Wheldon tribute in works at Talladega

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CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- NASCAR will provide Sprint Cup and Truck Series teams decals with the "Lionheart Knight" image that Dan Wheldon wore on his helmet to put on their vehicles this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway.

It is one of several tributes planned for the IndyCar driver, who was killed in Sunday's series finale at Las Vegas.

As part of its pre-race show, Talladega plans a moment of silence in Wheldon's honor, prior to the invocations Saturday and Sunday.

Several drivers have their own plans to recognize Wheldon, in addition to the decal that will be placed on the b-post of the cars and trucks. The b-post is the panel that runs between the front windows and the back of the car; they usually are installed on the driver's side.

Wheldon, the reigning Indianapolis 500 champion, was killed in a 15-car crash on Lap 11 at Las Vegas. His death rippled throughout motorsports, as expressed by Cup drivers during Monday's fuel injection test at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

"There's no way it can't be on people's minds," Jeff Burton said. "Even though it's a different series and I didn't really know Dan at all, it's still ... he's part of a fraternity, and it's always difficult."

David Newton covers NASCAR for ESPN.com. He can be reached at dnewtonespn@aol.com.

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• NASCAR writer for ESPN.com
• NFL, college football writer for 20 years
• National award winner in motorsports coverage