Contracts: Sponsor: 200?; Driver: 2008
- FreeCreditReport.com Extends Partnership with Yates Racing: Yates Racing announced that Experian Consumer Direct, the leading provider of online direct-to-consumer credit reports, scores, and monitoring products, will sponsor the #38 entry for an additional number of races for the 2008 Sprint Cup Series season. Yates
Racing driver, David Gilliland, who pilots the #38 FreeCreditReport.com Ford Fusion, will continue to feature the company's website, www.FreeCreditReport.com. Gilliland has a history with Experian Consumer Direct as a sponsor, racing the #38 FreeCreditReport.com Ford Fusion for a total of eight races in the 2008 Sprint Cup series as well as driving the FreeCreditReport.com Ford 19 times in the 2007 Nationwide Series. "It's wonderful to know that our #38 team will continue to be partnered with FreeCreditReport.com," commented Gilliland. "They have been a wonderful sponsor to our team and it is very comforting to know that we're going to showcase our #38 FreeCreditReport.com Ford for more races this year. Everyone at Yates Racing has worked extremely hard this year to yield strong finishes every week, and we look forward to continuing that tradition for FreeCreditReport.com." Experian Consumer Direct and the FreeCreditReport.com sponsorship will be featured at Richmond International Raceway this weekend in the Crown Royal Presents the Dan Lowry 400.(Yates Racing)(5-3-2008) Comment here
- Both Yates cars bare: Yates Racing drivers #38-David Gilliland and #28-Travis Kvapil are 22nd and 24th, respectively, in the points standings heading into tomorrow's Samsung 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. Both cars are unsponsored this weekend and are displaying SponserYates.com.(4-5-2008)
- Gilliland lands seven race sponsor:Yates Racing announced that Experian Consumer Direct, the leading provider of online direct-to-consumer credit reports, scores, and monitoring products, will sponsor the #38 entry for seven races at the beginning of the 2008 Sprint Cup Series season. Yates Racing driver, David Gilliland, will pilot the #38 FreeCreditReport.com Ford Fusion which will feature the company’s website, www.FreeCreditReport.com. Gilliland has a history with Experian Consumer Direct as a sponsor, racing 19 times in the FreeCreditReport.com Ford during the 2007 Busch Series season. The season opener for Yates Racing and Gilliland will be the Budweiser Shootout at Daytona International Speedway on February 9, 2008. Gilliland qualified for the race after he captured the pole in his very first trip to Daytona for the 2007 Daytona 500. Experian Consumer Direct and the FreeCreditReport.com sponsorship will begin with the 2008 Budweiser Shootout and continue with the first six races of the Sprint Cup Series through the March 30th race at Martinsville Speedway.(Yates Racing PR)(2-7-2008) Comment here.
- Crew Chief Switch at Yates: on SPEED's coverage of testing at Daytona, it was reported that Todd Parrott will be #28-Travis Kvapil's crew chief in 2008 and Cully Barraclough will be with #38-David Gilliland. Parrott had been Gilliland's crew chief.(1-8-2008)
- New site for Yates? Travis Kvapil ran two cars on Monday at Daytona testing, one in gray primer and another black with orange numbers both with the Yates Racing logo and the following site on the quarter panels - sponsoryates.com.(1-8-2008)
- SPONSOR? have not heard much about sponsors for the #28 [was #88] or #38 Yates Racings teams. Supposedly per a Max Jones interview on Sirius Satellite Radio, the team has sponsorship in the works, the teams will be sponsored and that they are making sure the deals are what they need.(12-31-2007)
- Doug Yates and Max Jones join forces: Yates Racing announced Thursday that Max Jones, long-time general manager for Roush Fenway Racing and former road-racing driver has joined Yates Racing as a co-owner and will also assume the role of General Manager . Jones, a native of Long Beach, Calif., joins Yates Racing after serving as general manager for Roush Fenway Racing’s Cup program in 2007. “We’re thrilled to have someone as respected as Max join Yates Racing,” said Yates Racing owner, Doug Yates. “With his experience in the sport and working with such a large and successful organization as Roush Fenway Racing for so many years, he will immediately step in and improve our race operations. As we continue to improve and restructure in preparation for a successful 2008 season, having someone with Max’s experience and credibility only accelerates the process of getting Yates Racing back to where it needs to be and that’s competing for wins and championships on a weekly basis.” Jones will add his experience to one of the most successful operations in motorsports. Since venturing into NASCAR’s Cup series in 1989, Yates Racing has recorded 57 wins, 269 top fives, and 427 top-10 finishes, including the Cup
series championship in 1999.(Roush Fenway Racing PR)(11-15-2007)
- Roush to build all Yates cars: Roush Fenway Racing will be building all of Yates Racing’s Sprint Cup next season, and team co-owner Jack Roush said he’s looking forward to helping the Yates group return to its performance levels of old. Starting with the 2008 season, Roush Fenway Racing will manufacture all of Yates Racing’s cars, with Yates moving to Concord, N.C., next to Roush Fenway’s shops. Yates, meanwhile, will lease its current shop in Mooresville, N.C., to Petty Enterprises. “We’re making preparations to enter into a service agreement with them that will avail them of the technology and of the vehicles with the engineering essence and the vehicles that are coming out of our construction activities,” said Roush Saturday morning at Phoenix International Raceway. “We want to try to breath some blue sky and some viability back into the program.” One of the benefits of Roush Fenway Racing building cars for both teams is that in the long run, it will result in cost savings, because the cost for R&D, tooling, etc., will be spread over a larger number of cars, Roush said. “We’ve got some opportunities of scale, in terms of understanding what we need to do and then the more volume you generate off that for the same amount of engineering work, design work, tooling, all those things you do, it’s an extraordinarily expensive proposition to go do all the testing that’s necessary to build and support one Cup car in today’s world,” said Roush. “If, taken to the other extreme, an IROC scenario where all the cars were completely identical coming out of the factory, then the cost to the teams and the value to the sponsors would be maximized. This is something in between.”(Ford Racing)(11-12-2007)
- Best Buy moving? UPDATE 6 to the #19: hearing that Best Buy will not return to Haas CNC Racing in 2008, but supposedly will stay in the sport with an unknown team, possibly a Dodge team, the #19 GEM Dodge of Elliott Sadler is one rumored possibility.(10-22-2007)
UPDATE: Haas CNC Racing has settled on its drivers for its two-car Sprint Cup team in 2008, but its sponsorship situation is unsettled. Best Buy, which backs the team's # 66 - driven for the first time this weekend by Jeremy Mayfield - has not decided its future, a spokesman for the company said this week. And Wednesday, a statement released by Yellow Transportation said that company is evaluating its future in the sport. Yellow entered Nextel Cup this season as sponsor of Johnny Sauter's #70. Sauter will be replaced next season by Scott Riggs. Haas CNC Racing General Manager Joe Custer said this week the team is negotiating with both companies to return next season.(SceneDaily.com)(10-25-2007)
UPDATE 2: hearing Best Buy sponsorship is a done deal to Gillett Evernham Mototsports #19 team and driver Elliott Sadler, who supposedly made a commercial for Best Buy already.(11-1-2007)
UPDATE 3: As far as sponsorship goes for the #19 next season, team sources said it will be a combination deal, with Best Buy, Valvoline and Stanley all rotating as primary sponsors next season.(SPEEDtv.com)(11-3-2007)
UPDATE 4: Best Buy Racing will hold a press conference at Phoenix International Raceway Friday, November 9, to announce its sponsorship of a new driver and team, and unveil its 2008 car design.(11-8-2007)
OR And Best Buy is expected to be announcing a sponsorship move today, possible to the Jack Roush-Doug Yates operation, possibly with driver #38-David Gilliland.(Winston Salem Journal)(11-9-2007)
UPDATE 6: Best Buy, Inc., announced it has entered a new affiliation with Gillett Evernham Motorsports. The nation's leading electronics retailer will serve as the primary sponsor of driver Elliott Sadler and the #19 Gillett Evernham Motorsports Dodge Avenger in 15 Sprint Cup Series events in 2008, including the 50th running of the "Great American Race," the Daytona 500. "At Best Buy, we're all about bringing consumers the complete product and service experiences, and that's what we feel we've found with Gillett Evernham
Motorsports," said Barry Judge, senior vice president, Marketing, Best Buy. "With Gillett Evernham Motorsports, not only do we have the focus on performance, but we also have a charismatic fan favorite and proven winner in our driver, Elliott Sadler. We're confident this new relationship will generate excitement and enthusiasm among our employees, as well as our customers." To announce the partnership, Best Buy and Gillett Evernham Motorsports held a press conference on Friday morning, Nov. 9, at Phoenix International Raceway,
