Dale Earnhardt Jr. has been cleared to race at Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway. Earnhardt had missed the last two races after suffering a concussion in a crash on the last lap at Talladega Superspeedway. Regan Smith drove the No. 88 Chevrolet during Earnhardt’s absence.
Today Hendrick Motorsports released a statement that Earnhardt Jr. had been cleared to race.
“Dale Jr. has done everything asked of him,” Dr. Jerry Petty was quoted as saying in the statement. “He hasn’t had a headache since Oct. 12, and we have not been able to provoke any symptoms since that time. I have informed NASCAR and Hendrick Motorsports that he is medically cleared for all NASCAR-related activity.”
Earnhardt ran 123 laps in a test session on Monday at Gresham Motorsports Park in Jefferson, Ga. Tuesday morning Earnhardt had a final neuropsychological evaluation with Dr. Petty in Charlotte, Nc.
Smith has been rumored to be an option for a seat at Earnhardt’s Nationwide team, JR Motorsports. AJ Allmendinger will continue to drive the No. 51 Chevrolet for Phoenix Racing this weekend leaving Smith’s status unknown.