Yates to make decision on No. 88 before Homestead

By Mark Ashenfelter

Sunday, November 12, 2006

BAMBI MATTILA/NASCAR SCENE

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AVONDALE, Ariz. - Robert Yates said Saturday that the fate of his No. 88 team will be known prior to heading to Homestead, Fla., next week for the Nextel Cup season finale.

While Yates would provide no specifics, Dale Earnhardt Inc.'s Steve Hmiel said there have been negotiations between the two entities. The negotiations have centered on DEI's purchasing the team's shop and equipment, as DEI has long been looking for a way to expand its capacity. The team will begin fielding a third full-time Nextel Cup Series team when Paul Menard moves to Cup next season.

Hmiel said the negotiations have not involved simply buying the rights to the No. 88, which would bring with it the owner points earned by Dale Jarrett this season. If, however, DEI bought the shop and equipment, with Yates fielding only the No. 38 on his own, DEI could acquire the No. 88's owner points as part of a larger purchase.

"If we can have more capacity, the number would be a bonus," Hmiel said at Phoenix International Raceway. "We've heard Team Red Bull has made an offer to buy the number, but we're not looking to buy just the number."

A number of obstacles remain, as RYR fields Fords and DEI runs Chevrolets, so it would have to be determined whether the shop was split into two separate entities; or whether RYR ran on its own or struck a deal with another Ford operation, perhaps Wood Brothers Racing.

That would leave Robert Yates Racing with just the No. 38 team next season. RYR has fielded two teams on a full-time basis since 1996, but is losing both driver Dale Jarrett and sponsor UPS from its No. 88 after the season.

Yates systematically danced around the issue on Saturday, saying only that he had four options to consider. Talk in the garage is that a decision by Yates must come by Tuesday.

"I guess my No. 1 deal is my 88 team, the guys and their jobs. That's what I'm most concerned about right now," Yates said. "I would flip a coin, but it would have to have four sides on it. I've got to make a decision. I have to sit down and talk with them and see what they would like to do and that will probably weigh a lot into what I do.

"If they all say, 'I'm out of here, we're not going to be here,' then that's a different scenario."

Yates said he hopes to keep the crew assembled, but he also gave them a vote of confidence, which is something other owners may consider if they contemplate hiring current RYR employees.

Yates, repeating what he said a week earlier at Texas, again reiterated that he could maintain a two-car team if he takes on a partner. Yates said the potential of taking on a co-owner only recently presented itself.

"I'm looking for the [best deal]," Yates said. "I'm looking for a 10, that's a win. I haven't seen anything better than a four until recently [when I] got a seven [with the potential co-owner]. I'm holding out for a 10, but if a 10 doesn't come, it's probably going to be a seven."

Yates said fielding just one car is an option, especially after crew chief Todd Parrott reminded Yates that he once fielded his two cars out of separate shops.

"It can be done with the right focus," Yates said. "... I hadn't thought about that option, but Todd's been right about a lot of stuff. That's one of my options."

And whether or not a deal is struck with DEI, Yates said he'll still be in the sport next year with the No. 38 team and driver David Gilliland.

"Right now I do plan to have the 38 with Robert Yates [as the] sole owner," Yates said.

If Yates elects to sell only the No. 88 and its owner points, but not the shop and its equipment, it would be similar to the deal made last offseason when Michael Waltrip Racing struck a deal to acquire the owner points from the No. 77 Cup team being closed by Penske-Jasper Racing. The formation of Jasper-Waltrip Racing assured Waltrip of a starting spot in the first five races.

Guaranteed spots for finishing in the top 35 of this year's owner points will be more valued than ever next year as there will be an influx of new, well-financed Cup teams with Toyota's move into the series.

Richie Gilmore, Dale Earnhardt Inc.'s director of motorsports, wasn't at Phoenix and was unavailable for comment on Saturday.

Yates said he's already delayed the decision as long as he can.

"Somehow or another, you keep [delaying] when things don't get lined up the way you want them," Yates said. "I think when we go to Homestead everybody will know where they're headed when the race is over. That's my goal."