Philadelphia Eagles-themed race car to hit track at Pocono Raceway
A Philadelphia Eagles-themed race car will hit the track at Pocono and will be driven by Alex Bowman.
The number 88 has many different meanings to the Philadelphia Eagles fans. There’s Trey Burton, Keith Jackson, Herschel Ramsey and Bob Hudson. Then again, there’s those Dallas Cowboys and the sick feeling you get when you think of names like Michael Irvin, Drew Pearson and Dez Bryant. Just bringing up the number 88 can spark a conversation at the water cooler, but get this.
88 is about to get a reboot when Axalta introduces a new Eagles-inspired masterpiece at Pocono Raceway on July 29th.
Wait. Say that again?
Yes, you heard that correctly. Those familiar with NASCAR are familiar with the retirement of Dale Earnhardt Jr. The number 88 will now be worn by Alex Bowman. What you may not know was Axalta decided to introduce an Eagles-influenced paint scheme in 2017, and Earnhardt was going to wear the Eagles colors on his ride a year ago.
This is what said ride was supposed to look like:
That’s a pretty fly paint job, @AlexBowman88. #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/LOTBWdgWSt
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 13, 2018
Hold up. Isn’t Earnhardt a Redskins fan? Why are they doing this now?
We’re not sure why Earnhardt chose to ride around in midnight green because it’s common knowledge of any NASCAR fan that he’s a Washington Redskins fan. That, however, is another story for another time.
Anyway, Earnhardt and Axalta’s idea was shot down by the NFL (often referred to as the ‘No-Fun League). Well, there’s been a curve ball thrown, and one year later, Bowman will drive this masterpiece on July 29th at the Gander Outdoors 400.
Here’s the finished product:
Introducing… a new paint scheme for the No. 88 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 race car featuring the World Champion @Eagles colors and the @Axalta All-Pro Teacher logo! We’re so excited to introduce this new paint scheme to the world. #FlyEaglesFly #WePaintWinners pic.twitter.com/Kdus49l9wa
— Axalta (@Axalta) July 13, 2018
Bowman appears to be pretty stoked. Take a look:
https://twitter.com/AlexBowman88/status/1017782034977181696
This is yet another venture between the Philly-based Axalta and the Eagles as both share a partnership. The coating company supplied the paint for the goal posts at Lincoln Financial Field last season.
There apparently won’t be any wrenches thrown into the plan this time either. According to a story penned by Adam Stern of SportsBusiness Daily, league commissioner Roger Goodell reached out to Axalta sometime around February.
Here’s the skinny:
"Roger Goodell apologized to Axalta CEO Charlie Shaver in a letter over an incident last year that saw the league prevent the company from running an Eagles-branded paint scheme during a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race due to an apparent NFL rules violation. Shaver said that he reached out to voice his displeasure to Goodell over preventing the scheme. Shaver added that Goodell responded by expressing remorse and saying it was the wrong move in retrospect."
Looks like we have a reason to watch some NASCAR on July 29th (if you weren’t going to watch already).