Earnhardt name stays in NASCAR as part-time deal confirmed

Jeffrey Earnhardt’s part-time NASCAR Xfinity Series ride for the 2020 season prevented the 2020 season from being the season with the least number of Earnhardt appearances since before Dale Sr. made his debut.

Up until last week, the number of NASCAR races featuring an Earnhardt in the 2020 season was slated to be one, which would have been the lowest total since the 1974 season.

The 1974 season is one year before the now legendary seven-time champion Dale Earnhardt made his Cup Series debut, and it is the most recent season that did not feature an Earnhardt in NASCAR in any capacity.

But that changed a few days ago when JD Motorsports confirmed that Jeffrey Earnhardt is set to return to the Xfinity Series on a part-time basis for the second consecutive year. He last drove for JD Motorsports in his lone full-time Xfinity Series season back in 2014.

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Earnhardt is set to compete in at least 12 races throughout the 33-race season, with that number possibly in line to increase depending on additional sponsorship being secured. He is set to share the #15 Chevrolet with Colby Howard and Robby Lyons.

The 30-year-old Mooresville, North Carolina native is set to make his first start of the season in the season’s fifth race at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Saturday, March 14. Beyond that, his schedule has not yet been confirmed.

Here is what Earnhardt had to say about this opportunity in a media release.

"“I am really thankful to Johnny Davis and the JD Motorsports with Gary Keller team for having me onboard this season. These guys work hard every week and they’ve demonstrated the ability and desire to compete. I am looking forward to getting back on track this season!”"

Prior to this confirmation, the only race that was slated to feature an Earnhardt was the March Xfinity Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. has competed in one Xfinity Series race for JR Motorsports, the team he co-owns, each year since retiring from full-time Cup Series competition after the 2017 season. After driving at Richmond Raceway in 2018 and Darlington Raceway last year, he picked Homestead-Miami Speedway for his racing venue in 2020.

The 45-year-old Kannapolis, North Carolina native plans to continue making these one-off appearances for as long as he can.

Last season featured 92 races across NASCAR’s top three series (36 Cup Series races, 33 Xfinity Series races and 23 Truck Series races), and only 12 races featured an Earnhardt. Jeffrey competed in one Cup Series race and seven Xfinity Series races, Bobby Dale competed in three Xfinity Series races and Dale Jr. competed in one Xfinity Series race.

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This total marked the lowest number of NASCAR races to feature an Earnhardt in a single season since the 1978 season, when Dale Earnhardt made only five Cup Series starts. This was four years before the Xfinity Series even came into being and 17 years before the Truck Series was established.

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