which featured a unique twist on the traditional sponsorship announcement. Instead of representatives just speaking about the new partnership, the relationship was announced through a special video piece that aired on flat-screen TV's placed in front of the media center stage. Produced by Best Buy's internal Yellow Tag production team and filmed last week
at the Mooresville, N.C., Best Buy store, the humorous clip features Sadler, Evernham and local Best Buy employees, known as "Blue Shirts." In 2008, Best Buy will enter its fourth season as a sponsor in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. In 2005, Best Buy partnered with NetZero as co-primary sponsors of the #0 entry, fielded by Haas CNC Racing. For the past two years, Best Buy has served as the primary sponsor of the #66 Haas CNC Racing car.(Evernham Motorsports PR)(11-9-2007)
- Team Red Bull buying Yates' shop? UPDATE no: Team Red Bull [#83, #84) has approached Robert Yates Racing [#38, #88] about purchasing its racing and chassis manufacturing shops in Mooresville, N.C. The offer comes in the heels of Yates' announcement that it wants to move to Concord, N.C., to a shop currently occupied by Boris Said's No Fear team (next to Roush Fenway) to expedite their sharing of technology in 2008. Yates will use Roush-built chassis next season. Red Bull is in dire need of more space. It gets engines from Toyota Racing Development and buys chassis, but wants to start departments in both areas. Buying Yates' facilities would give them the room to do that.(Sports Illustrated)(10-11-2007)
UPDATE: "Robert Yates did contact us awhile back to see if we were interested in talking with him about purchasing his building or his teams. We weren't - so the conversation ended there. We're committed to building our team from scratch and making our cars competitive. We don't have plans to buy anyone else's team."(Red Bull VP of Competition, Guenther Steiner statement)(10-18-2007)
- Gilliland to run special pink M&M's scheme at Charlotte: For this weekend’s Bank of America 500 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, David Gilliland and Team 38 are joining forces with primary sponsor, M&M’S Brand Chocolate Candies, as they lend sweet support to the fight against breast cancer. M&M’S is offering its consumers the opportunity to go pink during Breast Cancer Awareness Month this October to commemorate Susan G. Komen for the Cure’s 25th year in the fight against the deadly disease. The brand will also make a minimum guaranteed contribution of $550,000 in support of Komen for the Cure’s promise to save lives and end breast cancer forever. Gilliland will run a special paint scheme with pink M&M’S Brand Chocolate Candies and the Susan G. Komen for the Cure logo on his #38 Ford at Charlotte. Additionally, from October 11-13 MY M&M’S will host a computerized
kiosk at the Speedway where NASCAR visitors can order the Promise Blend in support of finding the cure. In addition to the activities scheduled for this weekend’s race, M&M’S Brand
Chocolate Candies is offering the following products, merchandise and activities in support of the Susan G. Komen for the Cure throughout the month of October:
• MY M&M’S will donate 10% of the sales of its “Promise Blend” to support the cause. The pink and white M&M’S Milk Chocolate Candies, available at www.mymms.com/sgk, are pre-printed with the new Susan G. Komen for the Cure "Moving Ribbon" logo and a "for the CURE" message.
• Limited-edition dark- and light- pink M&M’S Milk Chocolate and M&M’S Peanut Milk Chocolate Candies will be sold nationwide in stores in September and October. Both varieties are available in 14-ounce and 21.3-ounce bags.
• M&M’S World stores are also getting in on the action, donating 10% of Pink Ribbon merchandise sold in-store in 2007 to the world’s largest breast cancer organization. M&M’S World stores are located in New York, Las Vegas and Orlando, Fla.(M&M Racing PR), see an image of the scheme on the #38 Team Schemes page.(10-11-2007)
- M&M's to sponsor #18 car and Kyle Busch in 2008: Mars U.S. announced a three-year partnership with M&M’S Brand Chocolate Candies as the sponsor of the #18 Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) team and driver Kyle Busch in the Sprint Cup Series beginning in 2008. “I can’t wait to climb behind the wheel of the M&M’S car next season,” Busch said. “M&M’S Racing has been a fan favorite for years in the sport and it’s an honor to drive for one of the most recognized brands in the world. My focus is to win, and I know that everyone at Mars shares that vision as well. I want to thank the associates at Mars U.S. for this opportunity and look forward to a winning relationship.” During the 2008 season, Mars U.S. brands will serve as the primary sponsor of JGR’s #18 Sprint Cup Series team for a total of 30 point races. Mars will feature the popular M&M’S Brand colors beginning with the 50th running of the Daytona 500 on Feb. 17. Snickers and Pedigree also will serve as primary brand sponsors for several races. Additionally, Combos, Twix, Skittles, Starburst and Milkey Way brands will provide support as associate sponsors. Interstate Batteries will serve as a primary sponsor of the #18 Sprint Cup team for six point races. The 2008 season will mark the 15th year for Mars U.S. as a primary sponsor in NASCAR’s premier racing division. The famous candy maker joined the series in 1990, running its first three seasons under the Snickers Brand moniker. After serving as an associate sponsor for four seasons, the company returned with the Skittles Brand colors in 1997 before transitioning to M&M’S Brand Chocolate Candies in 1999.(Joe Gibbs Racing site)(10-3-2007)
- Yates planning to move to shop near Roush Fenway: Robert Yates Racing is planning to move from its shop in Mooresville, N.C., to next to the Roush Fenway Racing shop in Concord, N.C., likely in the building that #60-Boris Said's No Fear Racing team currently occupies. [Co-owner Doug]Yates said the move will allow better technology flow. Yates Racing will purchase chassis and bodies from Roush Fenway, which also will provide marketing and sponsorship help. He said it's about getting the team stronger and hopes to keep his strongest employees. The move won't be the only change for the team that will be known as Yates Racing. It has released the #88 to Hendrick Motorsports and is expected to resurrect the #28 it used in its early years. "We haven't decided exactly yet [on the number]," Yates said. "That's definitely a good possibility." Yates needs two sponsors for next season for drivers David Gilliland and Travis Kvapil. Yates acknowledged Friday for the first time that M&M's and Snickers will not return for next season. Sponsorship is in the works for both teams next year, Yates said. As far as the Busch side, Yates said he wasn't sure what would happen with that team. "It's not the No. 1 priority," Yates said. "If Citi would like to come back [as a sponsor] or we could find sponsorship, we would run it. But the No. 1 deal is to get our two Cup teams back to where they need to be."(SceneDaily.com)(9-29-2007)
- M&M's looks to be heading to Gibbs #18 in 2008 UPDATE: Mars U.S. was finalizing a deal Thursday to use its M&M's brand to sponsor Kyle Busch when he moves to Joe Gibbs Racing next season. M&M's would replace Interstate Batteries, which has sponsored Gibbs' flagship #18 since its 1992 inception. J.D. Gibbs, president of the race team, didn't respond to a request for comment. But two people familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press that Mars was working on a deal to sponsor Busch that will be officially announced next month at M&M's World in New York City. They requested anonymity because the deal was not yet complete. Interstate is expected to stay involved with JGR in a smaller role. JGR is also ending its 16-year association with General Motors at the end of this season and will field Toyotas beginning next year. It will make the move with three lucrative sponsors as Mars moves its M&M's brand away from Robert Yates Racing and rookie David Gilliland. It's unclear what the company will do with its Snickers sponsorship on Yates' second car, but the move to JGR is troublesome to the Yates [currently #38 and #88] organization. The struggling team has been trying to restructure all season, and longtime owner Robert Yates said earlier this month that he plans to retire at the end of the season. He's handing over the company to his son, Doug, who plans to call it Yates Racing and field cars for Gilliland and Travis Kvapil.(in part from the Associated Press)(9-21-2007)
UPDATE: David Gilliland knows he'll likely need a new sponsor following this season since M&M's has emerged as a candidate to sponsor Kyle Busch's #18 Joe Gibbs Racing entry in 2008. Gilliland, the Robert Yates Racing driver who has driven with M&M's sponsorship since he entered the Nextel Cup Series in August of last year, said he's aware that M&M's is likely headed elsewhere in 2008. "I read it on the Internet," he said Friday at Dover International Speedway, site of this weekend's Dodge Dealers 400. "My understanding was we had a contract that went through next year, so I don't know what happened with that. Hopefully we'll find another sponsor who wants to be here and support us next year." M&M's has made a decision and will announce its future sponsorship plans on Oct. 3, spokeswoman Rhonda King said Friday.(SceneDaily.com)(9-21-2007)
- Yates needs sponsors in 2008: Robert Yates Racing [Yates Racing in 2008] needs two new sponsors to replace Snickers on the #88 [with a new car # and Travis Kvapil as the driver] and M&M’s on the #38 of David Gilliland.(SPEEDtv.com)(9-16-2007)
