Dale Jr. No. 88 / Pepsi and National Guard
It was announced today that Dale Earnhardt Jr. will drive the No. 88 AMP Energy/National Guard Chevrolets in the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, giving him a storied car number for his transition to Hendrick Motorsports.

Some history behind the No. 88 in NASCAR's top series:

FAMILY TIES: Ralph Earnhardt, Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s grandfather, drove a No. 88 Petty Enterprises "Oldsmobile 88" in the 1957 Virginia 500 at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. The elder Earnhardt started ninth and finished 13th in the May 19 Grand National division race won by Buck Baker. Ralph Earnhardt also piloted the No. 188 entries for Petty in seven events that season, posting three top-10 results and six top-15s.

'88' DEBUTS: On Sept. 11, 1949 at Langhorne (Pa.) Speedway, driver Pepper Cunningham started 15th and drove his No. 88 car, a 1949 Lincoln, to a 33rd-place finish in the Strictly Stock event. Won by Curtis Turner, the race marked the first time a No. 88 was entered in NASCAR competition.

ALL-STAR ROSTER: The list of drivers who have piloted a No. 88 car in NASCAR Cup-level competition reads like an all-star race roster. Bobby Allison, Donnie Allison, Buck Baker, Buddy Baker, Geoffrey Bodine, Ernie Irvan, Dale Jarrett, Benny Parsons, Jim Paschal, Fireball Roberts, Ricky Rudd, Rusty Wallace, Darrell Waltrip and Joe Weatherly have all taken turns wheeling it.

65 WINS... AND COUNTING: The No. 88 has been to Victory Lane 65 times since its first race in 1949, ranking it ninth among car numbers on the all-time win list. It is also 10th in all-time starts (1,264) and 12th in all-time pole positions (52).

WHAT'S IN A NUMBER: Along with its 65 Cup-level wins, the No. 88 has recorded 52 poles, 315 top-five finishes and 526 top-10s. It has led 18,398 laps and logged nearly 350,000 miles.

PAIR OF 88s: Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s JR Motorsports operation also uses the No. 88 on its Chevrolets in NASCAR Busch Series competition. In fact, the current driver of the No. 88 Busch Series entries, Brad Keselowski, also has family ties to the number. His uncle, Ron Keselowski, ran a No. 88 car on 43 occasions in 1971, 1972 and 1973 combined, recording a best finish of fifth at Michigan International Speedway on June 11, 1972.

Yates Confirms Number Transfer
Robert Yates confirmed today he is retiring the No. 88 from Robert Yates Racing (RYR) following the last race of the 2007 NASCAR Nextel Cup season. He is requesting NASCAR transfer the number to Hendrick Motorsports and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. for use in competition for the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

“Ralph Earnhardt drove the No. 88 Olds in 1957 and because of this number’s history with the Earnhardt family; I felt car number 88 should continue with Dale Earnhardt, Jr.,” Yates said. “Younger fans don’t realize I built cars and raced against Ralph. I also had a very close relationship with Dale Earnhardt, Sr. I’m proud to transfer this number to Dale Jr. and let him know how much I appreciate the friendship and competitive racing I’ve always enjoyed with his family.”

Dale Jarrett began driving the No. 88 Ford Quality Care/Ford Credit Racing Ford in 1996 and promptly won the Daytona 500 in the team’s first race. UPS assumed the role of primary sponsorship in 2001 with Ford Credit staying on as an associate sponsor. Jarrett had 29 victories and won, what was then, the Winston Cup championship in 1999. He also finished in the top 10 in points seven consecutive seasons from 1996 through 2002. Ricky Rudd assumed driving duties in 2007, with sponsorship from Snickers.

Doug Yates announced two weeks ago, David Gilliland and Travis Kvapil will be the team’s drivers in 2008 with sponsorship and car numbers to be announced.

Tire Test Rained Out
Wednesday’s second day of the Goodyear tire test with NASCAR’s Car of Tomorrow in preparation for the historic 50th running of the Daytona 500 on Sunday, Feb. 17 was rained out. On the first day of testing, teams were also slowed by rain showers and only got on the track for an afternoon session. Drivers that participated in the test included Denny Hamlin (Joe Gibbs Racing), 2007 Daytona 500 pole winner David Gilliland (Yates Racing), David Stremme (Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates), Mark Green subbing for Michael Waltrip (Michael Waltrip Racing) and recent NEXTEL Cup Series winner Clint Bowyer (Richard Childress Racing).

Rusty Wallace To Appear On "Live"
On Thursday, September 20th, 2007, Rusty Wallace, NASCAR legend and ABC / ESPN lead auto racing analyst, will appear on the nationally-renowned morning talk show, Live with Regis and Kelly, featuring well-known hosts, Regis Philban and Kelly Ripa. Wallace will discuss, among other topics, NASCAR Angels, the nationally-syndicated television program which he co-hosts with Shannon Wiseman. Check local listings for airtimes and affiliates.

Sam Hornish Will Try Dover
Sam Hornish Jr., driver of the No. 06 Penske Truck Rental Dodge Avenger, will attempt to make his NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series debut at Dover International Speedway on Sunday in the Car of Tomorrow. This is Hornish's inaugural appearance at the 1-mile concrete oval. Although Hornish's 2008 plans have not been determined, the 28-year-old will attempt to qualify for no more than seven events, including each of the four remaining COT races with Roy McCauley leading the charge.

