In the summer of 2024, NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver, Dale Earnhardt Jr., moved with his company, DEJ Holdings, to purchase the trademark of the DEI number 8 font. Former DEI owner and the window of Dale Earnhardt Sr. Teresa Earnhardt previously owned the trademark. However, Teresa allowed the rights to lapse, and Little E wasted little time getting it under their banner. JR Motorsports formally brought back the number with the announcement that Dale Jr. would pilot a familiarly wrapped number 8 at the South Carolina 400. Junebug and JRM teamed back up with Junior’s former partner, Budweiser, to run the ultimate throwback.
On Tuesday morning, JRM announced they were “rebranding” their existing Xfinity Series number 8 ride with the DEI font. Pilot and TMC will sponsor the car and will driven by Sammy Smith full-time in the 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series season. This monumental news got us thinking: what all drivers have driven the number 8 with this style of font? Buckle up, Daily Downforce readers! Here’s every NASCAR driver who drove the Dale Jr. stylized number 8 in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
The first driver to drive the number 8 with this font (which is the same font as the RCR number 3) was The Intimidator himself, Dale Earnhardt. He drove the number in the NASCAR Xfinity Series as a part-time effort for his own team, Dale Earnhardt Incorporated. His run with the iconic brand began in 1984 at Charlotte, where he brought it home in the fourth position.
His first win in the ride came in 1985 at Rockingham Speedway. He went on to win seven times in the number. Earnhardt Sr. made 44 starts in the DEI 8 car, 21 of them top-5 finishes. Following the 1988 season, the DEI 8 car in the Xfinity Series was renumbered to the 3 to be consistent with his Cup Series number.
Jody Ridley made a single start in the DEI number 8 car, starting at Charlotte in 1985. His start in the car was somewhat unceremonious, as mechanical issues relegated him to a 29th-place finish. Ridley only ran one full-time season in NASCAR, the 1981 NASCAR Cup Series season. He won his first and only Cup Series victory that year at Dover. At the end of the season, Ridley found himself in 5th in the overall standings.
Kenny Wallace made a little-known start in the DEI number 8. The start came at Martinsville Speedway in 1988, shortly before the car rebranded to number 3. Wallace managed to wheel the car to an 11th-place finish in that race. Kenny returned to DEI in 2002 as a relief driver for an injured Steve Park in the Cup Series. He made four starts in the Pennzoil number 1, his best finish coming at Rockingham. He finished 10th in that race.
The driver who made this font for the number 8 the most famous was Dale Earnhardt Jr. DEJ, who drove the number 8 in the NASCAR Xfinity Series between 2002 and 2007. His first start in the number for the series came in 2002 at Richmond. He started off his time with the number in a big way with a win at the 0.75-mile D-shaped oval.
For the 2003 season, the number moved to Dale Jr.’s DEI spin-off team of Chance 2 Motorsports. His success only continued there. He won the 2003 season-opening race at Daytona and went on to win in his other two starts that season (Talladega and Daytona). In 2004, Dale Jr. made a single start in the 8 car at Daytona before handing the wheel off to his protégé Martin Truex Jr. He won that race, as well.
Little E’s next start in the iconic number 8 livery wouldn’t come until 2006. He made four starts that season, winning both the summer Daytona race and the second Michigan race. 2007 was his last string of starts with the number. He made four starts in ’07, his best finish being third place at the fall Charlotte race. The number continued on for another year with a few different drivers…until DEI closed up shop for good.
Steve Park drove the number 8 for 1 start in 2003, driving for Chance 2 Motorsports. His lone start in the ride came at Las Vegas in the spring. He finished the race in the 4th position. Park’s career came to an end just a few years after this start. His career was cursed with various injuries. Still, he had a fairly impressive career with the hand he was dealt. Check out this video produced by NASCAR that highlights some of Steve Parks’ biggest moments.
2017 NASCAR Cup Series Champion Martin Truex Jr. ran the number 8 for Chance 2 Motorsports beginning in 2003, part-time. His first start came at the fall Charlotte race, where he finished 17th. He followed that up with a pair of 2nd place finishes at Rockingham and Homestead, respectively. Truex went full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in 2004. He drove the number 81 for Chance 2 Motorsports at Daytona as Dale Jr. was contractually obligated to drive the 8 at Daytona for DEI. However, after the season opener, MTJ transitioned over to the 8. In 2004, he won a total of 6 races and was a series champion by season’s end. He followed that up with another title in 2005 and 6 more wins.
Following the 2005 season, Chance 2 Motorsports closed down. The number 8 subsequently transitioned to DEI. In 2006, Truex made 3 starts in the number, winning at Talladega. In 2007, he made 4 starts in the livery, his best finish being a 3rd at the fall Charlotte race. Truex made his final start in the number for DEI in 2008. He finished 11th at Daytona.
Hank Parker Jr. had a short-lived career in the NASCAR Xfinity Series between 1999 and 2002. By 2003, his career was virtually over, save for a handful of starts. One of those starts came in 2003, in the Chance 2 Motorsports in the number 8 car. Parker made three starts in the ride. He finished 7th at Charlotte and 5th at both Kansas and Atlanta.
3-time NASCAR Cup Series Champion Tony Stewart made 2 starts in the Dale Jr. number 8: one for Chance 2 Motorsports (2003) and one for DEI (2006). The Chance 2 start came at Michigan in 2003, where he finished 11th. His second drive in the ride, this time through DEI, came in a 3 Doors Down-sponsored Chevy at Charlotte in the fall of 2006. He finished that race in 16th.
Appropriately enough, the last driver to ever drive a DEI number 8 car in the NASCAR Xfinity Series was an Earnhardt. But rather than being Little E, the DEI 8 car’s final start was driven by none other than Dale’s oldest son, Kerry Earnhardt. The start came at the summer Daytona race in 2008. Kerry drove the car to a 17th-place finish. And with this race, the DEI Xfinity Series program was shut down for good.
Sammy Smith in 2025 will become the 10th driver in NASCAR to drive this Dale Earnhardt Jr. stylized number 8 car. The car will be run under the JR Motorsports banner, the spiritual successor to Chance 2 Motorsports. ’25 will be Smith’s third full-time season in the series. He currently has 2 wins to his credit. His first win came at Phoenix in 2023. His most recent win came at Talladega in 2024. He’s looking to add to that count and Dale Jr.’s legacy next year.
Let me hear you, Junior Nation! Are you excited to see this style of 8 car back on track under the JRM banner? What are your thoughts on Sammy Smith driving this number? Do you hope that Junebug will ever drive this style of number again in NASCAR? Let us know your thoughts! And be sure to keep tuned in here at DailyDownforce.com for all the latest in the world of NASCAR!