- Statement from NHLR on Yates/Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing: Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing, LLC was excited about its future plans with Robert Yates Racing [#38 and #88] and were quite surprised by the announcement of Robert Yates’ retirement from racing and handing the team over to his son Doug. [They] wish Robert the very best in his retirement. At this time [they] are continuing to explore several exciting opportunities for the 2008 NASCAR season.(NHL Racing site)(9-14-2007)
- Yates/Roush alliance could bypass 4-team rule: Roush Fenway Racing officials have been looking for a way around NASCAR's four-car cap rule ever since it was introduced at the end of the 2005 season. Their alliance with Robert Yates Racing appears to be the answer. Roush Fenway Racing, which already shared an engine program with RYR, will expand its relationship in 2008 to include building and selling cars and parts to its fellow Ford partner as well as licensing and marketing. That ultimately will allow Roush after the 2009 season -- the deadline NASCAR has set for it to get to four teams -- to send its fifth car and whatever employees that might go with it to RYR. "That's not part of the deal, but it certainly won't shock anybody here if in two years that's where it goes," Roush Fenway president Geoff Smith said before Saturday night's Nextel Cup race at Richmond International Raceway. "When you shrink an organization like NASCAR is doing to us you end up not being able to promote people because they don't have places to go, so they end up leaving us for somebody else. This gives us a chance to really keep all that training money within our Ford Motor company camp." It also allows Roush to benefit from the sharing of information for basically a seven-car team that could grow to eight. Smith said he and other Roush employees have gone to great length to make sure this alliance falls within the NASCAR rules. "We are not even close to any of the prohibitions that NASCAR got," he said. "We're in another universe. This is a real, careful, safe deal. We're not close to getting near their concerns. Here's the rules. You can't own it, you can't profit share, you can't take prize money and you can't underwrite their loss to shore them up. Those are the core rules. Then they told us about ancillary rules. You can't lease them cars. You've got to sell them cars. All those rules, we're good with that."
Robin Pemberton, NASCAR's vice president for competition, initially avoided the question of whether this is circumventing the rules. "You're starting [something]," he said. "Don't go there on me. I'm telling you, don't go there cause I know what you're starting. Ask a regular question." Asked again if this was Roush's way of circumventing the rules, Pemberton said, "There would be concern if you had everything in one facility. That's why we've gone to the four-car limit. There's business sense in buying cars and going and employing an engineering staff that has the resources that make your teams run better." Pemberton applauded RYR for doing what it can to survive after losing its cornerstone driver, Dale Jarrett, and sponsor UPS this season to Toyota. "Employing the services of a group that's got proper engineering and builds cars is what he needs to do to put him and Doug back running again," he said, referring to RYR owner Doug Yates. But NASCAR officials said Roush still would have to get NASCAR's approval, which it doesn't, before moving a team to Yates. While RYR will be a two-car operation next season, it ultimately could be a four-car team with Roush Fenway Racing having all the knowledge and information sharing from an eight-car team. This also guarantees that RYR doesn't leave Ford for another manufacturer had it been sold.(ESPN.com)(9-9-2007)
- Doug Yates to field two Sprint Cup teams in 2008: Doug Yates announced he will field two NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) teams in 2008 with drivers #38-David Gilliland and #88-Travis Kvapil. These teams will be operated under a company called "Yates Racing" which has agreed to acquire operating assets from Robert Yates Racing, including the transfer of car numbers and owner points. The transaction will be effective December 1, 2007. "With this announcement it's clear that the letter of intent with Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing will not proceed. We're thankful for their support and would welcome the opportunity to work with them in the future," said Yates Racing CEO Doug Yates. "I am very excited to carry the Yates Racing heritage into the future. I believe I have the experience and understanding of the competition and business requirements that are necessary to be an effective team owner. My first order of business is to revamp our infrastructure into one that can field race teams that can compete successfully with the pre-eminent teams in the sport. I personally think the best business and competitive model in the sport to emulate for long-term success is that of Jack Roush and Roush Fenway Racing, I have gotten to know Jack and his organization very well through our joint engine company and before I undertook this commitment I asked Jack for advice. I am pleased to announce that Yates Racing will have full support from Roush Fenway Racing, including hardware, engineering, marketing and operational practices, by the 2008 Daytona 500, Yates Racing wants to be in an elevated position where we are competing successfully against any race team in the sport. With David, Travis and Roush Fenway Racing, we will continue to work on finding the right sponsor partners to join our programs." Neither Jack Roush, Roush Fenway Racing, John Henry or Fenway Sports Group will have any ownership interest in Yates Racing.(Robert Yates Racing PR)(9-8-2007)
- Robert Yates Retiring at end of 2007 season: Robert Yates announced his intention to retire as President of Robert Yates Racing following the last race of the 2007 Nextel Cup season. Certain facets of Robert Yates Racing are being transferred to a new company presided over by Doug Yates. The new entity will be called Yates Racing. Robert Yates Racing will continue with its joint ownership of Roush Yates Racing Engines as well as other ventures. "As many of you know I announced at the Brickyard, earlier this year, my decision to enter into a partnership with Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing", said Robert Yates. "The goal of this partnership was to build a team to contend for the championship. The more I thought about it the more I realized instead this was the perfect opportunity for me to pass the torch to the next generation. I don't know how to express my gratitude to the Newman/Haas/Lanigan group for their support and belief we could get to the top. I'm closing this chapter of my life, and I cannot wait to see what is in store for me next. Carolyn and I look forward to watching Doug build Yates Racing into a championship caliber team".
Since Robert Yates Racing was formed, the now two-car Cup team has posted 57 victories and 48 poles in addition to winning the 1999 NASCAR championship with Dale Jarrett. Current Nextel Cup drivers Ricky Rudd and David Gilliland pilot the No. 88 and No. 38 Ford Fusion's, respectively. On February 11, 2007 at Daytona International Speedway, both of Robert Yates cars qualified on the front row for the Daytona 500. David Gilliland qualified on the pole with Ricky Rudd was alongside in second. Robert Yates Racing also fields the No. 90 Ford Fusion driven by Stephen Leicht in the NASCAR Busch Series. Drivers such as Davey Allison, Ernie Irvan, Dale Jarrett, Ricky Rudd, Kenny Irwin, and Elliott Sadler have driven for RYR.(Robert Yates Racing PR)(9-8-2007)
- Yates not interested in giving Dale Jr. #38: Doug Yates confirmed his team has been approached by a representative of Hendrick Motorsports about securing the #38 for Dale Earnhardt Jr. next year, but if Yates gets his way, there will be no such transfer. Earnhardt recently was denied the opportunity to take the #8 from Dale Earnhardt Inc. to Hendrick and now is considering other number options. The #38 currently is being used by David Gilliland. "Dale Jr., since he can't have what he wants, he might want the 38," said Yates, president Yates/Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing. "They're asking for the 38, and the 38 and 88 are our numbers. It's almost a little strange. It's like somebody asking if they can take your girlfriend or your wife out. We feel we're going to have the 38 and 88 [next year]." While Yates said he is not interested in parting with the number, doesn't everything in the sport have a price tag? "That's my dad's side of it," Yates said, referring to his father, Robert Yates. "But for me, these are our numbers, and we're set with them."(ESPN.com)(8-31-2007)
- RYR asked NASCAR to transfer the #38 to Hendrick for Dale Jr. UPDATE2: SPEED's Bob Dilner reported on Sunday's SPEED report that Robert Yates Racing has asked NASCAR if they could transfer the #38 to Hendrick Motorsports in 2008 for Dale Eanrhardt Jr. to use, the #3 in honor of his father, the late Dale Earnhardt, who ran the #3 [a few races in 1981 and then from 1984 until the 2001 Daytona 500 and won 6 of his 7 championships using #3] and the #8 of course is Dale Jr.'s car #8 since he came into the sport. No word what number David Gilliland would switch to, but RYR still has the license on the #28, last used in 2002 with Ricky Rudd and has used the #90 in the past.
