Continuing a tradition of running his own JR Motorsports Chevrolets each season, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is scheduled to make a pair of starts in the No. 88 Chevrolet Camaro this season in races at Bristol Motor Speedway (Aug. 18) and Richmond International Raceway (Sept. 8). Long-time JRM driver Kasey Kahne will drive the car at Daytona International Speedway (Feb. 25) and Talladega Superspeedway (May 6).
Scott Radel, director of engineering at JRM, has been tabbed to crew chief all four races. Radel has been a JRM engineer since 2013, and previously worked for Hendrick Motorsports. He won championships with JRM in 2014 and with two other teams as an engineer. Radel brings 20-plus years of experience in calling races.
“I am looking forward to the opportunity to be atop the pit box for these four races, with Dale and Kasey behind the wheel,” said Radel, a 44-year-old Ohio native. “JRM has had tremendous success over the past three seasons, and the ability to field a fifth entry is one that will help continue building on that momentum in 2017.”
Earnhardt Jr., who won for the first time in a JRM Chevrolet last year at Richmond International Raceway, will return to the .75-mile D-shaped oval for one of his two scheduled races, and the other will be in the Bristol night race. Sponsorship for both events will be announced at a later date.
Earnhardt Jr. has made 40 starts in NASCAR Xfinity Series competition for JRM, winning at Richmond. In that span, he’s earned 20 top-five and 28 top-10 finishes. He owns four career NXS victories in six starts at Richmond and grabbed his lone win at Bristol in 2004.
Kahne, as he did last season, will run in the season opener at Daytona International Speedway in Hellmann’s colors, and follow that up with Armour backing at Talladega Superspeedway.
The No. 88 “All Star car” has been a full-time car the past two seasons, but with JRM’s expansion to four full-time teams and the addition of new drivers William Byron and Michael Annett, it will be a fifth JRM entry in the four races named.
Kahne has made 24 starts in JRM Chevrolets, with one victory at Daytona in 2014, and added 11 top-five and 16 top-10 finishes.
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