page_title: Yates Racing
section_title: Car No. 28 history
hierarchical_section_title: Yates Racing / Cup Series / Car No. 28 history
caption_attribution_description: 05/08/08 Darlington, South Carolina USA. Travis Kvapil finished 8th. Credit: Autostock
context_page_description: Yates Racing was an American stock car racing team that competed in NASCAR through the 2009 season, after which it merged into Richard Petty Motorsports. Previously known as Robert Yates Racing, the team was owned by Doug Yates, who has officially owned the team since his father Robert's retirement on December 1, 2007. The Yates family owned the team since purchasing it from Harry Ranier and J. T. Lundy in October 1988.
  The team was noted for its strong engine program and its success on superspeedways. Throughout most of its history, the team fielded Ford cars numbered 28, 38 and 88, although in its final season it fielded the number 98.
context_section_description: Davey Allison (1989-1993)
  After purchasing the assets of Ranier-Lundy Racing in October 1988, Robert Yates' first driver was Davey Allison, who had driven for the Ranier-Lundy banner since 1987 (his rookie season), and drove the No. 28 Havoline-sponsored Ford from Yates' takeover of the team until mid-1993, racking up 15 wins and twice finishing 3rd in points. He was tragically killed in a helicopter crash at Talladega Superspeedway in July 1993.
  Ernie Irvan (1993-1994)
  After Allison's death Robby Gordon drove at Talladega later in July and Lake Speed drove in the next three races. Ernie Irvan was then brought over from Morgan-McClure Motorsports to become Allison's permanent replacement. Irvan took over on Labor Day weekend at Darlington, winning at Charlotte and Martinsville before the season concluded.
  In 1994, tragedy again struck the #28 team. After winning three races, Irvan crashed heavily in a practice session at Michigan and suffered life-threatening injuries. He would not race again in 1994 and it was uncertain whether he would ever return to racing. In the meantime, Kenny Wallace was brought in to take over the Havoline Ford for the remainder of the 1994 season.
  Dale Jarrett (1995)
  Needing a full-time driver for the 1995 season due to the uncertainty surrounding Irvan's recovery, Yates signed Dale Jarrett away from Joe Gibbs Racing to replace him for the 1995 season. Jarrett won one race at Pocono Raceway and eventually finished the season 13th in the points standings. Irvan would eventually return for three races driving a second car numbered 88 for Yates.
  Ernie Irvan (1996-1997)
  Irvan returned to the #28 in 1996 and won at New Hampshire. Irvan won at Michigan in June 1997, the same track he almost died on three years earlier. Irvan left at the end of the 1997 season to drive for MB2 Motorsports.
  Kenny Irwin Jr. (1998-1999)
  Kenny Irwin, Jr. drove the No. 28 car for Robert Yates in 1998 and 1999. Despite winning Rookie of the Year honors in 1998, Irwin failed to find victory lane in his two seasons. 
  Ricky Rudd (2000-2002)
  The next season, Ricky Rudd joined the team after his own Rudd Performance Motorsports team was sold. He would go on to drive 3 seasons in the Havoline-sponsored Ford, from 2000 to 2002, and won his first race for the team in 2001 at Pocono in June after going winless since 1998. Rudd drove the No. 28 to Victory Lane two additional times, the September Richmond race in 2001 and his final victory at Infineon in June 2002,  and finished in the top ten in the standings all 3 seasons, including 4th in 2001, his 2nd highest career points finish. Rudd left the team to join Wood Brothers Racing in 2003, while Yates hired the Wood's previous driver, Elliott Sadler and Robert Yates switched from No. 28 to No. 38 along with sponsorship from Mars, Inc.
  Travis Kvapil (2008-2009)
  Robert Yates would resurrect the 28 for the 2008 season, however. Yates made the switch after giving the rights to the No. 88 to Hendrick Motorsports for Dale Earnhardt, Jr.. Travis Kvapil would take over driving duties after Ricky Rudd's departure at the end of 2007. Before the season started, he, along with his teammate, David Gilliland, did not have full-time sponsorship on either of their Yates Racing Fords. However, for the Daytona 500, K&N Filters sponsored his team. Two weeks later, at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, during the UAW-Dodge 400, Kvapil scored an eighth-place finish, giving him his third top-10 of his career, in an unsponsored ride. Later that week, Zaxby's decided to sponsor the No. 28 team for the next race, which was the Kobalt Tools 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. A couple of races later, in the Aaron's 499, he finished in the sixth position with a one race sponsorship deal from Northern Tool and Equipment, which gave him his career best finish in the Cup Series. Just a few weeks after his career best run, Kvapil picked up another top-10 finish, this time at Darlington Raceway, during the Dodge Challenger 500. Despite the lack of a full-time sponsorship, Travis Kvapil and the No. 28 had a very respectable season
caption: Travis Kvapil in the No. 28 in 2008
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