Kerry Earnhardt Races In The Shadows Of Dale Jr
DEI Will Field A Car For Dale Earnhardt's Oldest Son
Kerry Earnhardt has spent most of his adult life in the shadows of his younger brother Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Kerry and Dale Jr. began their racing careers almost simultaneously driving street stocks in 1992; however, Kerry had a wife and kids at home while Dale Jr. was a young teenager who had all the time in the world to devote to racing. While Kerry was tending to his family and their needs, racing took a back seat. Meanwhile, Dale Jr. rapidly developed into a skilled racecar driver. Eventually, Dale Jr. became a two-time Busch Series, now Nationwide, champion, and emerged as a winner in Sprint Cup. Now, he is far and away NASCAR's most popular driver.
Kerry, on the other hand, has spent the majority of his racing career as a journeyman driver for lower-budget teams, whether it is in the Craftsman Truck Series or Nationwide Series. Kerry won seven times in the ARCA Series in 2000 and 2001, but that never translated into success while driving for FitzBradshaw Racing in 2002. In 2004, Kerry drove a couple of races for Richard Childress Racing, but other than that, opportunities with solid teams have been few and far between.
Kerry spends most of his time working as a liaison for DEI. Additionally, he is guiding his son Jeffrey in the early stages of his racing career. Still, racing is in Kerry's blood, and there are times when he is itching to strap into a racecar. Well, this weekend at Daytona, Kerry will drive the number 8 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet for DEI in the Nationwide Series event.
Kerry sounded like a kid in a candy store when discussing Friday's race at Daytona.
“I've won several races with DEI in an ARCA car, but I'm really looking forward to driving a fast car at Daytona under the DEI umbrella,” he said. “I appreciate DEI giving me the opportunity to get back in a car, especially one that I know will be fast and competitive. I love running the speedways and can’t wait for the weekend to get here.”
On Sundays, when Kerry hears the grandstands roaring when his kid brother's name is announced, he has to wonder if that could have been him. After all, Kerry's lifestyle and appearance markedly resembles that of his late father. On Friday evening, Kerry has an opportunity to outshine his little brother at the track their father dominated. Countless fans will be rooting for Kerry at Daytona this weekend, and he still has a lot to prove.
Is it possible that we could see Kerry in a DEI prepared car in the Sprint Cup Series one day?
