Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the Daytona 500 twice as a driver. In 2025, he'll try to take home the checkered flag at NASCAR's biggest race for the first time as an owner.
The NASCAR Hall of Famer announced Wednesday that JR Motorsports -- the team he owns that has competed in the second-tier Xfinity Series since 2005 -- will make its Cup Series debut at next month's Daytona 500 with Justin Allgaier driving.
Ten-time Grammy winner Chris Stapleton's Traveller Whiskey will be the sponsor of the No. 40 Chevrolet, which will not be locked into the race. Allgaier will have to make the show based on speed in qualifying on Feb. 12 or through the qualifying races held on Feb. 13.
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See y’all in Daytona. pic.twitter.com/iCvILhtw1W
— JR Motorsports (@JRMotorsports) January 15, 2025
Allgaier, 38, won his first career Xfinity championship last year in his ninth season driving for JR Motorsports. He has two previous Daytona 500 starts, finishing 27th in 2014 and 37th in 2015.
For Earnhardt, this entry comes on the 24th anniversary of when his father was killed during the 2001 Daytona 500. The younger Earnhardt, now 50, won the Daytona 500 as a driver in 2004 and 2014.
Since retiring in 2017, Earnhardt has focused on his Xfinity team -- which has been among the series' most successful operations. JR Motorsports has four championships and 88 wins in the series -- including the title with Allgaier and seven overall victories by four separate drivers in 2024. Earnhardt is also a former broadcaster for NBC who will work for Amazon and TNT as part of a new media rights deal this season.
The season-opening Daytona 500 is scheduled for Sunday, Feb. 16 at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX.
