Dale Earnhardt Jr. will not race this weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway or in the upcoming race at Pocono Raceway. Jeff Gordon will make his return to racing, driving Earnhardt's No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports entry in both races.
Earnhardt will be out at least two more races as he was not cleared by his doctors to return as from concussion-like symptoms. Earnhardt missed last weekend's race at New Hampshire. Alex Bowman drove for the team; he was running in the top 10 late in the race before crashing and finishing 26th.
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Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jeff Gordon (Getty Images)
"Our focus is giving Dale all the time he needs to recover," team owner Rick Hendrick said in a statement. "There's nothing we want more than to see him back in the racecar, but we'll continue to listen to the doctors and follow their lead. What's best for Dale is what's best for Hendrick Motorsports and everyone involved with the team. We're all proud of him and looking forward to having him racing soon."
Earnhardt discussed his symptoms in a podcast earlier this week, saying that he was battling issues with balance and nausea . Befpore missing the race, he was in position to earn a berth in the Chase for the Sprint Cup. Eleven drivers have won races this season and Earnhardt is 15th in the standings with seven races to go before the Chase.
Earnhardt missed two races with concussion-like symptoms late in 2012, during that season's Chase, and went on to finish 12th in the points that year.
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Gordon, a four-time Sprint Cup Series champion, has six wins at Pocono and five at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He last raced in the 2015 season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway and worked with Fox Sports during the opening segment of the season.
Gordon, 44, has 93 career victories. He made all 797 of his Sprint Cup starts driving for Hendrick.
"Jeff's a team player," Hendrick said. "I know he'll be ready, and I know Dale has incredible trust in him. It's going to be an emotional weekend [at Indianapolis] with Dale not being there and seeing Jeff back behind the wheel. [Crew chief Greg Ives] and the team did a great job at New Hampshire, and they have the full support of our organization."