Dale Earnhardt Jr. made his on track debut with Hendrick Motorsports on Monday during Car of Tomorrow testing at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Sporting a brand new white Adidas uniform with the 2008 Sprint Cup logo on it, Earnhardt Jr. took to the track for the first time in a Hendrick Chevrolet. The test session also reunited Dale Jr. with crew chief Tony Eury Jr. after a couple of weeks absence.
Driving the No. 5A Chevrolet, Earnhardt Jr. saw his best time of the day come in the morning session at 184.450 mph.
To commemorate his first laps with HMS, Earnhardt is driving a "throwback" All-Star Racing paint scheme. The red and white design is identical to the first car campaigned by team owner Rick Hendrick in Cup-level competition back in 1984 with Geoff Bodine.
"I'm excited, Rick's going to be here anytime, and i'm excited to see him," Earnhardt Jr. said. "I'm excited to watch Tony Jr. work with the new guys. I'm excited to see the impressions on their face and their mannerisms and their attitude about the whole thing."
Future Joe Gibbs Racing driver Kyle Busch was the fastest on the day with his new team with a lap of 186.190 mph. Although the team will be switching to Toyotas in 2008, JGR tested the current Chevrolet Impala.
Denny Hamlin put another JGR car on the top of the chart as he was second with a lap of 185.822 mph in the No. 11 Chevrolet.
David Reutimann's morning speed of 185.430 mph was the best among the Toyotas.
"I didn't really know what to expect, but it drove good and it was pretty stable," Reutimann said. "We're still way early in this deal, but feel like it's pretty good so far."
The Ford of Greg Biffle topped the afternoon session with a lap of 185.158 mph.
Kurt Busch was the the best among the Dodges on the first day at 184.131 mph.
The test session, which will conclude tomorrow, is the last of seven NASCAR-sanctioned tests this season and is the first full-scale session for the new car at a 1.5-mile speedway.
