The No. 8 truck was originally owned and driven by Joe Nemechek's brother John. He debuted the truck in 1996 at the Miami-Dade Homestead Motorsports Complex, where he finished seventh. He ran full-time that year and finished 13th in points. The team was known as CHEK Racing Inc. Three races into 1997, John was involved in a single-truck accident at Miami-Dade and suffered massive head injuries, which claimed his life five days later. The No. 8 truck was retired in John's memory after this, and it was intended that the number would not be used again by the Nemecheks.