The next time you watch Dale Earnhardt Jr. at Phoenix International Raceway - in the November 11 Checker Auto Parts 500 Presented by Pennzoil – will be his final time behind the wheel of a Dale Earnhardt Inc.-powered Chevrolet Impala SS at PIR.

Earnhardt announced on Thursday morning from his JR Motorsports shop in Mooresville, N.C. that he will part with DEI, the company pioneered by his late father in 1998, at the conclusion of the 2007 season.

Earnhardt won NEXTEL Cup Series events at PIR in both 2003 and 2004 under the DEI banner for which he had driven since his Cup debut in 1999. As he aims to become the first three-time NEXTEL Cup winner in PIR history this November, it will mark a goodbye of sorts for PIR fans used to seeing Earnhardt behind the wheel of the car dreamed up and owned by his late father's organization.

"We worked really hard, but we were never close," Earnhardt said of negotiations with DEI. “I am a little sad, but I am trying to remind myself to be excited about what’s ahead.”

The 32-year-old fan favorite had asked for 51 percent ownership of the team now run by his stepmother, Teresa. Negotiations on a contract extension began before the season and have been tense all along. Earnhardt’s sister, Kelley Earnhardt Elledge, had set a deadline to get the deal done by the end of the month.

“I’m sad that I have to leave some employees that I got close to, leave some relationships,” Earnhardt said. “We’re going to finish this year out, and I told my guys we’re going to run hard. I don’t want any excuses for us not giving our best effort. I plan on giving everything I’ve got like I always do, and hopefully that’s what I’ll get in return.”

Now, Earnhardt must decide which team is the best fit for him. Earnhardt has made it clear he wants to be in a Chevrolet next season, but that loyalty could limit his options.

It’s possible that Earnhardt will field his own Nextel Cup team from JR Motorsports, where he runs a Busch Series program and several Late Model cars. Earnhardt scheduled his news conference at that facility.

Hendrick Motorsports, winner of seven of the past eight Cup races, is already maxed out with four teams but could assist Earnhardt by leasing him engines. Hendrick already leases motors to Ginn Racing and Haas-CNC Racing, and Earnhardt recently got to feel their horsepower when he jumped into the No. 5 Chevrolet of Kyle Busch during a race last month.

Richard Childress Racing always has been considered the most logical place for Junior to go. Childress and Dale Earnhardt were extremely close, and Junior has maintained a relationship with the car owner.

RCR, which owns the No. 3 should Earnhardt ever want to drive it, can add him as the fourth and final team NASCAR permits each owner. It would team him with Kevin Harvick, who replaced the elder Earnhardt following his 2001 death, and has openly invited the younger Earnhardt to join the organization.

It’s also possible that RCR would lease JR Motorsports its engines should Earnhardt field his own team. RCR already gives JRM its motors.

The wildcard could be Joe Gibbs Racing, another powerful three-car Chevy team that would connect him with Tony Stewart and Denny Hamlin. Earnhardt and Stewart have worked wonderfully together on restrictor-plate tracks, and Earnhardt befriended Hamlin early in his career.

-The Associated Press contributed to this report.