Bristol Motor Speedway officials announced today that the 2023 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Scholarship is open to students at select high schools, colleges and universities who are pursuing higher education degrees in automotive technology, hospitality and tourism, or communications and broadcasting.
Created by Bristol Motor Speedway in 2017 as a retirement gift to Earnhardt Jr., the annual scholarship awards the winning student a one-time payment of $2,088 to assist with all college costs including tuition, housing, books and supplies.
Applications are being accepted until11:59 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 25, 2023.The winner will be announced on Friday, Sept. 15 during the pre-race ceremonies for the Food City 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series race, which will feature Dale Earnhardt Jr. as a competitor.
To apply for the $2,088 scholarship, please fill out the online application here: https://www.bristolmotorspeedway.com/scholarship/.
You may print out and complete a PDF version of the application and submit it via email to: [email protected].
Past winners of the BMS Dale Earnhardt Jr. Scholarship are Jaicee Weaver (2018) and Jace Ketron (2019), both of Tennessee High School in Bristol, Tenn., Knoxville, Tenn. student Caleb James Cate (2021), who attended UNOH, and John Clavier (2022) of Elizabethton, Tenn. and UNOH student Chloe Holman (2023) of Essex, Mo.
In order to be eligible, students must be a senior at one of the 21 designated high schools or attending one of the eight designated colleges and universities in the Appalachian Highlands region surrounding Bristol Motor Speedway or a student at the speedway’s official partnering institution, the University of Northwestern Ohio (UNOH) in Lima, Ohio.
The 21 designated high schools are Abingdon High School; Chuckey-Doak High School; Cloudland High School; Daniel Boone High School; David Crockett High School; Dobyns-Bennett High School; Elizabethton High School; Greeneville High School; Hampton High School; Happy Valley High School; Holston High School; John S. Battle High School; North Greene High School; Patrick Henry High School; Tennessee High School; Science Hill High School; South Greene High School; Sullivan East High School; Virginia High School; West Greene High School or West Ridge High School.
The nine designated higher educational institutions are East Tennessee State University; Emory & Henry College; King University; Milligan University; Northeast State Technical Community College; Tennessee College of Applied Technology, Elizabethton; Tusculum University; the University of Virginia’s College at Wise or the University of Northwestern Ohio.
One of the most iconic racecar drivers of all time, Earnhardt Jr. serves as an analyst for NBC Sports’ NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series race coverage and contributes to additional motorsports programming across NBC Sports. In addition to race coverage, Earnhardt hosts The Dale Jr. Download, a weekly interview program focused on motorsports, and Lost Speedways, a Peacock Original, that visits abandoned speedways. Voted by fans as NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver for an unprecedented 15 consecutive years (2003-17),
Earnhardt, a 26-time winner in the NASCAR Cup Series including two Daytona 500s, is a third-generation driver who followed his legendary father Dale Earnhardt Sr., and his grandfather, Ralph Earnhardt, into the sport. As a team owner, Earnhardt founded and manages JR Motorsports, which fields four full-time entries in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. In the summer of 2020, Earnhardt was selected to the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2021.
Earnhardt Jr.’s only Bristol victory in the Cup Series came in the 2004 Night Race in dramatic fashion where he famously declared, “It’s Bristol, Baby!” in Victory Lane following the win.
The Bass Pro Shops Night Race weekend features three nights of electrifying NASCAR Playoff action under the lights including Saturday night’s Cup Playoff race, the Bass Pro Shops Night Race (7 p.m., USA Network, PRN Radio). The weekend also includes the return of Dale Earnhardt Jr. to Bristol’s high banks in the Food City 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series race on Friday night, Sept. 15 (7:30 p.m., USA Network and PRN Radio). The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series will get the fun started on Thursday night, Sept. 14, with the running of the UNOH 200 presented by Ohio Logistics (9 p.m., FS1 and MRN Radio). The ARCA Menards Series will open Thursday’s racing to make it a doubleheader night with the Bush’s Beans 200 (6 p.m., FS1 and MRN Radio).
To purchase tickets or obtain more information about the race weekend, please visit www.bristolmotorspeedway.com or call (866) 415-4158.
BMS PR
