Roger Penske has not evoked the brightest emotions in recent times. In 2024, his teams faced a slew of controversies. Joey Logano won the 2024 Cup Series championship after barely cracking the playoffs with just a single win. Then a webbed glove manipulation in NASCAR and a push-to-pass overtake system in IndyCar resulted in massive penalties. So fans are skeptical about Penske’s latest endeavor.

Dale Earnhardt is probably the most revered legend in NASCAR history. It has been 24 years since his tragic crash at the 2001 Daytona 500, and yet the Intimidator lives on in fans’ minds. So as Penske rolls out a tribute to the legend for an upcoming race, people are doubtful – despite Dale Jr.’s approval.

Roger Penske salutes the legend with permission

The No. 2 logo is the proud owner of 102 Cup Series wins. Dale Earnhardt owns six of those, earned at the very beginning of his career. The seven-time Cup Series champion wheeled the No. 2 during the 1979 and 1980 NASCAR Winston Cup Series campaigns. Owned by Rod Osterlund, the entry witnessed Earnhardt clinching his first victory at Bristol Motor Speedway. He also earned the 1979 Rookie of the Year honors, followed by his first championship in 1980. Honoring this golden legacy of the veteran, Roger Penske’s current No. 2 driver, Austin Cindric, will sport the same colors as Earnhardt’s entry.

Team Penske unveiled a special throwback scheme for Darlington Raceway at the South Carolina Governor’s Mansion. Roger Penske’s No. 2 Freightliner Ford will have the same blue and yellow shades that Earnhardt had on the No. 2 Chevrolet. But before deciding to go with this scheme, Austin Cindric sought Dale Earnhardt Jr.‘s permission. The Intimidator’s son himself posted his approval on X: “Austin text me a few days ago to see what I thought. I told him it’s always such an honor for our family to see dad represented during the Darlington throwback weekend.”

Four of Roger Penske‘s drivers have wheeled the no. 2 after Dale Earnhardt. They are Rusty Wallace, Kurt Busch, Brad Keselowski, and Austin Cindric – who clinched 81 victories. But no driver stands out more than Earnhardt, which Cindric acknowledged while announcing the special scheme. “There are few names in our sports more recognizable than Earnhardt. The opportunity to pay tribute to a legend, while also recognizing the incredible history of the No. 2 in NASCAR was the goal behind this scheme…We’ve had a lot of fun working through the details, and I hope our car stands out for fans at the track and those tuning in during Darlington Throwback Weekend.”

Yet the NASCAR community has a mixed approach to this project. Although most are in favor, skeptics still stand out.

Fans squint their eyes at the new scheme

The Earnhardt name is synonymous with glory in NASCAR. Across Dale Earnhardt’s 76 Cup Series race victories, iconic stories of dominating restrictor-plate racing or beating rivals aggressively stand out. To this day, fans and drivers look back at the Intimidator’s legacy with the utmost respect. So Austin Cindric honoring the legend’s early years warmed the hearts of most fans. Somebody wrote: “Love this…the name Earnhardt and Respect go hand in hand. Great throwback choice. 💛💙😎” Cindric is a two-time Cup Series race winner – despite his thin streak, he has started 2025 with a bang. Cindric won the Duel 2 event at Daytona – so one fan wished him luck for Darlington. “I remember that car. Great tribute & a nice lookin wrap for sure. Best of luck Austin👍🏻”

However, the skeptics started entering the comment section soon enough. The foremost concern of fans was the obvious OEM switch-up. Dale Earnhardt sported the No. 2 Chevrolet, while Cindric will wheel the No. 2 Ford. So despite the similar colors, the different car brand did not match with fans’ sentiments. Somebody dropped a subtle emoji to express their disappointment: “A Ford? 🤦‍♂️” Another fan was a little more emotional with their sentiment, vehemently opposing the idea. “But in a ford??!!! Blasphemy.”

Then again, Cindric has a long way to go before coming close to Dale Earnhardt’s achievements. Besides his thin stats across a five-year Cup Series career, Cindric brushed with controversy recently. In the initial laps of the Circuit of the Americas race, Roger Penske’s star delivered a right-rear hook to Ty Dillon’s car. That was in response to the latter spinning him out – but NASCAR awarded no penalty for Cindric’s aggression. So one fan offered a warning to the Ford driver: “@DaleJr he better not f— that up.”

The Earnhardt-inspired No. 2 Ford will run in the Goodyear 400 race in April. Let us see if Austin Cindric can do justice to the Intimidator’s legacy.