Dale Earnhardt Inc.
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| Owner(s) | Teresa Earnhardt |
|---|---|
| Base | Mooresville, North Carolina |
| Series | Sprint Cup, Nationwide Series |
| Car numbers | 01, 1, 3, 8, 11, 14, 15, 16, 31, 81 |
| Race drivers | Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Michael Waltrip, Steve Park, Mark Martin, Kenny Wallace, Paul Menard, Martin Truex, Jr., Regan Smith, Aric Almirola |
| Sponsors | Budweiser, NAPA Auto Parts, Pennzoil, Bass Pro Shops, Menards, U.S. Army |
| Manufacturer | Chevrolet |
| Opened | 1984 |
| Closed | 2009 |
| Career | |
| Drivers' Championships | 6 |
| Race victories | 106 |
From 1984 to 2009, Dale Earnhardt, Inc. (DEI) operated as a NASCAR-related organization in Mooresville, North Carolina, United States. The company was founded by Dale Earnhardt and his wife, Teresa Earnhardt. Earnhardt was a seven-time Winston Cup champion. He died in a crash on the final lap of the 2001 Daytona 500. Despite his ownership of the DEI racing team, Earnhardt never drove for his team in the Winston Cup; instead, he raced for his long-time mentor and backer Richard Childress at RCR. In the late-2000s, DEI suffered critical financial difficulties when Dale Earnhardt, Jr. left and Anheuser-Busch and the United States Army moved their sponsorships to Gillett Evernham Motorsports and the newly formed Stewart-Haas Racing, respectively; DEI consequently merged with Chip Ganassi Racing in 2009 to form Earnhardt Ganassi Racing.
DEI continues to celebrate the life and legacy of Earnhardt through an annual celebration of his birthday, April 29 (also known as Dale Earnhardt Day). DEI maintains a showroom where fans can purchase memorabilia and other goods and pursues partnerships which bring tribute to Earnhardt's memory. The DEI campus is open to visitors from Wednesday to Saturday from 10am to 2pm. The schedule sometimes changes but an updated hours calendar can be found on their store page on their website.
The No. 01 car began in 1997 as the No. 36 MB2 Motorsports Pontiac with Skittles sponsorship. Derrike Cope was the driver and he finished 27th in the final point standings. In 1998, Ernie Irvan, a veteran driver, took over from Cope. The season was highlighted by Irvan's pole win at the Brickyard 400. M&M's replaced Skittles as the team's sponsor in 1999. Irvan retired from racing in September 1999, following a crash at the Michigan International Speedway. Dick Trickle temporarily replaced Irvan before the journeyman, Jerry Nadeau coming over from Melling Racing became the driver of the 36 team.
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