UPDATE: Sources close to the situation told ESPN.com on Monday that Robert Yates Racing and Hendrick Motorsports are discussing a transfer of that number for 2008. The #38 currently is being used by David Gilliland. No formal request has been made to the NASCAR, which has to ultimately approve the transfer. Officials at Hendrick Motor Sports, Robert Yates Racing and JR Motorsports could not be reached for comment. Should RYR give up #38, it still has the rights to the #28 that was last used in 2002 with Ricky Rudd.(ESPN.com)(8-27-2007)
UPDATE2: Marty Smith said on ESPN2's NASCAR Now that it is unlikely the #38 will be transferred from Yates to Hendrick.(8-28-2007)
- Latest on M&M/Snickers leaving Yates rumors: There's been NASCAR garage buzz recently that Mars Inc. Mars Snack Food U.S., the company that produces M& Ms in Hackettstown, is considering leaving Robert Yates Racing. Yates, which fields the Ford that will be driven by David Gilliland on Sunday, has carried the M& Ms brand on the #38 since 2002 [actually started in 2003 with the #38], when Elliott Sadler came on board [in 2003 not 2002]. Sadler left the team after the 22nd race last year. Yates replaced him in the M& Ms car with Gilliland Mars is reportedly still unhappy with the abrupt departure by the popular Sadler. Reports have leaked out that the program is under sponsor review. A recent item on speedtv.com bluntly states that M& Ms will withdraw as a sponsor of the #38 at the end of the year and sister confection Snickers [sponsor of Yates #88 with Rudd] will be moved to another team. Mars media and public relations spokesperson Ryan Bowling addressed the candy question. "Everything you're asking is still pure speculative. If we do decide to go a different route for '08, we'll make that announcement," Bowling said. "Right today nothing's been set in stone." Bowling did not say whether M& Ms would be on the #38 Ford next year. When pressed he admitted that despite the M& M-Yates contract that runs though 2008, there is wiggle room. "You have as a sponsor that you can always evaluate where things are, which is normal for any sponsor, how things are," Bowling said. "M& Ms is still committed to Robert Yates. That's the plan." He added, "I can't give you details on the contract. We're exploring options." Several sources say the M& Ms brand that has been on a NASCAR car since it replaced Mars' Skittles candy on the #36 MB2 Pontiac in the late 1990s will not be on any car next year. "The only thing that's truth at this point is that Snickers expires at the end of this year," Bowling said. The sense in the garage area is the Snickers' sponsorship will move to Ray Evernham's #9 Dodge driven by Kasey Kahne in 2008 [along with another 6 or so rumored sponsors such as Bud, Allstate, Citi Finanacial] An item in Sadler's contract with Yates, however, does not allow him to drive a car sponsored by any of the Mars products before 2008. Bowling insists his company remains behind Yates. "Nothing has been changed. We're still supporting Robert Yates," Bowling said. "Right now our focus is on getting through '07 and not making any announcements if things were to change."(Express Times)(8-2-2007)
- Bourdais says no to Cup: The partnership of Robert Yates Racing and Champ Car's Newman-Haas-Lanigan Racing, announced Friday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, led to speculation that three-time Champ Car champion Sebastien Bourdais might be part of the deal. But the Frenchman, who voiced some interest in stock cars after winning an International Race of Champions event in 2005, shot down that notion, at least for now. In San Jose, Calif., for Sunday's Champ Car World Series event, Bourdais told a media gathering that some people are misinterpreting the partnership as the first step in a full-time move to NASCAR by Champ Car's top team. "They're just going to bring some methods and some organization and some knowledge," he said. "It also is completely unrelated to what I will end up doing in the future. So I just think people are getting everything mixed up a little bit." Bourdais has tested with Formula One's Scuderia Toro Rosso team and could be headed there as a replacement for Scott Speed in 2008.(Indianapolis Star)(7-30-2007)
- Bourdais to Cup? Gilliland re-signed by RYR for 2008 UPDATE: [Robert] Yates also said that three-time Champ Car series champ Sebastien Bourdais could end up driving for the team [Yates/Newman/Hass/Lanigan Racing]. He could partner with #38-David Gilliland, who just re-signed with the team for 2008. M&M's will not sponsor a car next year, but sister candy Snickers will, but not with Robert Yates. Snickers will not sponsor [Elliott] Sadler next year because of contractual restrictions in place from when Sadler left Yates last year, but could be in play on Kasey Kahne's car. Citifinancial [RYR #90 Busch Series team sponsor] is expected to announce its plans soon and is looking at several drivers, including Sadler.(FoxSports/Tom Jensen)
AND St. Petersburg's Sebastien Bourdais lobbied hard for a shot in NASCAR after winning the second of his three Champ Car titles in 2005. If he still wants it, the chance may be there. Bourdais' Champ Car team, Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing, announced a partnership with NASCAR's Robert Yates Racing on Friday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. After a news conference, two of the principals - Carl Haas and Doug Yates - said they're interested in bringing Bourdais to Nextel Cup. The problem is Bourdais may be on the verge of signing with Formula One's Scuderia Toro Russo team, for whom he has tested three times. However, Bourdais has said in the past he only wants to go to Formula One if he can sign with a competitive team, and Toro Rosso is one of the worst. Additionally, the 28-year-old Frenchman has been intrigued by NASCAR since beating some of stock car racing's best in an IROC race at Texas a few years ago. Haas, who begins his third stint as a NASCAR team owner, said there have been discussions with Bourdais about moving to NASCAR.(Tampa Tribune)(7-28-2007)
UPDATE: David Gilliland said Friday that he’s signed a contract extension with Robert Yates Racing and will be back behind the wheel of the #38 Ford Fusion next season. “I’m really glad to have this behind me so I can concentrate on the future,” said Gilliland.(Ford Racing)(7-29-2007)
- Robert Yates Racing and Newman/Haas/Lanigan Join Forces: Robert Yates Racing (RYR) and Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing (NHLR) have entered into a letter of intent for a partnership in NASCAR’s Nextel Cup and Busch Series. The team will be named Yates/Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing effective immediately. “This is a wonderful partnership,” said Robert Yates, founder of Robert Yates Racing. “This gives us a clear vision how to get to the top. It is our goal to continue to build so this team will be better positioned to contend for the championship.”
“I am very proud of our accomplishments in the Champ Car World Series and hope we can have the same success in NASCAR,” added Carl A. Haas, who has been a team owner in NASCAR’s Cup series on two previous occasions. “We have been looking to add other forms of racing to our Champ Car program and when the opportunity came along to work with Robert Yates Racing, a team that shares the same drive for success that we do, it was too good of an opportunity to pass up. I think that the NASCAR and Champ Car programs can learn something from each other and only enhance the championship level that Robert Yates Racing and Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing have competed at in previous years.”
“We have always been an engineering driven team,” said Paul Newman, a partner in Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing. “We think we have something special to add to the benefit of both. This in no way lessens our commitment to open wheel racing -- we want to broaden our horizons.”
“The opportunity of joining Robert and Doug Yates is an opportunity of a lifetime,” added Michael Lanigan, a new partner in Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing. “The Yates family has been competing against the best and winning for many years. We look forward to a long and productive association.”
Since Robert Yates Racing was formed in 1988, the now two-car team has posted 57 victories and 48 poles in addition to winning the 1999 NASCAR championship with Dale Jarrett. Current Nextel Cup drivers Ricky Rudd and David Gilliland pilot the #88 and #38 Ford Fusion’s, respectively. The agreement also includes RYR’s Busch program with Stephen Leicht, driver of the No. 90 Ford Fusion. Drivers such as Davey Allison, Ernie Irvan, Dale Jarrett, Ricky Rudd, Kenny Irwin, Elliott Sadler and David Gilliland have driven for RYR. RYR and NHR/NHLR have had close ties with Ford Motor Company for many years. RYR has been powered by Ford all 20 seasons. Of NHR/NHLR’s 101 wins and 103 poles, 55 of each have been earned with Ford power. In addition, four of their seven titles were powered by Ford (1993 – Nigel Mansell; 2004-2006 – Sebastien Bourdais).
