During the summer of 2007, Dale Earnhardt Jr nnounced he would be leaving his late father's DEI race team to drive for Hendrick Motorsports in 2008. This diecast is significant because it reflects Jr's first time driving a Hendrick car as a team driver. The testing took place at Atlanta Motor Speedway on October 29 and 30, 2007. It was NASCAR's fourth testing of the new car which would be raced starting with the 2008 season.