DALE JR. WATCHES DAD'S MONTE CARLO TAKE A LAP; MORE FROM 'DEGA TRIP

Six-time Talladega Superspeedway winner Dale Earnhardt Jr. visited one of his favorite tracks Thursday for an action-packed day of greeting fans, mingling with the Alabama Gang, assisting the track with its landscaping duties and watching his father's No. 2 Chevrolet take a lap around the superspeedway.

The Hendrick Motorsports wheelman, sidelined for the rest of the season by concussion-like symptoms, was welcomed by Alabama Gang members Bobby Allison, Donnie Allison and short-track legend Red Farmer as an honorary member of the group.

The Alabama Gang, with deep roots in stock-car racing's early days, was the nickname earned by a group of notable NASCAR drivers -- the Allisons, Neil Bonnett, and Farmer among them -- with ties to the state. Talladega's back straightaway was named "The Alabama Gang Superstretch" in their honor in the spring of 2014.

Although Dale Earnhardt was not a part of the group, he remained great friends with the drivers -- especially Bonnett, a fellow outdoorsman. The group paid tribute to the first-ballot NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee as Donnie Allison wheeled Earnhardt's famous No. 2 Monte Carlo around the 2.66-mile track.

See glimpses from Dale Jr.'s day.

.@DaleJr doing some track landscaping and surprising fans at @TalladegaSuperS. #NW88JR pic.twitter.com/ptrIfuXW8y
— Nationwide 88 (@nationwide88) September 29, 2016

We have some REALLY cool stuff coming up with @DaleJr and the famed #AlabamaGang!

Keep an eye on Periscope & Facebook Live! pic.twitter.com/fT05pKOgrN
— TalladegaSuperspdwy (@TalladegaSuperS) September 29, 2016

Donnie, Bobby and Red welcome @DaleJr as an OFFICIAL Honorary Member of the #AlabamaGang! pic.twitter.com/JjCPAt99FJ
— TalladegaSuperspdwy (@TalladegaSuperS) September 29, 2016

Dale Sr.'s No. 2 Monte Carlo rides again with Donnie Allison at the wheel! #AlabamaGang https://t.co/HeBNAtQWh8
— TalladegaSuperspdwy (@TalladegaSuperS) September 29, 2016

Good times today @TalladegaSuperS promoting the race with the Alabama Gang. Tickets are on sale for the race on October 23rd. pic.twitter.com/vm6OZFTslx
— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) September 29, 2016

I remember this old thing. @TalladegaSuperS Hall of Fame. The carpet is teal, I kid you not. Great choice pops. pic.twitter.com/UMn4RAe34L
— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) September 29, 2016

How cool to rename the MRN booth @TalladegaSuperS in honor of Barney Hall! pic.twitter.com/7u24pIDUnM
— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) September 29, 2016

Tony Stewart teams with Coca-Cola for Bobby Allison tribute in final Southern 500

Tony Stewart‘s last shot at conquering the Southern 500 will be a tribute to a driver and paint scheme combination that did it twice.

Stewart, who retires from Sprint Cup competition after this season, will make his final start at Darlington Raceway in a Coca-Cola sponsored homage to Bobby Allison’s Southern 500 winning cars from 1971 and 1972.

The car was unveiled Wednesday at the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, North Carolina, which Allison was inducted into in 2011. Stewart has been sponsored by Coca-Cola his entire

Sprint Cup career, which began in 1999.

“Tony Stewart is a real racer who would’ve fit right in during the time I raced in NASCAR,” Allison said in a press release. “He’s a perfect fit for this Coca-Cola Chevy. I know what car I’ll be watching in the Southern 500.”

The paint scheme on the No. 14 will include Coke’s slogan from the 70s – “The Real Thing” – and gold wheels and cubic-inch displacement boast on the hood, just like Allison’s car did.

Darlington is one of two tracks Stewart has not won at in Sprint Cup competition. The other is Kentucky Speedway.

In 23 Sprint Cup starts, Stewart has never led more than 10 laps at Darlington. Allson led 558 of the 734 laps available (76 percent) in the 1971 and 72′ Southern 500s. The 1983 Sprint Cup champion won at Darlington five times. Stewart has finished third in the Southern 500 twice.

“Races at Darlington have been pretty tough for me,” Stewart said in a press release. “We’ve had some decent runs there, but it just seems like you really have to put everything together the whole day. If you can say you won a race at Darlington – that’s a feather in your cap because you conquered something that’s very hard to obtain. That’s something to be proud of, knowing that you’re in a group of drivers with names like Allison and Pearson and Petty –the pioneers of our sport.”

Stewart’s final Southern 500 can be seen on Sept. 4 on NBC.

NASCAR America: Ryan Reed excited to drive car with Bobby Allison’s paint scheme

Ryan Reed unveiled the throwback paint scheme he’ll have for the Labor Day weekend Xfinity race at Darlington Raceway. The car is similar to the No. 16 Matador NASCAR Hall of Famer Bobby Allison drove in 1975. Reed was joined by Allison and motorsports artist Sam Bass. & @sambassartist