“I’m looking forward to this new opportunity with JR Motorsports and to continue representing Great Clips, both on and off the track,” Sweet said. “They’ve been extremely supportive of me over the last couple of years, so taking this step with them is very special to me. As a young driver in this sport, having the chance to drive under the JR Motorsports banner is an amazing opportunity that I plan to make the most of.”

Great Clips’ deal with JRM includes primary sponsorship of 28 races, 27 of those being on a No. 5 Chevrolet shared by Kahne in Sweet. As for that 28th race — Great Clips will sponsor a No. 88, driven by Earnhardt. JR Motorsports already has plans in place to field a No. 7 entry full-time for driver Regan Smith. The organization hopes to find funding for the No. 5 for the additional five races on the 2013 series schedule.

“To sign a 28-race sponsor, while adding Kasey Kahne and Brad Sweet to our lineup is quite extraordinary,” Motorsports General Manager Kelley Earnhardt Miller said. “Our goal is still to run two full-time teams, and this helps us greatly to achieve that.”

Great Clips has a long history with Kahne. The hair cutter was sponsor of the No. 38 car, then a part of Akins Motorsports, when Kahne joined that team in 2003. Ownership of the No. 38 has changed hands a couple of times in the years since, from Braun Racing to Turner Motorsports, but Great Clips remained on the hood through the end of the 2012 Nationwide Series season, many of those years with Kahne as a part-time driver of the car.

“Great Clips has been a long-time sponsor of mine for 10 years,” Kahne said. “They support everything that I do, from the Kasey Kahne Foundation to my sprint car team, and they continue to grow their program in NASCAR. We all look forward to joining JR Motorsports and continuing to build on the success that they have had.”

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“This is an extremely good opportunity for me,” Smith said. “Dale Jr. and I first started talking about this several years ago, but the timing never matched up to where we could make it happen. Now it’s time. I’m happy to be a part of this organization. I don’t want to just win races. I want to be the team that dominates races and contends for the championship.”

Right now, the No. 7 and No. 88 cars are the full-time rides at JRM, with Danica Patrick driving the No. 7 and Cole Whitt the No. 88. Patrick is moving on to the Sprint Cup Series full-time next year to drive the No. 10 for Stewart-Haas Racing. No plans have been announced for Whitt for next year. The No. 5 car is currently a part-time entry for JR Motorsports, fielded for team co-owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. and a handful of other Sprint Cup drivers throughout the season.

According to team co-owner Kelly Earnhardt Miller, the organization has decided to make the No. 88 the part-time team for Earnhardt to drive when he competes in the Nationwide Series to be consistent with his No. 88 in the Sprint Cup Series.

According to a press release from JRM, the organization hopes to field both the No. 5 and the No. 7 full-time next year, but as of now, specific plans are only in place for the No. 5 and Smith.

Smith last competed in the Nationwide Series in 2007. In his most recent season in the series, he posted three top-fives and five top-10 finishes. He moved up to the Sprint Cup level the next year, claiming series Rookie of the Year honors in 2008. Last year, he posted his one and only Sprint Cup win, visiting victory lane at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway.

“Regan has always impressed me,” Earnhardt said. “He gets the most of his car, no matter what he’s driving or who he’s driving for. He takes car of his cars and gets good finishes. With his experience and ability, we feel he can excel in our equipment.”

Smith lost his Sprint Cup ride at Furniture Row Racing to Kurt Busch a few weeks ago, and has spent the last couple of race weekends at Charlotte Motor Speedway and Kansas Speedway filling in for Earnhardt in the No. 88 Sprint Cup car as Earnhardt was sidelined with a concussion.

– Photo courtesy of Getty Images for NASCAR

– Follow Stock Car Spin on Twitter @SCSblog or like Stock Car Spin on Facebook

– Amanda’s also on Twitter @NASCARexaminer and has a fan/like page on Facebook: NASCAR Examiner