well, maybe not, says Nascar...................



Before talk of a deal between Hendrick Motorsports and Dale Earnhardt Inc. for the No. 8 goes too far, NASCAR has stepped in with a reminder: The numbers belong to the sanctioning body, not its teams.

Rick Hendrick may want to buy the No. 8 for Dale Earnhardt Jr., but NASCAR says it owns the series' race car numbers.
NASCAR's long-standing policy is that it owns and assigns the numbers of cars in the series, and that they are not for sale, the Charlotte Observer reported.

"NASCAR owns the numbers and licenses them to teams on an annual basis," series spokesman Randy Poston told the newspaper. "A team may allow another team to use the number for that year pending NASCAR's approval."

Team owner Rick Hendrick said he had informed Dale Earnhardt Inc. that he was willing to purchase the No. 8 for Dale Earnhardt Jr. when he comes to drive for Hendrick Motorsports in 2008.

Earnhardt said last week he would like to stay in the No. 8 if a deal can be reached with his stepmother, DEI owner Teresa Earnhardt, who has the rights to the number and his longtime sponsor, Budweiser.


But that doesn't square with NASCAR's number policy, according to what the series told the Observer.

Generally, if a team has been using a number, that number is re-issued to the same team, Poston told the newspaper. If a team relinquishes the number, it reverts back to NASCAR.

He also told the newspaper that NASCAR woud discourage any financial arrangement encouraging another team to give up the use of a number.


According to the Observer, DEI is aware of NASCAR's number policy.

"It's way too early," DEI spokesman John Story told the newspaper when asked about any possible financial arrangement between Hendrick and DEI. "There has been no significant dialogue in regard to the No. 8 other than fielding a couple of calls from people close to Hendrick Motorsports."

Officials at Hendrick Motorsports were not immediately available for comment, the newspaper reported