Dale Earnhardt’s Jr.’s throwback paint scheme is a reminder of a turning point early in his career

When Dale Earnhardt Jr. first saw the blue and white No. 3 car with his name on it, he thought it was a joke. Before the 1997 season, Dale Earnhardt Sr. told his son he’d be running in NASCAR’s Busch Series, now the Xfinity Series, after years of racing late model cars in South Carolina. In…