The No. 2 Team Penske Ford Mustang will have a classic look at Darlington Raceway as Austin Cindric pays tribute to Dale Earnhardt.
Cindric unveiled the throwback scheme Tuesday afternoon at the South Carolina Governor's Mansion alongside Gov. Henry McMaster and Darlington Raceway President Josh Harris.
The No. 2 features the same blue and yellow scheme that Earnhardt used during his 1979 Rookie of the Year-winning campaign while driving for Rod Osterlund. He took this scheme to victory lane at Bristol Motor Speedway in 1979. He then won five races and the championship in 1980.
"There are few names in our sport more recognizable than Earnhardt," Cindric said in a press release. "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.
Photo credit: Team Penske
One big difference between the two schemes is the sponsor. Cindric will have Freightliner logos on the No. 2 Team Penske Ford as he pursues his first Cup Series win at Darlington Raceway.
"Freightliner has always been an incredible partner for us at Team Penske and played a key role in bringing this vision to life. 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."
Cindric did not simply surprise everyone with the tribute scheme unveiling. He first reached out to an important person to get permission to run the blue and yellow scheme.
"Austin (texted) me a few days ago to see what I thought," Dale Jr. posted on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. "I told him it's always such an honor for our family to see dad represented during the Darlington throwback weekend."
This scheme will hit the track on April 5-6 when Cindric and the Cup Series competitors head to Darlington Raceway. Cindric will put the blue and yellow Ford on display during practice, qualifying, and the Goodyear 400 (3 p.m. ET on FS1).