“NASCAR Nextel Cup racing is rapidly moving, technology-wise, to engineering areas that Newman/Haas/Lanigan has years of experience with already,” said Dan Davis, director of Ford Racing Technology. “And Robert Yates Racing brings years of engine development and race craft in the sport that is invaluable to this operation. Put that expertise together, along with joint ownership that is clearly committed to winning, and we have a Ford program that will be a contender for years to come."(RYR PR)(7-29-2007)
- RYR to merge with Newman-Haas: Robert Yates Racing and Newman-Haas Racing will reveal on Friday its plans to merge, a source close to the situation confirmed to ESPN.com. A formal news conference has been set for that afternoon at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Actor Paul Newman, an avid racer and long-time team owner in open-wheel racing, and partner Carl Haas own the team currently leading the Champ Car series with driver Sebastien Bourdais, a three-time champion in the series. Yates last month at New Hampshire International said he had personally abandoned pursuit of a business partner, saying he had no debts and didn't need to get into a more pressure-packed situation answering to a partner's business demands. He did, however, say he would allow a head-hunting firm continue to look in that area. Like Robert Yates Racing, Newman-Haas has had deep ties with Ford.(ESPN.com)(7-25-2007)
- Sadler back with M&M's? As far as Elliott Sadler’s #19 car, the leading candidate is candymaker M&M’s, which currently sponsors David Gilliland and the #38 Robert Yates Racing Ford, a car Sadler used to drive. Sadler was exceptionally popular with M&M’s when he drove for Yates and sources said the company would love to work with the affable Virginia native again.(SPEEDtv.com)(7-16-2007)
- RYR presents check to Charlotte Police: A local race team said thank you Tuesday to the men and women in blue with a check honoring two slain Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officers. NASCAR team owner Robert Yates remembers the pain of losing a close friend. His son, Doug, grew up with CMPD Officer John Burnette, who was killed in the line of duty on 1993 with fellow Officer Anthony Nobles. At that time, Yates and his team donated $50,000 to the department's police benevolent fund. "I have a lot of respect for police officers," Yates said. And that respect motivated him to do it again. This time the team donated $40,000 in honor of Officers Sean Clark and Jeff Shelton, who were shot and killed earlier this year while responding to a call. We're fortunate we get to do what we love doing – racing,” Doug Yates said. “With M&M and Ford sponsoring us, we want to give back and that's why we're here." Trisha Norket, the mother of John Burnette, knows firsthand how much it hurts to lose a loved one. She says she's thankful for the donation in her son's honor 14 years ago and she knows the widows of Clark and Shelton are just as thankful now. “I always try to remember what would they have us to do and I have to believe in my heart that Jeff and Sean would say, ‘make this contribution to the police benevolent fund to help my brothers and sisters that are still here,’" she said. The police benevolent fund helps various departments within department.(News 14 Carolina). The donation is to help build the Shelton-Clark Memorial.(7-11-2007)
- Double M&M's schemes at Daytona: Robert Yates Racing teammates' #38-David Gilliland and #88-Ricky Rudd will be running special M&M's paint schemes in Saturday's Pepsi 400 at Daytona International Speedway this weekend. Gilliland and Team 38 welcome the return of a fan-favorite special paint scheme, the M&M'S Red, White and Blue Ford in recognition of the Fourth of July holiday. Rudd will also exchange his Snickers colors to sport the standard M&M'S scheme on his #88 Ford as the two teams unite under one brand for the race.(M&M's Motorsports PR)(7-6-2007)
- New York Investors Looking for Cup Teams: The buzz in the garage in New Hampshire is that at least two New York-based investment banking firms have been making the rounds among Nextel Cup teams, looking to invest in one or more teams, eventually taking a race team public with a stock offering. So far, there have been no takers among the NASCAR team owners. At least one of the investment firms has talked with multiple teams in the garage, including Robert Yates Racing [#38 & #88], Dale Earnhardt, Inc. [#1, #8, #15] and Roush Fenway Racing [#6, #16, #17, #26, #99], multiple sources said. The idea has been for the companies to make cash investments of upwards of $50 million in a team and then at some point sell their interests, perhaps by public stock offering. “We looked at their business plan and it didn’t make sense to us,” said Roush Fenway Racing President Geoff Smith, who confirmed his team had been contacted by a New York-based investment fund that he did not identify by name. Robert Yates talked extensively with the potential investors and reached the same conclusion. “You sit in a room with about 20 bankers and you spend about 18 hours in there with them and you realize that they didn’t contribute anything to the gross national product except maybe going to the bathroom,” said Yates, who also has entertained merger and/or partnership offers from Dale Earnhardt, Inc., Robby Gordon Motorsports and Hall of Fame Racing, among others, before deciding to go it alone. Another team principal who spoke on condition of anonymity Sunday morning at New Hampshire, said the team he works with was approached by investors, but chose not to get involved with them, either. “They had a ton of money, but they didn’t know anything at all about racing,” he said, adding the team was not in need of a cash infusion and would only consider an outside investor if that investor could add significant value to the team.(SPEEDtv.com)(7-2-2007)
- Yates Won't Sell Team: Robert Yates [#38 & #88] has broken off discussions with potential investors into Robert Yates Racing and will remain independent, focusing his efforts on improving the team's performance. And if he's not successful at the task, Yates could step away from the sport entirely, the car owner said Saturday morning at New Hampshire. "I pretty much sent a letter to everybody and said right now I'm not interested in selling or anybody investing," Yates said prior to Happy Hour practice. "I'm just going to try and focus on performance. … I'm pretty much really tired of spending too much time working on something that doesn't benefit anything. … Right now, the thing I don't need is money. The thing I need is performance, and I haven't found a person to bring me performance. That's what I'm looking for, just trying to focus on doing what I'm doing." And that means no co-owner, outside partner or investor, at least for now.(SPEEDtv.com)(6-30-2007)
- Gilliland wins West Series race at Infineon: #38-David Gilliland held off another second-generation Grand National Division West Series competitor, P.J. Jones, to capture his third career series win by 1.246 seconds in the Blue Lizard Australian Suncream 200 at Infineon Raceway. They were followed by road race specialist Boris Said in third. All three drivers are doing double duty on the twisting 1.99-mile road course this weekend, also competing in the Nextel Cup Series Toyota/Save Mart 350 on Sunday. Although Gilliland won the Bud Pole, it was 17-year-old Joey Logano who dashed into the early lead at Infineon on Saturday. It did not last long, however, as Gilliland took command on lap 3. Pit stops shuffled the lead positions through the midway point of the race, with Gilliland moving back into the lead on lap 35 and never relinquishing the top spot. Logano had worked his way back up to second later in the race, but his effort ended with engine failure on lap 55 [finished 32nd]. Jones assumed second, but could not get by Gilliland in the closing laps. Said finished third, followed by Eric Holmes and Justin Lofton.(Racingwest.com), Regan Smith, who will also drive in the Nextel Cup race started 16th and finished 31st.(6-24-2007)
- Stewart unhappy with Gilliland after Happy Hour incident: #20-Tony Stewart was none too pleased Saturday with #38-David Gilliland, who caused considerable damage to Stewart's Chevy during the final Nextel Cup practice prior to Sunday's Citizen's Bank 400 at Michigan. The accident occurred when Gilliland was headed to pit road in his #38 Ford at the end of a long run on old tires. Stewart was just coming out of the pits on new tires. "He checks up at the end of the straightaway, and we run into him," a frustrated Stewart said. "It's really, really easy to see it. They've got two different cameras views of it, and he never stuck his hand out of the window [to signal he was going into the pits]. It really screwed up a really good racecar for [Sunday]. It didn't need to happen. It shouldn't happen." Stewart said he was hoping NASCAR officials would talk to Gilliland about what happened.(NASCAR.com)(6-17-2007)
