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Sports

Sources: Earnhardt to drive No. 3 car at Daytona

By FoxSports
Published | Updated

What could be the hottest collectable car of the summer, if not the entire 2010 season? Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s No. 3 Wrangler Chevrolet.

If arrangements go as planned, Earnhardt will run the No. 3 Wrangler Chevrolet for JR Motorsports at Daytona International Speedway in the NASCAR Nationwide Series race on July 2.

Sources have told FOXSports.com that Earnhardt will revive his father's famous No. 3 in a collaborative effort initiated by JR Motorsports with Richard Childress Racing and Dale Earnhardt Inc. A formal announcement is expected on April 29.

According to team sources, a Hendrick Motorsports engine will power the car.

Earnhardt Jr. currently has a personal services contract with Wrangler, continuing a family legacy between the brands. Wrangler first sponsored his father for the final race of his 1980 Cup championship season and the following year with Rod Osterlund for the first 16 races.

After four races with James Stacy, who bought the team from Osterlund, Earnhardt and Wrangler moved to Richard Childress Racing and the No. 3 Pontiac for the remainder of 1981. Despite a two-year separation when Earnhardt campaigned in the Wrangler Ford for Bud Moore, he returned to RCR in 1984 and Wrangler remained the primary sponsor until the end of the 1987 season -- a span that included two more Cup championships. GM Goodwrench took over the car in 1988 and Earnhardt switched to a black car.

Earnhardt also drove a Wrangler-sponsored car in the Busch Series (now Nationwide Series) in 16 races, earning three wins (1982 in Daytona, 1983 in Charlotte and 1985 in Rockinhgham). Earnhardt Jr. drove a Wrangler paint scheme twice in 1997 in Busch competition.