Earnhardt gets medical clearance to race

Dale Earnhardt Jr. will compete at Martinsville Speedway this weekend after being given the green light by doctors Tuesday. The popular driver missed the last two Sprint Cup races -- Charlotte and Kansas -- after being diagnosed with a concussion days after being part of a 25-car accident Oct. 7 at Talladega. That injury followed a concussion he sustained Aug. 29 at a Kansas event. Since his latest injury, Earnhardt has been evaluated by neurosurgeon Jerry Petty and other physicians, and Monday he drove 123 test laps in a Sprint Cup Series car at the half-mile Gresham Motorsports Park in Jefferson, Ga. Petty then cleared him after a final evaluation. "Dale Jr. has done everything asked of him," Petty said in a statement. "He hasn't had a headache since Oct. 12, and we have not been able to provoke any symptoms since that time. I have informed NASCAR and Hendrick Motorsports that he is medically cleared for all NASCAR-related activity." Having missed two races, Earnhardt is last in the Chase rankings, 122 points behind leader Brad Keselowski.