- Yates interested in Kyle Busch...and Kurt too: UPDATE: Add Robert Yates Racing [#38 and #88] to the list of teams interested in signing Kyle Busch to drive next season. "I've sent word through his agent [that I would like to talk to him]," RYR co-owner Robert Yates said on Thursday during a Ford function. "I'm very interested." Said Yates' son, Doug, "He would look good in a Ford." RYR not only wants Kyle, but his brother #2-Kurt. But Kurt Busch has three years remaining on his deal with Penske Racing, and according to his agent has no plans to leave. "That's flattering," said Kurt's agent, John Caponigro. "He's locked in at Penske. He's doing fine. He's looking forward to making the Chase this year and having lot of success at Penske Racing." Kyle became available on Wednesday when it was announced that Dale Earnhardt Jr. was signed to replace him at Hendrick Motorsports next season and that the 22-year-old Busch has been given his release from the final year of his deal in 2008. Bruce Kempton, who represents Kyle, said he's heard from just about every organization in the Nextel Cup garage. He said there had been no contact with RYR, but that his client was willing to listen to anyone. Among the teams other than RYR that have expressed an interest in Kyle are the Chevrolet teams of Dale Earnhardt Inc. and Ginn Racing. While Busch has driven Chevrolets since he left Ford's Roush Racing after the 2001 Truck Series season, he is not married to the manufacturer.(ESPN.com).(6-15-2007)
UPDATE: Robert Yates Racing [#38 & #88] co-owner Doug Yates wants Kyle Busch in his team's fold, but that might not be the next addition to the team. When asked if the Yates family was close to adding a partner/investor, Doug Yates said: "Yeah. It won't be long." The new investor is not expected to have control of the team, which will still be run by Doug and his father, Robert, according to sources familiar with the situation.(SceneDaily.com)(6-16-2007)
- Rudd and Gilliland to visit home of M&M's: On Thursday, June 7th, #88-Ricky Rudd and #38-David Gilliland will visit the Masterfoods USA headquarters in Hackettstown, NJ where M&M’s® are produced. They will be joined by the crew members of both teams and will tour the facility as well as meet with associates at the plant.(RYR PR) - cool place, Jayski lived in Hacketstown from 89-91, in the apts right accross the street from the plant, smelled like chocolate quite a bit.(6-7-2007)
- RYR site returns: after months of fielding questions about what happened to the Robert Yates Racing [#38, #88], have an answer....it's back...at ryr.com. Been told It should be fully functional in the next few days.(6-1-2007)
- RYR re-signs with Ford for 5 years UPDATE: Robert Yates has signed a five-year extension with the Ford, he told ESPN.com today. There will be a formal announcement on Friday at Dover International Raceway. "What it says to me is that Ford intends to win on Sundays and Mondays, and they're committed," Yates said. "We're happy they're happy with us. It's nice we have signed the thing." This ends any speculation that Robert Yates Racing was looking elsewhere [rumors with DEI/Chevy, and also Toyota]. What the five-year deal offers Yates is some stability and credibility as he continues talks with potential business partners. "The fact is, it's organizational racing now and not individual racing," Yates said. "We have been talking to different people and they ask, 'What manufacturer are you with? How strong is that? How long term is it?' [This contract] puts a lot to bed. We have a good relationship with Ford, and we continue to." Clearly, Yates is upbeat about the future. He said his team is financially healthy with "zero debt and quite a lot of money in the bank," he said. "I'm OK, but what I want to do is race and win," Yates said. There was a much-publicized flirtation between Robert Yates Racing and Dale Earnhardt Inc., about a month ago, but there was an obvious conflict -- Yates had always been a Ford devotee, and DEI owner Teresa Earnhardt has made it clear she has deep Chevrolet ties she is unlikely to break.(ESPN.com)(5-31-2007)
UPDATE: Ford Racing Technology announced today that it has re-signed Robert Yates Racing to a contract that will keep the family-owned team sporting the blue oval for at least the next five years. “Robert Yates Racing is synonymous with Ford,” said Dan Davis, director, Ford Racing Technology. “We’ve celebrated the joy of winning races and championships with them, in addition to feeling the frustration that this sport can dish out. The main thing is that we’ve gone through all of those times together as loyal partners. We’re thrilled to have this deal behind us and now we can look forward to continuing getting Robert and his team back among the NASCAR elite.”
The agreement continues a 19-year relationship that began when Yates became a car owner in 1988. Since then, his teams have won 57 Nextel Cup Series races, including the Daytona 500 three times, and one series championship in 1999. “We’re talking to sponsors and they want to know what product and what kind of support we get from our manufacturer, so this is huge. This deal is important because it plays a big role in what you’re doing to improve your operation,” said Robert Yates.(Ford Racing)(6-1-2007)
- Toyota: Gibbs? Penske merge with Waltrip? Yates? Toyota, sources said, has approached the Gibbs team with a proposal to leave Chevrolet, which would give it #20-Tony Stewart, #11-Denny Hamlin and #18-J.J. Yeley. Gibbs’ management doesn’t appear to be that interested, but the offer hasn’t been rejected, according to team sources. Penske [#2, #12], who has been with just about every manufacturer in racing over the years and who is one of the world’s biggest Toyota dealers, could be making the move to Toyota for next year. According to sources close to the situation, Penske could be looking at a merger with Michael Waltrip’s struggling Toyota operation. And there is speculation that Robert and Doug Yates [#38, #88] may be willing to listen to Toyota offers, even though they have long-standing ties with Ford.(Winston Salem Journal)(5-31-2007)
- Shrek back on the #38 at LMS: On this Memorial Day weekend, as the nation pays tribute to our heroes in the Armed Forces, RYR co-owner Doug Yates is asking his team to remember two local Charlotte heroes who lost their lives in the line of duty, Officers Jeff Shelton and Sean Clark of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg police department. A native of Charlotte, Yates is donating a portion of Sunday’s race winnings from the #38 Team to assist with the re-building of two Charlotte-area parks, which will be dedicated as memorials to the officers. Driver David Gilliland is hoping to score a solid finish in Sunday’s race in support of Yates’ charitable contribution. Joining Gilliland again this weekend are the stars of this week’s top rated box office flick, Shrek the Third, who return to the quarter panels of the M&M’S Ford after an abbreviated ride in last Saturday’s Nextel Open. Leading the efforts in the Charlotte area in raising funds, goods and services to contribute to the building of the memorials is the crew from the Ace & TJ Show, which can be heard locally in Charlotte on its flagship station, KISS 95.1FM. Logo on to www.acetj.com for more information on where to send donations, how to volunteer and further details regarding the plans and locations of the parks scheduled to be rebuilt.(RYR PR), see an image of the scheme on my #38 Team Schemes page.(5-23-2007)
- RYR gets engineer back, forming test team: Long-time team engineer Kevin Buskirk returned to the Robert Yates Racing [#38, #88] fold last week after a stint at Richard Childress Racing and will play a key role in getting the team back up to speed. Also in the works is a dedicated RYR test team, which should be especially beneficial in helping the team catch up in Car of Tomorrow races.(SPEEDtv.com)(5-20-2007)
- Shrek scheme for Gilliland in Nextel Open: Usually M&M’S driver David Gilliland has a strong supporting cast on his #38 Ford with the iconic M&M’S Characters, Red and Yellow. This weekend the list grows as Gilliland welcomes Shrek, Donkey and Puss
in Boots from the upcoming DreamWorks release “Shrek the Third” which opens in theaters on May 18. In support of the highly anticipated movie release, Masterfoods USA has introduced “Ogre-Sized” Peanut Butter M&M’S. For a limited time only, fans can
get swamped with peanut butter in a colorful mix of candies inspired by the green guy himself. Gilliland hopes instead to get swamped in a battle for the win in the Nextel Open in hopes of transferring to Saturday night’s main event, the Nextel All-Star Challenge.(RYR/Elevation Group PR), see an image on the #18 Team Schemes page(5-17-2007)
- DEI/RYR possible merger 'different' now: Doug Yates, co-owner of Robert Yates Racing, said talks about a merger or partnership with Dale Earnhardt Inc. are part of just once scenario his team is considering. “We’re trying to do whatever we can do to get our team as strong as we can get it, so we’ve looked at a lot of situations, DEI being one of them,” Yates said. “They’ve talked to us and we’ve talked to them, plus there is other stuff. We haven’t gotten anywhere with that in particular. Actually, we’re getting really close to some things that we think are going to help our team take that next step and make it strong for a long time to come. Hopefully, we can put some of that stuff together.” Yates said this week’s announcement that Dale Earnhardt Jr. will leave DEI at season’s end changes that potential equation. “I think looking at DEI without Dale Jr. is a different situation,” Yates said. “It doesn’t mean that it’s any better or any worse, it’s just different. ...I think it’s going to take a little while for everybody to realize how big a move that was for the sport and what that means to the sport and what that means to DEI and Dale Jr. going forward.” Yates said that his team is committed to running Fords and he does not see that changing. If DEI would not shift from Chevrolets, he said that “is a deal breaker, I would guess.”(Thatsracin)(5-12-2007)
