“They knew what they were doing”: Dale Earnhardt Jr. reveals Budweiser’s iconic paint scheme insistence

On Tuesday, former NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. announced his return to the Late Model Stock Race for 2024 and 2025, driving his iconic #8 Chevy. Recently, on the Dirty Mo Media Podcast, Earnhardt Jr. revealed the reason behind the paint scheme of the iconic beer brand Budweiser.

The former Hendrick Motorsports driver mentioned that the $219.4 billion company (via Forbes) kept a consistent car design to build an iconic brand. They used the same paint scheme every year, making it easier for their fans to spot them easily in the pack. The former NASCAR driver commented on Budweiser's insistence and said:

"That makes a whole lot of sense, because now, all these years later, you know, if I had drove 10 or eight different bud cars throughout the year each year, would this scheme be all that transcending or recognizable, or would it be as iconic today? Likely a little bit less iconic," explained Dale Earnhardt Jr. [00:16]

He continued and praised Budweiser for their insistence and said:

"I appreciate their insistence. They knew how to sell beer, right. They knew how to make sure they were easy to spot, easy to find, and they knew what they were doing. I really, really appreciated that I learned a ton, working for them and still have, you know, still feel strongly about a lot of those principles and try to infuse that into what we're doing here at junior sports with our own race cars and stuff like that." [00:31]

The motorsports community went gaga over the announcement of the NASCAR Hall of Fame driver tying up with a former sponsor and returning to track.

---

"It’s going to be really special," Dale Earnhardt Jr. reunites with the iconic beer brand Budweiser

On Tuesday, October 22, 2024, the owner of JR Motorsports announced that he would be racing in his 17-year-old car in the Late Model Series at the South Carolina 400 at the Florence Motor Speedway. Dale Earnhardt Jr. raced in 291 races and won 17 races with Budweiser's paint scheme.

The red Bud King of Beer paint scheme was Earnhardt Jr.'s synonym for his career from 1999 to 2007. The last time he drove his legendary #8 car was in 2007 before moving to Hendrick Motorsports. Junior will return behind the steering wheel of the iconic car on November 23, 2024.

"It is an incredible opportunity for me to be able to reunite with Budweiser, and the No.8. Budweiser and I had some great memories with that iconic scheme and number. We’ve always supported each other over the years. It’s going to be really special for me to be able to represent that brand on the racetrack again," Dale Earnhardt Jr. said (via JRMRacing).

Matt Davis, the vice president of Anheuser-Busch, the company that owns Budweiser, reacted to the nostalgic tie-up between the two and said:

“There are names that when mentioned, draw on the significance of their place in American history. Among them, Budweiser, and Earnhardt. This return to the racetrack alongside Dale with the Bud King of Beers paint scheme is another chapter in Anheuser-Busch’s long and storied sports history.”

The Anheuser-Busch and its sub-brands sponsored Dale Earnhardt Jr. for nine years and have also backed Kevin Harvick. Also, Busch has been a title sponsor for a NASCAR series.