Jeffrey Earnhardt honors fallen police officer on Memorial Day weekend
NASCAR racer Jeffrey Earnhardt honored a fallen police officer during Memorial Day weekend.
NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Jeffrey Earnhardt honored a fallen police officer on Memorial Day weekend in the Alsco 300 – Charlotte Edition at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Saturday.
On the rear quarter panels of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Supra were the Mooresville Police Department pairing of Officer Jordan Sheldon and his German Shepherd K9 partner Roman.
Mooresville is a suburb of Charlotte, North Carolina, and the home base of many NASCAR team operations.
On May 4, Officer Sheldon was conducting a routine traffic stop when he was shot and killed in the line of duty, according to Charlotte TV station WCNC. Sheldon was 32 years old and a six-year veteran of the department.
He had recently finished a training course with iK9, the canine security company that is Earnhardt’s primary sponsor.
“Having officer Sheldon on the car meant a lot to me,” Earnhardt told Fox Sports 1. “I wanted to make him proud. I wasn’t about to lay down on the job. Hopefully, he’s up there smiling down on us about our run.”
Earnhardt, the grandson of Dale Earnhardt, picked up his first career top-five with the third-place run. Cup Series driver Kyle Busch, who also has canine connections, has won three times this season in the No. 18 Supra as well.
The No. 18 was in patriotic colors this Memorial Day weekend, as are many other cars.
Through five races split between JGR’s No. 18 and XCI Racing’s No. 81 Supra, Earnhardt has three top-10 finishes and an average result of 11.6. He will run about half the 33 race schedule this year in the Triple A level Xfinity Series.
Chase Briscoe, who is sponsored by Nutri Chomps in the Stewart-Haas Racing No. 98 Ford Mustang, ran near the front most of the day before a flat tire relegated him to a disappointing 19th in the 38-car field.
Cup Series driver Joey Logano, whose family lost their Frenchie Luigi earlier in the week, was one of the race announcers as part of a special drivers-only broadcast.
iK9 also sponsors Earnhardt’s teammate Brandon Jones in the JGR No. 19 Supra, and Hailie Deegan in the ARCA Racing Series and K&N Pro Series, both of which are Single A level.
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