Earnhardt won't be driving No. 8 car in Nextel Cup next year

Dale Earnhardt Jr. won't be in the No. 8 car when he races next year for Hendrick Motorsports.

Last update: August 16, 2007 - 9:53 PM

Dale Earnhardt Jr. won't be in the No. 8 car when he races next year for Hendrick Motorsports.

Hendrick and Dale Earnhardt Inc. were unable to strike a deal that would have transferred the car number to Concord, N.C.-based Hendrick for Earnhardt. Earnhardt, the most popular Nextel Cup driver, announced in May that he was leaving the business started by his late father and owned by his stepmother.

The career of Earnhardt has been linked to the No. 8 car since the third-generation stock-car driver started racing for his father, seven-time champion Dale Earnhardt Sr., in 1999.

Etc.

•The Indy Racing League has extended its agreement with the Iowa Corn Indy 250 through 2009, Iowa Speedway officials said. The inaugural Iowa 250, won by Dario Franchitti, was held on June 24 before an overflow crowd of 35,838. The first major auto race in Iowa was not without its faults. Heavy rains left many of the fields designated as temporary parking lots unusable, creating heavy traffic on the roads outside the track the morning of the race. Much of the race was also run under caution, as drivers found little room to maneuver on the 7/8-mile oval.

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