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Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s JR Motorsports driver, Sammy Smith, is gearing up for NASCAR's return to Rockingham Speedway this weekend. He is scheduled for a back-to-back race, first in the Craftsman Truck Series before rejoining the Xfinity Series grid.
On Friday, Smith, 20, will drive the #07 Chevrolet Silverado for Spire Motorsports in the Black's Tire 200 (Truck). The following day, the Johnston, Iowa native will get back to his #8 Chevrolet Camaro as part of his full-time ride with JRM.
Sammy Smith shared his thoughts on the upcoming Double Duty at the so-called The Rock in North Carolina on X.
"Had a great time testing at The Rock a couple of months ago - now we’re back for the real thing. Double duty at Rockingham starts tomorrow. Let’s 🪨 and roll."
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Smith will be one of the part-time drivers in the Black's Tire 200, along with Corey Day and Brandon Jones. The #07 Chevy was the same truck that 2021 Cup Series champion Kyle Larson drove to victory at Homestead-Miami Speedway last month.
Over in the North Carolina Education Lottery 250 (Xfinity), the young driver will enter a 40-car field, including Katherine Legge and Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s former teammate at Hendrick Motorsports, Kasey Kahne. The race will conclude the track's return to the NASCAR calendar following a 12-year absence.
The Cup Series, meanwhile, will enjoy a one-race off on Sunday, coinciding with Easter. The last time NASCAR's premier series raced at The Rock was in 2004 when Matt Kenseth won and beat Kasey Kahne to the checkered flag.
"I got to support him": Dale Jr. on Sammy Smith after controversial race at Martinsville
During the US Marine Corps 250 at Martinsville Speedway, Sammy Smith was under fire for wrecking Taylor Gray out of the lead on the final lap. JR Motorsports boss Dale Jr. may have been disappointed, but said Smith would continue driving the #8 Chevrolet.
On an episode of the Dale Jr. Download podcast on X, the 26-time Cup race winner stated:
"There's a lot of people out there that are like, oh, man, this car's gotta park him Dale Jr. should park. You know, anybody who thinks I'm gonna park Sammy, that's out of the question. never gonna happen."
Dale Jr. added:
"When I walked out of that racetrack, I've never been more disappointed and frustrated than that day [...] Sammy is my driver... I got to shift to what do I do to give Sammy the best advice. I got to figure out how Sammy can clean this up, and in the end, you know, I got to support him and try to give him the tools and the knowledge to make the better decision next time."
NASCAR fined Sammy Smith $25,000 and docked him 50 points for the last-lap incident at Martinsville last month. The 20-year-old later apologized to Taylor Gray, the #54 Joe Gibbs Racing team, and JRM.
