Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Budweiser are reunited and feeling good. The Budweiser No. 8 Chevrolet is returning to the track with Earnhardt Jr. for a limited series of Late Model Stock Races in 2024 and 2025, with the first race scheduled for November 23, 2024 in the South Carolina 400 at Florence Motor Speedway.
“It is an incredible opportunity for me to be able to reunite with Budweiser, and the No.8,” said Earnhardt Jr via a press release sent to Newsweek.com.
“Budweiser and I had some great memories with that iconic scheme and number. We’ve always supported each other over the years.
“It’s going to be really special for me to be able to represent that brand on the racetrack again.”
JR Motorsports
Budweiser was Earnhardt Jr’s primary sponsor for nine seasons in the NASCAR Cup Series and the new No. 8 Budweiser that will appear in Late Model Stock Races in 2024 and 2025 will be fielded by JR Motorsports. JR Motorsports is co-owned by Earnhardt Jr., Kelley Earnhardt Miller and NASCAR Hall of Famer Rick Hendrick.
The team competes in multiple racing divisions, including the NASCAR Xfinity Series where it currently fields four full-time teams, and various teams in regional Late Model Divisions.
“There are names that when mentioned, draw on the significance of their place in American history. Among them, Budweiser, and Earnhardt,” said Matt Davis, Vice-President of Partnerships at Anheuser-Busch. “This return to the racetrack alongside Dale with the Bud King of Beers paint scheme is another chapter in Anheuser-Busch’s long and storied sports history.”
I became a NASCAR fan in the early 2000s, and the Budweiser No.8 was the hottest car in the sport. Obviously, Earnhardt Jr.’s stardom played a large part in the car’s popularity in the early 2000s when he was driving for Dale Earnhardt Incorporated but the car itself was striking.
I’m good with Budweiser No.8 coming back to Late Model races and I think it would be great for the sport to have a striking crimson Budweiser car again. I realize Busch Light sponsors Track House and while a baby blue Busch No. 1 looks good on the track, it’s not Bud in red.
I welcome the Budweiser No. 8 with wide open arms, but I feel that Earnhardt Jr.’s frosted tips should stay where they are: in the past. Not every style should be able to come back as retro. Even when it was current, bleached tips had as much style as a Creed concert, so hopefully, Dale Earnhardt Jr. makes the right choice and keeps his hair natural when he returns with the Budweiser No. 8 this year.