now having removed the restrictions that come with being sponsored by a beer manufacturer. The winning part should eventually come, too. And that's the kind of closure that Earnhardt's fans are really seeking.

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  3. cpawfan

    cpawfan Monsters do exist

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    http://msn.foxsports.com/nascar/story/7240794</p>

    Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s car will be sponsored by Pepsico, and they're going to spread it around to various brands. You'll see Mountain Dew stuff, Pepsi and Amp energy drink. It won't be linked to one sponsor and look the same week in and week out.</p>

    But Hendrick Motorsports and Pepsico have to be careful because NASCAR's most popular driver needs an identity. They can't go with a different paint scheme every single week. </p>

    No matter who sponsors the car, what number or what color it is, the next important thing will be winning some races at the beginning and being a championship contender right off the bat. That's the key. Everybody will be watching the team's performance very closely. </p>

    Of the available numbers, the No. 88 makes perfect sense for Earnhardt Jr. It has a pretty rich history of winning race and championships with drivers like Darrell Waltrip and Dale Jarrett. I couldn't help but laugh when Buddy Baker said the good news is if you've got an 8 tattooed on your left butt cheek, just add one to your right butt cheek and you're ready to go. </p>

    Monday on Sirius Satellite Radio, Baker said other than the No. 3 being linked to Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Jeff Gordon making his mark with the No. 24, a lot of people have driven a lot of different numbers. Too much has been made out of this number deal. </p>

    Sure, Earnhardt Jr. would love to have kept the No. 8. It's the only number he's ever driven in Cup. It's the number that his dad had at one time, and it's the number that his granddad had. So I do think Teresa Earnhardt was being very stubborn by not negotiating with Hendrick Motorsports and letting the number go with Earnhardt Jr. But a year from now, it'll be old news that he drove the No. 8, especially if he wins some races early next year. </p><h4>Sponsorship too much for Bud?</h4>

    Jon from Poughkeepsie, N.Y.: I don't get it. I thought the reason Budweiser couldn't go with Dale Earnhardt Jr. was they were still under contract with Dale Earnhardt Inc. But now they're on Kasey Kahne's car? I thought Bud was staying with DEI? If Bud was leaving, why couldn't they go with Jr. to Hendrick Motorsports?</p>

    Larry McReynolds: I'm not privy to the deal, but my gut feeling and speculation would be it was going to take much more money than they have been spending. And it probably would have been more than they would have spent to stay with DEI or go somewhere else like Gillett Evernham Motorsports. </p>

    Without knowing all of the ins and outs of Bud's contract with DEI, there's probably a good chance that even if they had another year on their contract with DEI, there were some contingency clauses based on Earnhardt Jr. being the driver. The sponsor probably would have stayed with DEI, but DEI may not have given Bud a selection of drivers that excited them. That's not to say Mark Martin wouldn't have excited them, but they can't run for a championship with a car shared by two drivers. </p>

    From a marketing standpoint, Kasey Kahne isn't Dale Earnhardt Jr. or Jeff Gordon, but he's pretty darn marketable. No matter what product you link with Kasey Kahne, it will be a huge marketing campaign. </p>

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  4. cpawfan

    cpawfan Monsters do exist

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