With Labonte, Yates suddenly a player
Keep an eye on Bobby Labonte. He may not challenge Jimmie and Carl for a Cup title, but don't be surprised to see him in Victory Lane.
PEARISBURG, Va. -- OK, OK, settle down Six … D2D is back.
Here are a handful of random preseason thoughts amid the incessant clanging from the carpet installers who've infiltrated my childhood home, and a wound-up 3-year-old, bored plumb to tears as I type, trying to assist them.
Marty,
Reading news that Bobby Labonte is going to be driving the 96 for HoF with Ask.com as a sponsor, and HoF has a new partnership with Yates.
I don't understand how this partnership is going to differ from the one they had with JGR and how this will put Bobby in more competitive cars than they had before. Can you shed some light here, brother?
-- Jay in Denver
It's quite different, Jay. First of all, Yates Fords -- and those who prepare them -- are better than Hall of Fame Toyotas. Not hatin', just sayin' … the Hall of Fame/Joe Gibbs Racing alliance was just that -- an alliance.
Gibbs gave them chassis and engines and left the rest to HoF and its people. They weren't the same team under the same roof with a symbiotic relationship toward the same goal, no matter who tells you differently.
Bobby Labonte now drives for Yates Racing. The No. 96 may say Hall of Fame, but it's a Yates car, directed by Doug Yates and Max Jones. That, in turn, means it's a Roush car. That also means Labonte has the best engine in NASCAR. (At least one of the best.) He won't be an afterthought. He is unequivocally the focal point of the company.
Simply put: 2009 will be Bobby Labonte's best chance to win since he left Gibbs.
He has plenty to prove, and the equipment and infrastructure to do so. Yates and Jones must be giddier than schoolgirls at a Hannah Montana show. I like Travis Kvapil and David Gilliland plenty. They're great guys. But Yates hasn't had a driver of Labonte's pedigree since Dale Jarrett flew the coop.
They also get something they've not had in a few years -- green paper painted with former presidents' faces. Between Menard's, Ask.com and Ford Motor Co., they're well-funded.
This development is an industry game-changer.
I'm not saying Labonte will immediately run with Jimmie Johnson and Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch. But I am saying it wouldn't surprise me one iota to see the No. 96 in Victory Lane this year.
Yates is suddenly a player.
Where are you, Mary?
Have you stopped doing D2D? I was sure you would weigh in on the Petty/Gillett merger. So what is your take?
-- Keith Beverley, Whiteville, N.C.
I'm still here, Keith. The question is where's the "t" in my name?
Just kidding, man. I can't talk. I'm Captain Typo. I digress …
I'm good with the GEM/Petty union, mainly because it ensures the Petty name remains in the sport and keeps "The King" and his brand visible. It is an essential industry brand and transcends the garage. It's been depressing enough to see it wither, much less go away entirely.
with Marty Smith |
|---|
|
Do you have a question for ESPN NASCAR analyst Marty Smith? Go to Smith's SportsNation page to submit your question or comment for Marty, and check back for his Friday column in which he will provide the answers! Ask Marty |
The merger has potential to re-establish Petty as a competitive brand again, too. That wasn't the case when they stood alone, or even after the Boston Ventures acquisition. They needed help terribly in the competitive arena.
I've spoken with Kasey Kahne many times throughout the preseason regarding his team, and he is extremely confident that he and crew chief Kenny Francis are going to surprise this year. Few folks are paying them much mind, given a difficult 2008 season that looked good on paper -- wins in the Coca-Cola 600 and at Pocono, and the All-Star Race -- but wasn't so good.
It'll be interesting to watch how the 19 soap opera unfolds, too. Will Elliott Sadler be a lame duck, or will everyone put their differences aside for the greater good? If I were Sadler, it'd take me a long time to forgive and forget. Then again, he has no choice.
Maybe "The King" will just look at those boys and say, "Boys, shut up and race."
Old school. Love it.
Song of the week: "Love your love the most." Eric Church.
I know, I know. You'd think I was Church's publicist as much I write about him. But, man, I can't get enough of his new stuff.
Dangit, I wish I wrote this song. How good is this?
Yes, I love good, cold beer,
And mustard on my fries.
I love a good, loud honky tonk,
That rocks on Friday nights.
And, hell yes, I love my truck,
But I want you to know …
Honey, I love your love the most.
Man, I love how Red Man tastes,
And damn I love my NASCAR race,
Any song sung by George Strait, is country at its best.
I love scuffed-up cowboy boots,
And broke-in, tore-up jeans,
And four-wheel-drives, eight-point bucks
And rocky road ice cream.
And, hell yes, I love my dog
And Jack D in my Coke.
But, honey, I love your love the most.
Really, I wish I wrote that song.
Hey Marty …
Quick question: Any news on Patrick Carpentier this year? Last I heard was he might run the Nationwide Series full time. I personally think he got a bum rap and is a good driver. Running the Nationwide Series is good because he stays in NASCAR, sort of, but I believe he should be in Sprint Cup. Keep up the good work!
-- Jimmy Archibald, Streamwood, Ill.
Carpentier's agent, Robert Desrosiers, told me in an e-mail that they're in talks with "a few" Truck and Nationwide Series teams, but have nothing concrete, Jimmy.
"Patrick wants to race and he is ready to go," Desrosiers said in the e-mail. "The big problem, and I'm sure you're aware, of it is sponsorship. We'll keep working, and hopefully we will find something and be in Daytona."
Marty,
What's up with JJ slicing his finger with a kitchen knife? Doesn't he have people to sacrifice digits for him?
-- Sue Ann Thomason, Cedar Crest, N.M.
A buddy of Johnson's said it well to me earlier this week: Thank goodness that guy spends half his life protected by a roll cage.
That's my time this week. Fill up my inbox, Six. You're slacking. Time to take the family to breakfast at the Friends and Family Restaurant, Pearisburg's finest. My boy needs pancakes. Y'all be good.
Marty Smith is a contributor to ESPN's NASCAR coverage. He can be reached at ESPNsider@aol.com.
