Dale Earnhardt Jr. only wanted to bring back the classic "Bud 8" if they did it the right way.
And after figuring out how to do just that, they announced the return of the iconic car earlier today. Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Budweiser proudly made it public that Dale Jr., who retired from full time racing in 2017, will once again drive the iconic Budweiser No. 8 Chevrolet for a limited series of Late Model Stock Car Races in 2024 and 2025.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DBbWTyPRTJB/?utm_source=ig_embed&ig_rid=68117e09-a71d-4696-8065-9a8b7b852bbf
Dale Earnhardt Jr. drove the number 8 car while he was racing for his father's team, Dale Earnhardt Inc, from 1999 until 2007. He only stopped driving the iconic car when he asked for ownership of DEI from Teresa Earnhardt - the widow of Dale Earnhardt. Teresa wasn't willing to give Dale Jr. ownership of the team, and also wasn't willing to hand over the #8, so Dale moved over to Team Hendrick and drove the #88 car until he retired.
That tumultuous exit from DEI forever stressed the relationship between Teresa and Dale Earnhardt Jr., though it seems that things have recently improved since Teresa Earnhardt allowed the opportunity for Dale Jr. to buy the trademark for the #8 car this past June. That olive branch, if you will, played a critical part in Earnhardt Jr. and his team bringing back the legendary Bud 8 car.
As he explained on the Dale Jr. Download:
"We announced a collaboration with our old friends at Budweiser. I've always felt like no matter what, I was always gonna be Team Bud. One of the things that made me feel that way too was when I announced my retirement from cup racing... the commercial they made, right? They made that commercial out of their own pocket. Sort of a little tip of the cap they didn't have to do. So I've always wondered if we would ever do something again.One of the things that I really appreciate about Teresa, as long as she had the '8,' I was very happy that it was in a safe place. I knew that it was always going to be fine. But if she doesn't want to pay for the trademark anymore, I'm like, 'Well we better get that.' Because I want it safe. And when we thought about doing something with it, we were like, 'Man I don't want to just make merch.' But if we raced the car, then I would feel comfortable with the merch. That's what got us talking to Budweiser about it."
https://twitter.com/DirtyMoMedia/status/1848794719108665371
Prepare to see a lot more Dale Earnhardt Jr. Budweiser 8 merchandise floating around. For the longest time, you could only get your hands on vintage merchandise. And as Dale explained, they only wanted to bring the merchandise back if they could also find a way to get the classic car back on the track.
And if you were wondering what advertisement Dale Jr. was referring to that Budweiser put together on their own dime, may I direct your attention to this beautifully done, emotional couple of minutes that ends with a "This Bud's for you, Junior" message:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rD0aST9soAo