- Earnhardt Jr.: 'We'll be driving Chevys' UPDATE: #8-Dale Earnhardt Jr. nearly started laughing Friday and said, 'Nah,' when asked if it was really possible he could drive a Ford next season. Dale Earnarhdt Inc., which is in negotiations with Earnhardt Jr. for a contract extension and also must sign a new dale with Chevrolet, has had preliminary talks with other manufacturers and also has talked about a possible merger with Robert Yates Racing. But Earnhardt Jr. couldn't see himself driving anything but a Chevy. As part of his negotiations with DEI, he wants majority ownership of the team. "We'll be driving Chevys, I'll promise you that," Earnhardt Jr. said following qualifying Friday for the Crown Royal/Jim Stewart 400.(SceneDaily.com)(5-5-2007)
UPDATE: The latest on the Dale Earnhardt Jr. saga: The “Robert Yates” NASCAR brand will remain a Ford brand, even in any merger with Dale Earnhardt Inc., according to sources familiar with the Yates-DEI negotiations. However Earnhardt, who has been the heart of DEI, insisted he will be in Chevrolets again next season, no matter what. Those two facts make the DEI-Yates negotiations peculiar, particularly since Earnhardt has been negotiating a new contract with DEI owner Teresa Earnhardt, with Dale Earnhardt Jr. demanding controlling interest in DEI. If DEI officials are negotiating a possible switch to Ford, then Earnhardt would clearly appear to be not involved with those talks. Which would mean if Yates and DEI do come to terms, it would almost certainly be a Yates-DEI merger without Earnhardt in the mix. There has been rampant speculation the past few days that Earnhardt may be moving to either Richard Childress’ Chevy team or Rick Hendrick’s Chevy team.(Winston Salem Journal)(5-7-2007)
- Ford Racing Aware of DEI-RYR Merger Talk: In response to media reports from this past weekend, Ford Racing confirmed it is fully aware of merger talks that have taken place between Dale Earnhardt Inc. (DEI) and Robert Yates Racing (RYR) officials. “Ford is fully committed to Robert Yates Racing for the long-term, and they have assured us that are similarly committed to Ford,” said Kevin Kennedy, Ford Racing Technology Communications Manager. “Robert and Doug have been in contact with Ford about the nature of the discussions. We have a valued partnership with them, and they are keeping us informed of those discussions like a true partner would.
We fully expect they will remain with Ford for many, many years.” Robert Yates Racing and Ford have a relationship that goes back to the formation of the race team in the late 1980s, and Dan Davis, director of Ford Racing Technology, has repeatedly stated that the manufacturer is fully committed to bringing RYR back to the top of the field. Media reports this past weekend also stated that Ford had been in discussions with DEI about a switch from Chevrolet to Ford for the 2008 season. Davis has repeatedly said that Ford is interested in adding championship-level teams to its Cup roster. “We definitely have been talking with DEI. Truthfully, we’ve been having informal talks with them for several years,” said Kennedy. “We have not yet made a formal offer to them, but we know that their GM contract is up at the end of the year. We had some discussions with them, and we’ve made it clear that we’d love to have them in our program.”(Ford Racing)(5-1-2007)
- DEI to buy RYR? UPDATE 4: It was reported on SPEED's NASCAR Raceday that Dale Earnhardt Inc (DEI) is interested in buying Robert Yates Racing (RYR) and RYR is interested in joining forces with DEI. It was also reported that the teams would end up being in the Chevy camp.(4-29-2007)
UPDATE: In attempts to strengthen its teams and expand to four cars, Dale Earnhardt Inc. [#'s 1,8,15] has had preliminary discussions with Robert Yates Racing [#38, #88] about a partnership, as well as Ford Motor Company and another manufacturer, DEI executive team member John Story confirmed Sunday morning. While the company also is in the midst of contract negotiations with NASCAR's most popular driver, Dale Earnhardt Jr., DEI is working toward trying to solidify its future. That means getting the finances and the technological support it needs from a manufacturer and working toward fielding a fourth team by 2008 or 2009, said Story, who oversees sales, marketing and communications activities at DEI. What would be more startling would be the potential move to Ford or another manufacturer considering Chevrolet's long relationship with team founder Dale Earnhardt. The Chevrolet deal is not contingent on Earnhardt Jr. remaining at DEI, Story said. Yates said his team would remain Ford. Story said that talks with Yates could continue even if DEI remains with Chevrolet.(in part from SceneDaily.com)(4-29-2007)
UPDATE 2: With Robert Yates Racing and Dale Earnhardt, Inc. discussing a potential merger, how would that affect Yates-Roush Engines, which makes the motors that power all of the Ford NASCAR Nextel Cup teams? RYR co-owner Doug Yates was adamant that his team will not switch to Chevrolet power no matter what, and Roush Fenway Racing President Geoff Smith said he hopes any deal will build up the Ford NASCAR Nextel Cup effort. “We’re aware that he’s marketing his teams,” Smith said of Robert Yates prior to Sunday’s Talladega race. “We have a joint engine business that’s affected by the number of customers that we have. We want to see the Ford number of teams remain at least at its current level for the benefit of the engine business and for the competitive benefit for Ford Motor Co.”(SPEEDtv.com)(4-30-2007)
UPDATE 3: Dale Earnhardt, Inc., [DEI] will move to four Nextel Cup Series teams by 2009, be it through the acquisition of another team or the addition of a fourth team in-house, team executive John Story said Sunday at Talladega Superspeedway. Story said DEI has been in discussions with Robert Yates Racing for four-to-six weeks about a partnership, but cautioned that those talks are preliminary and that no documentation has been exchanged between the teams. If DEI were to acquire Yates, one of the two teams would have to forsake its manufacturer. Yates, a Ford flagship team for nearly two decades, would move to Chevrolet; or DEI, whose founder, Dale Earnhardt, won seven championships in Chevrolets, would move to Ford. "The only proposal we have right now for a manufacturer next year is from Chevrolet," Story said. "Teresa [Earnhardt] has been tremendously loyal to Chevrolet for a lot of years. We've had some conversation with a couple other manufacturers. They've called to inquire what our contract situation was. We told them, in fairness, we are going to sit down and exhaust our options with Chevrolet first, and if the opportunity came up we'd talk to somebody else. We haven't seen anything in writing from anybody else." RYR president Doug Yates said they'd rather stay in Fords, and that Ford Racing officials see a DEI merger as a way to get Ford back to prominence in Nextel Cup. But he didn't rule out a manufacturer switch. How this impacts Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s contract negotiations isn't known, but Story said a deal with Ford and RYR isn't contingent on Earnhardt Jr. staying at DEI. Earnhardt Jr. wants controlling interest in DEI, but Chevrolet officials want to keep him.(ESPN.com)(4-30-2007)
UPDATE 4 Toyota denies talks: Toyota’s Lee White says his company was not involved in any talks with DEI: “We have not had any conversations with Dale Earnhardt Jr. “There is a tremendous amount of both equity and liability involved with Dale Earnhardt Incorporated and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet has such equity built into Dale Earnhardt Jr. and that particular race team - that equity is great for the bigger picture and the health of our sport. Right now Toyota is not ready to take on the liability that would come with that scenario.”(Winston Salem Journal)(4-30-2007)
- Dark M&M's paint for Gilliland at Talladega: #38-David Gilliland welcomes the return of M&M’S Dark Chocolate Candies. In fact, Gilliland made his debut for Team #38 in the M&M’S Dark Ford last August at Michigan International Speedway. The special paint scheme features the same color purple featured on the packaging for M&M’S Dark Chocolate Candies as well as “Miss Green,” marking her first ‘on-track’ appearance of 2007. M&M’S Dark Chocolate Candies were permanently introduced last year after being made available for a limited time during 2005. M&M’S Dark Chocolate Candies are identified with the word “Dark” printed underneath the “m” on many of the dark chocolate candies in the bag. The candies boast a smooth and delicious dark chocolate center in the same Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, Orange and Brown color candy shells.(M&M's Motorsports PR)(4-26-2007)
