HOMESTEAD, Fla. – Hendrick Motorsports owner Rick Hendrick believes that driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. could be back in a car as early as next month.
Earnhardt has missed half of the 2016 Sprint Cup Series season due to a concussion. The driver of the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet has been sidelined since the Kentucky Speedway race in early July.
“The doctor is going to give him the final clearance, then he’ll be back in the car,” Hendrick told a group of assembled media at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Friday afternoon. “He feels great. Everything is on track. Every step we supposedly need to go through, we’ve gone through. I don’t see anything holding us back.
“He sent me a text the other day that he was excited and waiting for Daytona. I think we just have a few more hurdles to clear.”
Four-time Sprint Cup champion Jeff Gordon and XFINITY Series regular Alex Bowman have filled the gap in the No. 88 Chevrolet since New Hampshire Motor Speedway on July 17.
Hendrick also mentioned Bowman, who has subbed for Earnhardt in 10 of the last 18 races.
Bowman, 23, a part-time driver for Earnhardt’s JR Motorsports XFINITY Series team and is employed by Hendrick Motorsports, won his first career Cup pole last weekend at Phoenix International Raceway and led 194 of 324 laps before finishing a career-high sixth.
“Alex is a good guy,” Hendrick said. “He’s helped us in a lot of ways and we’re just taking that a day at a time. He’s done test for us. He’s done simulation for us. He’s really done a good job. We’re just taking it a day at a time. We don’t really have any certain plans.”
This is the second time that the Kannapolis, N.C. native has been inactive due to a concussion. Four years ago, Earnhardt sat out for two races in 2012 after a concussion was discovered following a 20th place finish at Talladega Superspeedway.
Earnhardt scored two top-10 finishes in his series return after missing Charlotte Motor Speedway and Kansas Speedway.
Motorsport.com reported that NASCAR said Friday that Earnhardt would be allowed to test should he medically cleared by his doctors.
“Special circumstances of a situation like that would provide enough reason for us to approve him to get in a car to test,” NASCAR’s Managing Director, Racing Communications Kurt Culbert told Motorsport.com. “It also would not be out of the spirit of the rules in place for the 2017 season.”
Last month, when NASCAR updated the 2017 testing rules, the sanctioning body updated the language to include:
At the discretion of NASCAR, a driver may be permitted a one day test after an absence involving a medical condition. The associated organization must submit a voucher for the test along with a documented requirement from the driver’s physician for an on-track evaluation. Medical absence test(s) will be structured in such a way as to minimize competitive advantage, while still providing a thorough evaluation of the driver.
Hendrick added that securing sponsorship for 42-year-old Earnhardt’s 2017 campaign has not been an issue.
In his 18 races this season, the 26-time Sprint Cup winner carried support from Axalta, Mountain Dew and Nationwide Insurance. His best this season was second four times at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Texas Motor Speedway, Bristol Motor Speedway and Pocono Raceway in June.
Follow Chris Knight on Twitter @Knighter01.
