Bob Dods commented, "The announcement today is a culmination of the transition in leadership responsibilities that the Company first announced in October of 2000. Over the last several years, Curt Stoelting, Pete Henseler and Jody Taylor, the Company's Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, have been working together with me to assure a smooth transition from my leadership of the Company. I believe this is the appropriate time to formally complete the transition and I am totally confident that we have the right management team in place to lead the Company forward. Their combined experience, respect for each other's abilities and proven ability to work effectively together, provide a solid foundation for the future growth of the Company."

Curt Stoelting joined Racing Champions Ertl in 1994 and has played key management roles in finance, operations, acquisitions and strategy since joining the Company. Prior to that time, Stoelting was with Arthur Andersen LLP for 12 years. Pete Henseler joined Racing Champions Ertl in 1996 and has played leadership roles in sales, marketing, licensing and product development since joining the Company. He was named President in 2000. Prior to joining Racing Champions Ertl, he was with McDonald's Corporation for 7 years, serving as Director of Marketing. Jody Taylor joined Racing Champions Ertl in 1996 from Arthur Andersen LLP. A Certified Public Accountant, she has held a series of different financial positions at the Company, including Controller and Vice President of Finance and Administration. She was named Senior Vice President Finance in 2000 and Chief Financial Officer and Secretary in 2001.

Racing Champions Ertl (www.rcertl.com) is a leading producer and marketer of innovative collectibles and toys targeted at males of all ages. The Company's diverse product offering includes scaled die-cast replicas of John Deere agricultural equipment and NASCAR stock cars, other licensed vehicle replicas, pre-teen toys, sports trading cards, racing apparel and souvenirs, and collectible figures. These products are sold under the Company's market-focused brand names, including Racing Champions(R), Ertl(R), Ertl Collectibles(R), American Muscle(TM), AMT(R), W. Britain(R), Press Pass(R) and JoyRide Studios(TM). The Company reinforces its brands and enhances the authenticity of our products by linking them with highly recognized licensed properties including NASCAR, NHRA, John Deere, Harley-Davidson, Case, Polaris, Honda, Caterpillar, Ford, GM, Chrysler, Texaco, Universal Studios, Warner Brothers, Hit Entertainment, Nintendo, Sega and Electronic Arts. The Company's products are marketed through multiple channels of distribution, including mass retailers and specialty and hobby wholesalers and retailers, OEM dealers and to corporate accounts for promotional purposes. The Company sells through more than 20,000 retail outlets located in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific.

Certain statements contained in this release contain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements may be identified by the use of forward-looking words or phrases such as "anticipate," "believe," "could," "expect," "intend," "may," "planned," "potential," "target," "should," "will" and "would." Such forward-looking statements are inherently subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Such uncertainties and other operational matters are discussed further in the Company's quarterly and annual filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company's actual results and future developments could differ materially from the results or developments expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to make any revisions to the forward-looking statements contained in this release or to update them to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this release.