Dale Earnhardt Jr Expresses Pride in Having “Little North Carolina Secret” Sponsor for His Comeback Race

Published 08/05/2022, 11:15 AM EDT

Former NASCAR fan favorite driver Dale Earnhardt Jr is making his return to racing for the Late Model Series at the North Wilkesboro Speedway. He’ll be driving a car with a similar livery to that he used back in 1993. Not only that, but the car will also feature a local sponsor that stuck with him back in his racing days.

Earnhardt Jr mentioned that he has immense pride in having Sun Drop return as his sponsor for his special race. During an interview, he said, “I’ve worked with Mountain Dew in the past and Coca-Cola before that. The other brands I’ve worked with have been nationally recognized names.”

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“But Sun Drop has always been kind of like our home team and our little North Carolina secret.”

He also mentioned how there always used to be a Sun Drop at his grandmother’s house, which allows him to hold the sponsor in high regard.

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Earnhardt Jr. is a man that enjoys a hint of the past from time to time. He has also had a graveyard full of old wrecks of NASCAR Cup series cars scattered around his property.

Dale Earnhardt Jr used to be a Late Model Stock Car racer before the Cup series

Before Earnhardt Jr ventured into the main game and eventually became a Hall of Famer, he used to kick up dirt in his good old Late Model Stock car. He rode along in a trailer with a bunch of pals headed to short tracks.

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Earnhardt Jr mentioned that he really misses that time and continuously thinks about those days. He seemed really excited that he was going to re-live it all over with this race at North Wilkesboro Speedway.

In an interview with The Athletic, he said, “I know you’ll never be able to recreate it, and I’m not trying to. But that’s where my heart is.”

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It sure will be a glimpse into the “good ol’ days”, with Earnhardt Jr. returning to the circuit and racing once again.

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Written by:

Srijan Mandal is a NASCAR author at EssentiallySports. He is currently pursuing his Master’s in Journalism and has been writing for his own blog, 'Noobs Onboard', for a while now, covering NASCAR, F1, W Series, MotoGP, WRC and the WEC. Following motorsports for more than a decade now, he has become a devout supporter of McLaren Racing, Sir Lewis Hamilton, and Ayrton Senna.

Edited by:

Ranvijay Singh