NASCAR: Daniel Hemric to drive for Richard Childress Racing at Richmond and Charlotte

Daniel Hemric is set to make his NASCAR Cup Series debut at Richmond Raceway before driving at Charlotte Motor Speedway later in the 2018 season.

Daniel Hemric, 27, is set to make his NASCAR Cup Series debut next month in the Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond Raceway in Richmond, Virginia before driving in the Bank of America 500 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval in Concord, North Carolina in September during the Cup Series playoffs.

Hemric is set to do so for Richard Childress Racing, the team he drives full-time for in the Xfinity Series. He is set to make his Cup Series debut driving the Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff-sponsored #8 Chevrolet for the team. The #8 car has not been used in the Cup Series since Aric Almirola drove it part-time in the 2009 season for Earnhardt Ganassi Racing.

However, the #8 Chevrolet is most well-known as a result of the fact that Dale Earnhardt Jr. drove if when he drove for Dale Earnhardt, Inc. for eight full-time seasons from 2000 to 2007 to open up his Cup Series career. He also drove the car in several races in the 1999 season.

Hemric, like Earnhardt Jr., hails from Kannapolis, North Carolina. Here is what he had to say about the opportunity to drive the #8 Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing in two races this season, according to NASCAR.com.

"“It’s an incredible opportunity with the 8 car coming back into the Cup Series. Richard Childress told me at the beginning of 2017, he said listen, let’s try to build something here, let’s try to make sure we can get you to your goals and let’s try to figure out a way to get you to the top tier of this sport. He’s held true to his word and to everyone who’s backed me and supported me to this point.“It’s incredible to know not only do I get to do it once, but I get to do it again back in my hometown in Charlotte later in the fall. It’s unbelievable, a little overwhelming and something I’ve dreamed about my whole life. I’m trying to take it all in.”“I drove by DEI every single day. It was a reminder of this guy, Dale Earnhardt, who grew up in this same town, the same area. He went from working in the plant, to short-track racing, to become this sport’s icon and here I am driving by his place every single day. It’s a reminder that if you keep working, what you can have out of life. It was very special to have that right here in my backyard and to know I’m trying to make that same mark in this sport.”"

Hemric has driven full-time in NASCAR since the 2015 season when he drove the #14 Chevrolet for NTS Motorsports in the Truck Series. He finished the season in 7th place in the championship standings after recording four top 5 finishes and 13 top 10 finishes in 23 races with top finishes of 4th place at Dover, Bristol and Ontario.