Dale Earnhardt Jr. had made plenty of headlines in NASCAR on Thursday, with his announcement that he wouldn't be broadcasting races this season in preparation for a move to Amazon Prime and Warner Bros. Discovery for 2025. That wasn't the NASCAR Hall of Famer's only news of the day, as he also shared that he had signed another Late Model driver to race the No. 88 Chevrolet for JR Motorsports Xfinity Series team.
Bubba Pollard will race for the team at Richmond Raceway. Pollard, who has won more than 100 Late Model races in his career, including the All-American 400, will have sponsorship from Rheem aboard the No. 88.
Bubba Pollard to the 88 ?@RichmondRaceway | @XfinityRacing pic.twitter.com/9y3o53PyXW
— JR Motorsports (@JRMotorsports) February 29, 2024
"I'm very excited," Pollard said. "I really don't know what to expect as it's all very new to us, but I'm very thankful for the opportunity that Rheem and JR Motorsports have given me. I hope we can make the most of it. I've never had any laps at Richmond and I haven't driven an Xfinity car, so it's all going to be new."
JR Motorsports CEO Kelley Earnhardt Miller said giving Late Model racers chances to prove themselves in the NASCAR Xfinity Series can pay off as it did with Josh Berry, who drove for JR Motorsports in Late Models and Xfinity and is now driving in the Cup Series for Stewart-Haas Racing.
"JR Motorsports has grown so much over the years," Earnhardt-Miller said. "But the core of what we do from our championship-winning Late Model team to the NASCAR Xfinity Series, is to produce championship drivers and team personnel. Bubba Pollard is a great example of that sort of progression, and we're proud to support him alongside a great partner in Rheem Manufacturing."
Before stepping behind the wheel of the No. 88 at Richmond, Pollard will drive in the ARCA race Five Flags Speedway.
