AKRON—Two-time Daytona 500 winner and NASCAR veteran Dale Earnhardt Jr. recently visited Goodyear's race tire plant in Akron for the first time.
Earnhardt, currently an NBC-TV race analyst, helped Goodyear manufacturing associates assemble Eagle tires for the NASCAR Series race weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, set for July 19-21.
"I've never seen Goodyear racing tires being made," Earnhardt tweeted on June 10. "I wish I'd seen it decades ago. NASCAR should make it part of rookie orientation. It'd saved me a ton of headaches I created for myself."
Goodyear has been producing tires for NASCAR for more than 40 years.
The plant, located in a former commercial-scale tire plant built in 1916, also makes tires exclusively for the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA)'s top three classes.
Goodyear has been NASCAR's exclusive race tire supplier since 1997 and last renewed the contact in 2017. The deal covers NASCAR's Monster Energy Cup Series, Xfiniti Series and Camping World Truck Series championships.
Also during the visit, Goodyear CEO Rich Kramer presented Earnhardt with a $43,000 donation to The Dale Jr. Foundation, a charity dedicated to giving underprivileged individuals, with a focus on youth, the opportunity to achieve extraordinary goals.