Dale Jr. Racing Team is a professional, full-time ARCA racing team and subsidiary of DEI, founded in 2008 out of the remains of former Nextel Cup team Travis Carter Enterprises. It has put ARCA on the map as a true and major auto racing corporation. Technically, Dale Jr. Racing Team is a subsidiary of a subsidiary, which is extremely rare among any companies throughout history.
The Dale Jr. Racing Team logo, in use since the team's founding in 2008.
Founding[]
DEI bought out the fledgling Travis Carter Enterprises in 2007. Since the 2007 seasons of both ARCA and the Nextel Cup had already began nothing could be done in 2007 without causing a scheduling issue. So just before the 2008 ARCA/Nextel Cup seasons began Travis Carter Enterprises's name was discontinued then renamed and repurposed into Dale Jr. Racing Team. Dale Earnhardt, Jr., naturally, assumed the role of owner.
2008 ARCA Season[]
Just 5 days before the 2008 season was set to begin Dale Jr. Racing Team signed both Frank Kimmel and Patrick Sheltra as it's first drivers. Both competed heavily in 2008, with Frank Kimmel just missing a championship and Patrick Sheltra coming in 6th in points.
2009 ARCA Season[]
Just after the end of the 2008 ARCA Season Steve Arpin, a rookie, was looking for a team. Dale Jr. saw potential in the young Canadian and signed him to Dale Jr. Racing Team. 2009 saw amazing results for Dale Jr. Racing Team, with Frank Kimmel coming 3rd in points, Steve Arpin 7th and Patrick Sheltra 9th.
2010 ARCA Season And The Team's First Championship[]
2010 is considered the best year for Dale Jr. Racing Team. Patrick Sheltra won the championship, with Frank Kimmel again coming in 3rd and Steve Arpin finishing 12th in the points standings.
2011 ARCA Season[]
Steve Arpin went to the Truck Series, which left Patrick Sheltra and Frank Kimmel as, for the first time since 2008, the only 2 drivers for Dale Jr. Racing Team. The season went poorly for Dale Jr. Racing Team, with the only good being another 3rd place finish in points for Frank Kimmel.
2012 ARCA Season And The Team's Second Championship[]
Patrick Sheltra left ARCA all together after the 2011 season, so Jr. needed to sign new drivers fast. Chris Buescher was looking for a team, and Dale Jr., desperate for anyone, took him on. Dale Jr. also signed Brennan Poole. The season came as a surprise to even Jr. Buescher won the championship and Brennan Poole was in contention for Rookie of the year. To top all of that off Frank Kimmel came second in points, meaning the team finished 1-2 in points. The entire ARCA and NASCAR communities were shocked by the performance of the team in 2012. Dale Sr. could only smile, what a proud father the Intimidator was.
2013 ARCA Season And Back To Back Championships[]
Buescher moved up to the Nationwide/Xfinity Series for the 2013 season. This left Jr. needing to sign someone again, so he signed Josh Williams, who was looking for a team. This season was another shocker to ARCA and NASCAR, with Frank Kimmel pulling off a second championship under the Dale Jr. Racing Team name. Josh Williams finished 6th in points, with Brennan Poole finishing a disappointing 26th.
2014 ARCA Season And The Impossible[]
With Josh Williams feeling racing wasn't a passion of his anymore, Jr. signed Mason Mitchell and Ken Schrader, an old friend of his father. The team shocked the entire auto racing industry when Mason Mitchell suddenly ran away in the points, winning the championship by nearly 300 points. Frank Kimmel, in his usual fashion, also gave a good season ending points standings at 4th, and Ken Shrader finished the season 15th in points standings. Brennan Poole again disappointed, finishing 24th in points standings. Brennan Poole would be let go after the season due to lack of performance. Dale Sr. in an interview about the 2014 ARCA Season, after the final race (While Mason Mitchell celebrated his championship), said "Jr.'s definitely my boy, he knows who the winner's gonna be the moment he sees him. I can't believe he's done it. I've never been so proud of the name Earnhardt."
2015 ARCA Season[]
Ken Schrader again drove for Dale Jr. Racing Team and Josh Williams decided to make a return, Jr. instantly gave him a new contract. Mason Mitchell’s contract was renewed for another season, however he fell ill before the season even began and turned out to have stomach ulcers, and was out for the season for monitoring by doctors. The season was a mild season for Dale Jr. Racing Team, with Josh Williams making a good points finish in 3rd, followed by Frank Kimmel in 13th and finally Ken Schrader in 24th.
2016 ARCA Season[]
2016 saw Frank Kimmel retire, and Ken Schrader retire also. Josh Williams did place 6th in points, however, and Mason Mitchell returned to finish 8th in points.
2017 ARCA Season[]
Things have been looking promising for 2017, with Jr. signing 2016's champion driver Chase Briscoe from Cunningham Motorsports. Mason Mitchell is also currently 5th in points, with Josh Williams close behind in 6th.