NASCAR: Dale Earnhardt Jr. return brings unique opportunity

Dale Earnhardt Jr. is set for his NASCAR return this September, and the diecasts and merchandise of his new car are flying off the shelves.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. is set to make his return to the NASCAR Xfinity Series later this season in the Go Bowling 250 at Richmond Raceway, marking 26 consecutive seasons of him competing in NASCAR on some level.

The Earnhardt name has been in NASCAR in at least one race across the three national series in each of the last 47 years going back to Dale Sr.’s Cup Series debut in 1975.

The 15-time Most Popular Driver Award winner announced last October that he would be returning for another one-off Xfinity Series appearance in 2021 after JR Motorsports and Unilever announced a 13th consecutive season of their partnership. He has competed in one Xfinity Series race per year since retiring from full-time Cup Series competition after the 2017 season.

But Earnhardt wasn’t able to disclose where he would be competing in 2021 at that time, even though he knew.

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He cited sponsorship and the need for time for activation as the reason why that specific announcement would come at a later date when he spoke to Beyond the Flag a few weeks after the deal was confirmed.

“It’s somewhere that I’ve raced before in the last couple of years,” Earnhardt said. “I’m sure some of you guys can kind of guess where it might be. … They need a little bit of time to sort of activate the sponsorship and get their money’s worth, and we need to allow them to be able to maximize that. For what we ask of them, they deserve that much from us.”

The official confirmation finally came earlier this week, and Earnhardt revealed this special paint scheme that he is set to run in the race: a 9/11 tribute scheme.

The race is scheduled to take place on Saturday, September 11, which marks the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks of 2001.

So 189 days — more than half a year — after Earnhardt confirmed he’d be back in 2021, the official announcement that he is set to compete where he finished in fourth place in 2018 finally came in early May.

And it was well worth the wait; most fans agree.

That’s why the #8 Chevrolet he is set to drive is already among the most popular collectibles among diecast cars.

So while the race is still more than four months away, this is truly a unique opportunity; don’t miss your chance to get your hands on one of these special #8 Unilever United for America NASCAR Xfinity Series diecast cars.

Regular 1:64 diecast ($9.99): Buy it now!

Regular 1:24 diecast ($54.99): Buy it now!

1:24 color chrome diecast ($69.99): Buy it now!

Dual Autograph 1:24 diecast ($129.99): Buy it now!

Even if diecast cars aren’t your thing, you can still get in on the action with some of this special merchandise.

Note that these special event items are also among the most popular in their respective categories, so get them while you can; don’t wait until race day!

Snapback adjustable hat ($24.99): Buy it now!

Graphic 2-spot t-shirt ($27.99): Buy it now!

Blue full-snap jacket ($129.99): Buy it now!

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