NASCAR: Earnhardt defends comeback plan

"I wouldn’t be coming back to the seat and wanting to drive and excited about driving cars if there was any risk, other than the typical risk that every driver faces on Sunday," Earnhardt said. "I feel very confident in what I've seen in myself and my improvement and I feel confident in what my doctors are telling me about my future and the risks that I'm taking and my ability to be able to withstand the normal wear and tear of not only driving a race, but getting in that unfortunate accident from time to time."

Earnhardt sat out the final 18 races of the Sprint Cup season after experiencing concussion-like symptoms, which doctors concluded stemmed from his crash at Michigan in June. He previously missed races following a pair of crashes in 2012, and is believed to have had several other concussions related to racing incidents. However, after his therapy and discussions with doctors during his hiatus, Earnhardt said he's confident he is not only ready to race, but better equipped than before.

"We all feel pretty confident that not only am I as healthy as I was before the symptoms came last year, but I’m actually stronger," Earnhardt said. "Having gone through this before also gives me additional confidence. This isn’t uncharted territory for me, so I know what I need to feel personally to know that I’m as strong as I need to be and healthy. I’m certainly feeling that way, but I’m also hearing the affirmation from my doctors that I can go back and drive racecars.

Hendrick said that while obviously delighted to have his star back in his No. 88, he was adamant that it not happen until both Earnhardt and his doctors were satisfied that the timing was right.

"First of all we care about him as a friend and a person. That's first," Hendrick said. "Just seeing him healthy and himself rather than trying to rush him to get back in the car. I didn't know if you just sat out and did nothing you would be OK. By Dale going to the right person and working his butt off, it has made him stronger.

"I really want to thank all of our sponsors...every single sponsor said his health is priority one: 'We don't want him in the car until he is ready, and we are OK.' 

"Everybody is excited. Everybody if fired up. It is a great Christmas present for our company and our fans."

Earnhardt, who will marry fiancee Amy Reimann on New Year's Eve, emphasized that the final decision to return was his own.

"I have a personal responsibility to myself to be smart, make great decisions for myself.  My health is number one," Earnhardt noted. "Everybody in this room, Rick (Hendrick), and everybody in the shop all put my health first and will always be responsible whatever situations we come across. I’m not going to take any unnecessary risks with my own health."

"I think that as far as my own safety equipment, I feel real good about what we have," he said. "I did get my head scanned for new helmets, but that is just supposed to make them fit better, be more comfortable. I think Joey Logano got his head scanned for his Stilo’s last year and he said it is the best-fitting helmet he has ever had, at least that is what I heard. They fit pretty good to begin with, but this might be a new level.

"Otherwise, I am just glad to have had the opportunity to get so much time between me and the events that I’ve had last year and the symptoms. That is something that I think is really important for everyone going forward, is that they take the amount of time that they need not just to get symptom free, but to allow themselves to heal and get stronger beyond the symptoms. We still have a couple more months of my brain being able to sturdy itself up.

"It is not something that I intentionally wanted to spearhead, but if have seen a culture change tremendously. I think that everyone in general, not just the athletes, but the public, the doctors...everyone, we are all learning something new every day. Mickey [Collins, Earnhardt's concussion specialist] sees two dozen patients a day with various types of injuries, various stages of injuries and so forth. And every day he learns something new; obviously he has seen a million people with the same thing that I had, but every day they learn something new. Every day as a patient I think you learn something new.

"It's incredible the progress that is being made, but it is happening right now. It is being taken more seriously, and I think that is great. I obviously don't want anyone to go through the injury much less the rehabilitation. But, it is great for folks that do get injured, whether they are athletes or they are working a job somewhere or they are a kid in school, that they know there is something that can be done. They know there is a place to go to get the help. One of the worst things is not knowing where to go, not knowing how to get the right help and get the proper treatment, because every concussion needs a different style of treatment to approach it.

"I think that is something that people are becoming aware of – that there are ways to get help so you can not only get healthy, but return to the activity that you love to do, whatever it is that you want to get back to doing."