The No. 3 Wrangler Chevrolet that Dale Earnhardt Jr. drove to victory lane in the Nationwide race at Daytona International Speedway earlier this month will be on display at the NASCAR Hall of Fame, Winston Kelley, executive director of the NASCAR Hall announced Thursday, July 14, 2010 in Charlotte.
Earnhardt emphasized after the Daytona Nationwide victory that this will be the last time he will drive the No. 3, which was made famous by the late racing legend Dale Earnhardt Sr. "I will never do it. I'll never rethink it. I'll never consider it. I think that it's important for everybody to know that that's as concrete as it gets. I'll never do it again."
NASCAR's most popular driver chose Daytona International Speedway to make his last trip in the No. 3, a number long associated with his famous father. The senior Earnhardt lost his life at the Florida track in the final laps of the 2001 Daytona 500 NASCAR race.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. No. 3 Winning Chevrolet Honors Dad's Hall of Fame Induction
The senior Earnhardt was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in its inaugural class in May 2010 and the car will be on display there as a tribute to the him.
"Long before we ever raced the No. 3 car to honor my dad, I had already considered lending it to the NASCAR Hall of Fame regardless of how it finished, because the whole point of the program was to pay tribute to my dad’s induction into the Hall of Fame,” said Earnhardt Jr.
“The fact we won with it makes it even more meaningful," he continued, "and hopefully it will attract more people to the NASCAR Hall of Fame in the coming months while it’s on display. This No. 3 Wrangler Chevrolet put me back into Victory Lane, and it stirred up a lot of old memories for a lot of people. I was happy for my fans, my dad’s fans, my family, Richard (Childress), Teresa (Earnhardt) and everybody involved. It was definitely an honor to drive it.”
Dale Jr. Winning No. 3 Chevrolet on Loan to NASCAR Hall
The No. 3 Wrangler Chevrolet Impala that Earnhardt drove was built and prepared by JR Motorsports and entered in the Daytona race by owner Richard Childress. On loan from JR Motorsports, the race car is on exhibit in the Great Hall of the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte until Sunday, Sept. 19, 2010.
"There already was something special about this race car before it ever even took a lap around a racetrack,” said Winston Kelley, executive director of the NASCAR Hall of Fame. “It solidified its place in history, though, when Dale Jr. took it to Victory Lane in Daytona. Dale says he will not drive the No. 3 again, so this may be even more historic than we realize today. Epic stories deserve to be relived over and over, and it is our privilege to provide a venue for guests to get close to something so unique. We can’t thank Kelley (Earnhardt) and Dale enough for loaning us this car.”
Rosalie Thompson - Rosalie Thompson enjoys writing about NASCAR, real estate, gardening and travel in the Southeastern United States. After graduating from ...
