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Dale Earnhardt Jr’s Sister Reveals Hidden Motive Behind Hip-Hop Icon Drake Donning a Dale Earnhardt Merchandise

Published 03/17/2023, 6:02 PM EDT

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Dale Earnhardt Sr is undoubtedly one of the best racers ever to drive a stock car. It may have been more than two decades since he passed away but he’s remembered in different ways by different people time and again. Dale Earnhardt Jr is understandably someone who brings up his dad’s name often. However, it was Canadian rapper Drake this time who was seen remembering the legend.

Drake was recently spotted wearing Dale Earnhardt’s merchandise and it has taken the NASCAR world by surprise. Interestingly, it was Dale Jr’s sister who revealed the real reason behind this.

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Dale Earnhardt Jr’s sister discloses the truth behind the Drake incident

In one of those rare scenarios, Dale Jr was missing from his own podcast, The Dale Jr. Download. While he was out vacationing with his family, his sister Kelley Earnhardt Miller replaced him for a recent episode. She was joined by 23XI Racing President Steve Lauletta for some interesting discussions including the motorsport business.

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Having worked in the sports marketing department for the Miller Brewing Company, Lauletta comes with a lot of experience. For more than a decade, he served as the President of Chip Ganassi Racing before joining Denny Hamlin and Michael Jordan’s team. He shared some insightful inputs concerning the marketing side of the sport which eventually brought out the Drake discussion.

Lauletta said, “Back in the day when I was at Miller and we were marketing the hell out of Rusty Wallace and commercials, Budweiser were doing the same for Dale Jr. These [Today’s] big brands aren’t doing as much of the marketing to make these drivers as recognizable as they have been in the past.”

With Lauletta around, 23XI Racing aren’t making the same mistake. They are ensuring their drivers are used efficiently even off the track. Lauletta gave the example of how McDonald’s had put Bubba Wallace in a Superbowl commercial and DoorDash used him in multiple commercials. He also shared how they used Denny Hamlin and Wallace in one of the Post Malone videos to get more recognition.

It was then that Kelley stepped in and said, “We broke through today with Drake wearing the Dale Earnhardt jacket.” Dale Jr’s sister is the CEO of JR Motorsports and there is a high chance that the Drake news was one of the marketing gimmicks as Lauletta explained. If that’s the case, the plan seems to be successful as fans went crazy seeing the five-time Grammy Awards winner don the Dale Earnhardt merchandise.

Drake displays love toward the 7x NASCAR Cup Series champion

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Music and NASCAR don’t really go hand-in-hand but Drake proved otherwise. The 36-year-old hip-hop superstar called for a wild reaction when he donned Dale Sr’s famous jacket in one of his latest social media posts.

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There were some amazing reactions from the NASCAR faithful. “GOAT WEARING THE GOAT MERCH” looked like one of the best comments. Clearly, this has caught the eye of many, serving the marketing purpose.

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It is interesting to see how promotions work these days. Having said that, which collaboration do you think would make the next best combination?

WATCH THIS STORY | “You Gotta Give What You Get” – Denny Hamlin Reveals His Gripe With Travis Scott and Drake

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Written by:

Priyank Mithani

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Priyank Mithani is a NASCAR writer at Essentially Sports. Since completing his graduation, he has been pursuing a career in the Media & Entertainment industry. With a zeal to write creative and insightful content, he started his journey as a freelancer in 2018.
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Edited by:

Nischal Kandpal