McCauley, crew chief of the No. 06 Penske Truck Rental Dodge Avenger, will take chassis PRS-511 to this weekend's Dover 400. This car was last driven by Ryan Newman at the fall Bristol race where it started and finished seventh. Newman also drove this car at Martinsville where it started 24th and finished 15th in the spring. The backup car for Dover, PRS-512, was the primary car last week at New Hampshire. Prior to that event, the car was last driven by Kurt Busch at Phoenix where it started sixth and finished 18th in April.

Hornish on Dover International Speedway: "I'm really looking forward to Dover, especially after what happened last weekend. I have a better idea now and hopefully, we won't let it happen again. My goal is to make the race and get as much seat time as possible.'

McCauley on Dover International Speedway: "Dover's an animal unto itself. There is no other track like Dover, so it's hard to test for it. Although this is going to be even tougher than last weekend at New Hampshire, we're looking forward to the challenge. We just have to get it into the show."

Inmate Sues Jeff Gordon
Jeff Gordon has secret plans to put wings on the No. 24 car and fly it into Fort Knox. The car also time travels. Gordon has a secret trap door in the car to "drop tic tacs and oil" on the racetrack, not to mention he stole the talking Trans Am, Kitt, from the television show "Knight Rider." -- All of the claims and much more are in a federal lawsuit filed by Jonathan Lee Riches, a prolific and litigious inmate in South Carolina.

Riches, 30, is serving more than 10 years at Williamsburg Federal Correctional Institution in Salters, S.C., where he churns out fantastic lawsuits against everyone from President Bush to NBA phenom LeBron James. His outlandish suits have a following on the Internet and have been featured on The Smoking Gun Web site, among others.

Calling himself the "Litigator Crusader," his most recent suit was filed against Gordon and Hendrick Motorsports in federal court in Charlotte last week. Filed with a heading of "Recklessly Drivin My Life Crazy," Riches' lawsuit seeks $22 billion and Gordon's race car. Hendrick Motorsports did not return several calls seeking comment. Neither groups who want to curb inmate lawsuits nor those who champion inmate lawsuits are pleased with Riches.

"Many of us would argue those are frivolous lawsuits," said Darren McKinney, spokesman for the American Tort Reform Association in Washington.

Riches has filed 31 lawsuits in prison, sentenced as part of an identity theft ring when he was living in Holiday, Fla., in 2004. Seventeen of the lawsuits have been thrown out so far.(thatsracin.com)

Dale Jr.’s Big Mo' Candy Bar Launched
Dale Earnhardt Jr. is bringing his heavy-hitting brand and high-profile name to the candy business, announcing the launch of his new candy bar, “Dale Jr.’s Big Mo’ ” through R.M. Palmer Company. The eight-year NASCAR Nextel Cup driver and former winner of the Daytona 500 introduced Big Mo’ to buyers and industry media at the 2007 Candy Expo at McCormick Place. The name Big Mo’ is a play off Earnhardt Jr.’s hometown of Mooresville, N.C., and the longtime moniker used for he and his closest friends, the Dirty Mo’ Posse. The milk chocolate candy bar will come in two flavors – creamy caramel and peanut butter. It is scheduled to hit stores nationwide in January 2008.

“At one point or another everyone has had their own idea of making the perfect candy bar, and this was my chance to do it,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “It’s really cool to have my name on a candy bar, and it’s a pleasure to partner with R.M. Palmer Company in putting this product on the shelves. I think Big Mo’ will be widely accepted, not just by racing fans but by everyone who enjoys a good candy bar.”

Known for its seasonal novelty candies, R.M. Palmer Co. has been specializing in traditional holiday candies since 1948, but this is the first of its product line to be a milk chocolate everyday candy bar. The making of the Big Mo’ bar included numerous taste-tests by Earnhardt Jr., and its unique recipe and design was shaped to meet the NASCAR star’s liking.

“Our relationship with Dale Earnhardt Jr. is no doubt a partnership I am proud of,” said Rich Palmer Jr., president of R.M. Palmer Company. “We started this venture over 12 months ago and our goal was to create a milk chocolate bar that Dale Jr. would be proud to call his own. I am confident that our goal has been achieved. The Big Mo bar is well received by the retailers and is sure to be a “BIG” success.

To coincide the announcement of the Big Mo’ bar, R.M. Palmer Company is launching the “Big Mo’ment with Dale Jr.” sweepstakes. Thousands of winners will be awarded great prizes, but the grand prize winner will be treated to his or her Big Mo’ment, which will include lunch with Dale and his JR Motorsports race team, a limousine tour of area race shops, suite tickets to a VIP weekend at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, and $250 spending money. Fans will be able to enter the sweepstakes by visiting www.BigMo-ment.com and typing in the entry code on the inside wrapper of the Big Mo’ bar.

“This is a great idea by the folks at R.M. Palmer to really spike the interest in the Big Mo’ bar, and give fans a chance to win great prizes,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “The grand prize winner will be treated like royalty. It will be more than a big moment. It will be a big weekend they’ll never forget.”

Driver Milestones