Dale Earnhardt Jr.

JR Motorsports

2024 Xfinity Stats

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2025 Fantasy Outlook

Earnhardt Jr. has raced part-time in the Xfinity Series since his retirement from full-time Cup Series racing at the end of 2017. He made one start in 2024 and earned a strong seventh-place finish at Bristol. Earnhardt appears to be stepping away from NASCAR in 2025 and concentrating more on the CARS Tour and late model stock racing in much smaller racing series. Read Past Outlooks

Car No. 88 Chevrolet

Crew Chief Andrew Overstreet

Making Xfinity start at Bristol

XFINITY Series

March 25, 2024

JR Motorsports and Hellmann's Mayonnaise announced a multi-year extension through the 2026 Xfinity Series season and it will sponsor Earnhardt Jr. in the No. 88 Chevrolet later this year at Bristol Motor Speedway Sept. 20.

ANALYSIS
Hellmann's has been a long-time sponsor at JR Motorsports and they will also see primary sponsorship in six races on the No. 7 Chevrolet for Justin Allgaier during the 2024 season. Earnhardt Jr. has consistently run in one NASCAR Xfinity Series race for his team in each of the last seven seasons since retiring from full-time Cup Series competition. 2023 was the first year he actually raced in two races, making starts at both Bristol and Homestead in the fall. Unless a sponsor really wants to have Earnhardt Jr. run in a second race for them, we should probably assume this will be his only start in 2024. The two-time Xfinity Series champ drove through the field last fall at Bristol and ended up leading 47 laps before he was forced to retire with a mechanical issue. Bubba Pollard (Richmond), Carson Kvapil (Martinsville) and Connor Zilisch (Watkins Glen, Kansas, Homestead, Phoenix) are the other drivers who are currently slated to run races in the part-time No. 88 entry for JR Motorsports.

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Past Fantasy Outlooks

2017

2014

2008

2006

The devastating concussion and balance/vision impairment issues that Earnhardt suffered due to multiple crashes last season took the NASCAR icon out of the driver's seat at mid-season in 2016. He only completed 18 of the 36 events before being sidelined. It was a season lost for the driver of the No. 88 Chevrolet. However, the good news is that Earnhardt is much better and has received medical clearance to race again as of early December. Before the injury the veteran driver had been performing at his highest level in years with great campaigns in 2014 and 2015. While all would appear to be all right physically with Earnhardt, we'd be a bit leery about building a fantasy race team around him, with Earnhardt being the anchor driver. As it goes with drivers and concussion histories, all it takes is another major wreck to put your driver on the sidelines for multiple races.

The loss of crew chief Steve Letarte at the end of the 2014 season was seen as a major blow to this driver and team. However, Earnhardt would quickly bond and build chemistry with Greg Ives last year en route to a very strong season. Earnhardt grabbed three wins and 22 top-10 finishes to dispel any thoughts of a downturn in the No. 88 team. His 11.3 average finish in 2015 was actually better than the 12.2 he posted in his strong 2014 campaign. Now where does this driver and team go? While a championship doesn't seem likely, the Chase format certainly makes it more of a possibility for a driver and team like this. Another multi-win, 20+ top 10 season should be around the corner for the driver of the No. 88 Chevrolet.

Aside from the late-season concussion and brief hiatus from competition, last year was a very successful campaign for the NASCAR icon. Earnhardt saw his championship hopes disappear due to his head injury, but he still managed 20 Top-10 finishes and a respectable 12th-place finish in the final championship standings. He also got the winless monkey off his back in 2012. Earnhardt’s thrilling victory at Michigan ended a 143-race winless streak in the Sprint Cup Series. We believe the No. 88 Hendrick team will build on these gains in the upcoming season. Earnhardt should scratch out another victory or two, and he should show the consistency that he did last season. Those characteristics should make him a very valuable driver in almost any fantasy racing format.

The 2005 season can only be described as disappointing for Earnhardt Jr. The failure to make the Chase for the Cup was only mildly sedated by the single victory that he collected at Chicago. 2006 should hold some improvement for Earnhardt and the #8 team, but we don't expect a complete turnaround in just one season.

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Confirmed for Bristol

XFINITY Series

January 10, 2023

JR Motorsports and Unilever have reached a milestone as they extend their partnership into its 15th year in 2023. In addition, the organization confirmed that NASCAR Hall of Famer Earnhardt Jr. will make his annual return to the Xfinity Series this season with a Unilever-branded No. 88 entry at Bristol Motor Speedway.