Dale Earnhardt Jr. is the darling of NASCAR, but the motorsport’s most popular driver was completely winless for the last 76 races until this past weekend when the Intimidator’s son won the LifeLock 400 at Michigan International Speedway. Junior won the race in an odd way, literally coasting across the finish line on an empty tank of gas under a caution flag after Patrick Carpenter spun out on lap 203. The race had been extended to overtime after Sam Hornish Jr. spun on Lap 200, and had it not been for the caution Carpenter created three laps later, Junior would likely would’ve ran out of gas before the finish. Rather than do burnouts afterwards on the track, Earnhardt’s #88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevy had to be pushed to Victory Ciricle. The win not only ended Junior’s drought, but also gave his new employer, Rick Hendrick, his second win of the season. Many thought this might be Junior’s year after he handily won the Bud Shootout ahead of the Daytona 500. That was his first race as a member of Hendrick Motorsports and didn’t count for points, but the rest of the season has not gone his way until this past weekend.

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The U.S. Navy and Dale Earnhardt Jr. are partnering on a national recruiting program that’ll officially kick off when Junior pilots the above #83 car in the NASCAR Nationwide Series race on May 24. On that very same day, prospective sailors will also be able to visit their local recruiting stations and sign up to be a part of the new “Dale Jr. Division” being formed at the Navy’s Recruit Training Command in Great Lakes, IL. We are not making any of this up.

This new boot camp division is limited to 88 slots, a nod to the number worn by Dale Jr.’s NASCAR Sprint Cup ride. The Navy will support the new recruiting effort with a full media offensive, and Earnhardt Jr. will be on hand to christen his namesake division when its recruits report in August. Junior will also make a return trip to visit the group when it completes the basic training course. We eagerly await the logical next step in this high-profile partnership with Dale Jr. — a Navy announcement that funding for a high-banked oval at Great Lakes has been approved.

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