CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - Dale Earnhardt Jr. has been cleared for this weekend's race at Martinsville Speedway after missing the last two weeks to recover from a pair of concussions.
NASCAR's most popular driver was examined by neurosurgeon Dr. Jerry Petty one day after he ran 123 laps at half-mile Gresham Motorsports Park in Jefferson, Ga. Petty monitored Earnhardt during Monday's test.
Petty sidelined Earnhardt after the driver went to see him complaining of a lingering headache following a 25-car accident on the last lap of the Oct. 7 race at Talladega. Petty diagnosed Earnhardt with a concussion, and said Earnhardt also suffered one in an Aug. 29 crash during a tire test at Kansas that went untreated.