One name instantly comes to mind when No. 8 is mentioned to a NASCAR fan: Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Like his father before him, Earnhardt Jr. is the sports most popular driver, and has the most recognizable car number. For many fans, the name ?Dale Junior? and the No. 8 are interchangeable. At least for now.
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When Earnhardt Jr. announced he would be leaving Dale Earnhardt, Inc. to drive for Hendrick Motorsports next season, he hoped a deal could be reached that allowed him to retain his current number.
It didn?t happen. Earnhardt Jr. confirmed this week he would don a different number next season because he couldn?t reach a deal with his stepmother and DEI owner, Teresa Earnhardt, who owns the popular digit.
“I kind of knew it was going to be hard to convince her to let us have it,” Earnhardt Jr. recently told ESPN. “And that was the case ? it?s just unfortunate.”
Even more unfortunate is this is another chapter in the ongoing feud between Dale Junior and Teresa Earnhardt.
Teresa Earnhardt was well within her rights to keep the number. NASCAR assigns numbers to team owners, not drivers.
“It?s a touchy situation,” said DEI teammate Mark Martin. “All I know is that standard procedure for the owners ? who build equity in the number ? that?s what stays with them.”
There is no question this is a unique situation. Unlike the owner-driver relationship that Martin had when he left behind the No. 6 he made famous at Roush Racing, Earnhardt Jr. is dealing with family, as well as a number both his father and grandfather used on the track.
Martin said Teresa is the rightful owner of the famous number.
“I raced against the No. 8 car in the 80?s,” Martin said. “Dale Earnhardt, Inc. owned that Busch car ? that’s Teresa and Dale Earnhardt. He raced that
number on his short track
cars ? so there’s another side to it.”
But the argument Martin makes is exactly why, in the end, Earnhardt Jr. should have been given the number. From starting with Ralph Earnhardt, then moving on to Dale Sr. and now Dale Jr., the No. 8 is part of the legacy of one of the most prominent families in NASCAR history.
Teresa Earnhardt could have ended an almost two-year feud with Dale Jr., regained the fans? support and preserved a family tradition with one deft business move.
Instead of continuing the family legacy, though, the No. 8 will now serve as a constant reminder of the continuing battle between stepmother and son ? and as proof the number that matters most in NASCAR is the one preceded by a dollar sign.
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