- Yates and NFL Owner to team up? UPDATE denied: Robert Yates [team owner #38, #88] is reported to be looking at a possible deal with the NFL's New England Patriots, run by Robert Kraft. The Kraft family is considered one of the most powerful families in Boston, and Robert Kraft is listed by Forbes as worth $1.1 billion, putting him No. 698 in the world.(Winston Salem Journal)(4-16-2007)
UPDATE: ESPN2's NASCAR Now's Angelique S. Chengelis reported on Tuesday show that she talked to the New England Patriots spokesman Stacy James who said there is no truth to the rumor and news to Bob Kraft.(4-18-2007)
- Yates also looking for a financial partner: Add Robert Yates Racing to the ever-expanding list of Nextel Cup Series owners actively courting investment partners. RYR president Doug Yates said Saturday that he and his father have been pursing investors for six months. They've gotten some inquiries but nothing solid, Yates said. Among those investors with which Yates has spoken are the Maloof brothers, owners of the Sacramento Kings NBA franchise and the Palms Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. "We talked to them last year," Yates said. "Nice group of guys. Nice family. But they felt like, at the time, they were focused on their business. They have a lot of businesses, so that's a name that's come around. But there are a lot of people out there interested. We know how popular the sport is and people from the outside can look and see, 'Hey, this has some value.'" Yates said the most viable method for Nextel Cup teams to hold value is franchising, and feels it's time NASCAR implemented a franchise system. "At some point, I think NASCAR has got to start looking at franchises, and making these teams worth something," Yates said. "Right now it's a shame -- [a team] goes from something to nothing really quick. It's not really fair to the people who have helped grow the sport." Richard Childress was the first owner to sell a stake of his team to an investment group, and the performance of his team has improved tremendously since. Next up was Jack Roush, who made a high-profile sale of 50 percent his team to Boston Red Sox owner John Henry's Fenway Sports Group. Ray Evernham is searching for an investment partner and Petty said Friday at Martinsville Speedway that Petty Enterprises is, too.(ESPN.com)(3-31-2007)
- Yates still sees challenges in Unleaded Fuel usage: Doug Yates [#38, #88 Roberts Yates Racing Fords] has had a chance to pull apart and examine the engines from the first two races in the unleaded era, and he sees some challenges ahead. In fact, Yates said, his engines came within, say, 10 laps of wholesale failure in unleaded's debut at California. "We came back from Fontana and every engine we had was almost broken," said Yates, chief of Roush-Yates Engines, which produces all motors for Ford's NASCAR fleet. "Some were broken and just didn't fail on the track. The 21 car [Ken Schrader/Wood Brothers] broke. #99-Carl Edwards's engine was broken and he didn't even know it. It must have broken coming to the checkered flag or on the way to the garage. "I've talked to the other engine builders in the garage, and they say this is a way bigger challenge than we all thought it was going to be." NASCAR has used unleaded gas in the Craftsman Truck and Busch Series for a few years [actually started in 2006]. It decreed last year that unleaded would become the mandate beginning at California this year. The California and Las Vegas races were the laboratories. Yates said he saw few problems with valves and valve seats, which had been thought to be most vulnerable with the new fuel. Lead has lubricating properties, and unleaded fuel deprives the engine of much of that inherent lubricity. But it goes much deeper than that. "What people don't understand is anything you change in these engines is a big deal," Yates explained. "I'm getting tired of hearing people on TV saying, 'Oh, it's just unleaded fuel.' It's a very hard change for the engine guys. The initial thing was valves and valve seats; that continues to be a problem. But what people don't understand is they reduced the octane from 112 to 98. Whenever you reduce octane, the fuel burns faster, so now you're microwelding rings, breaking pistons, having [fuel] distribution issues. It used to be when you lowered the octane, you lowered the compression. Well, obviously in racing, you're not going to lower the compression, so the tuning of the engine is probably the toughest thing." Doug, son of legendary team owner Robert Yates, studied engineering at North Carolina State, and he admits the change to unleaded has been a major mental puzzle. "I should have gone for my master's," he said with a smile.(source: Ford Racing site)(3-18-2007)
- Shrek scheme for Gilliland: #38-David Gilliland is scheduled to run a M&M's/Shrek paint scheme in the Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe's Motor Speedway in May, see an image of the scheme on my #38 Team Schemes page.(2-12-2007)
- Gilliland wins the pole for the Daytona 500: #38-David Gilliland won the Budweiser Pole for the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway with a speed of 186.320mph for his 2nd career pole and first pole at Daytona. Gilliland's teammate, #88-Ricky Rudd will start 2nd, on the outside pole. The rest of the top-five are #40-David Stremme, #42-Juan Montoya and #6-David Ragan, but only the top two drivers are guaranteed their spots after qualifying Sunday. Three drivers not in the top-35 owners points [from 2006] are guaranteed to make the Daytona 500: #60-Boris Said, #14-Sterling Marlin and #70 Johnny Sauter. Plus #44-Dale Jarrett is in the race for sure as he is first on the list to use the past champion provisional. #00-David Reutimann was the fastest Toyota, 15th fastest. See the qualifying results on my Daytona Starting Lineup Qualifying/Grid Page.(2-11-2007)
- Yates to turn over Cup team to son Doug in 2008: Robert Yates [owner of #38 & #88 teams in Cup] plans to turn over the running of his Nextel Cup organization to his son, Doug, after this season. This will be Yates' 40th season in the industry since beginning with Holman-Moody in 1967. "We're giving it a shot so this year I can quit while I'm ahead," Yates said on Saturday at Daytona International Speedway. "Hopefully, I can quit and get in the rocking chair and watch Doug do what he's going to do for the next 20 years." Yates added that Jack Roush's decision to sell 50% of Roush Racing to John Henry and Fenway Sports Group in Boston -- an official announcement will be made Wednesday -- will only strengthen the engine program he shares with Roush. Yates said he will own 50% of the engine program, with Roush and Fenway Sports Group getting 25% each.(ESPN.com)(2-11-2007)
- Rudd helps out Gilliland at Daytona testing: #88-Ricky Rudd was a surprise visitor to Daytona International Speedway, today. He ran last week’s NASCAR test with Robert Yates Racing, then returned to help teammate #38-David Gilliland learn his way around the 2.5-mile track. Rudd, a 23-time Cup winner, is back for his second stint with RYR after sitting out last season. He and Gilliland took turns in Gilliland’s #38 M&Ms Ford Fusion, each running a few laps before huddling over computers to compare notes and analyze data. It was a classic case of a graying veteran with 108 combined DIS starts helping a newbie whose next speedway start will be his first. “I’m here to offer help and advice, but mostly to give drafting help,” Rudd said. “The 500 will be his first start here, and drafting’s awfully important. David won the pole last fall at Talladega, so he can get around big tracks. But Daytona changes so much during runs. He’s got to decide if he wants the car a little snug or a little loose, and I think I can help with that.” Rudd, who turned 50 years old last fall, is impressed by his 30-year-old teammate. “He’s going to be awfully good,’’ he said of Gilliland. “Some people might think Robert took a chance because David’s gotten in some wrecks and all. But he’s fast, and I’d rather have someone who’s fast. You can always calm them down, but you can’t always make them fast.” Rudd has already helped smooth Gilliland’s learning curve. Specifically, he showed his teammate that, yes, DIS is bumpy and, no, it’s not just you and, yes, this line is better than that one. “You can tell in a rental car that the track’s bumpy,’’ Gilliland said, “but never having raced here, I didn’t know if it was me or our car or the lines I was taking. Ricky drove my car for a while, then came back and said, ‘No, the car definitely needs to go over the bumps better.’ That’s something I wouldn’t have known without him being here. “As a guy coming here for the first time, there’s nothing I’d rather have more than a teammate with that many starts. He’s already helped me a lot, and I look forward to working with him everywhere we go. He’s been there for any questions, so I’ll lean on him as much as I can. All the little suggestions he’s made will add up to a lot.’’(Ford Racing)(1-17-2007)
- No Crew Changes at the #48, but new spotter UPDATE: hearing that the #48 Lowe's / Hendrick Motorsports Chevy team and driver Jimmie Johnson expect no changes to the over-the-wall championship team when Nextel Cup testing begins next week in Daytona with the exception of spotter Earl Barban who is no longer with the team [no idea what team he is going to]. Crew Chief Chad Knuas is reviewing resumes for a new spotter.(1-4-2007)
UPDATE: hearing Barban will be #38-David Gilliland's spotter in 2007.(1-5-2007)
