sixth. Expansion In 1996 Yates expanded to two full-time teams with Irvan back behind the wheel of the No. 28 Ford and Dale Jarrett driving the No. 88 car. The new team wasted no time showing its muscle with Jarrett, under the leadership of rookie crewchief Todd Parrott won the Busch Clash at Daytona and the Daytona 500. Irvan secured the outside pole for the Daytona 500 alongside Dale Earnhardt Sr. who was in his eighteenth attempt to win the Daytona 500. Irvan also won his Gatorade Twin 125 Qualifying Race. Jarrett also won the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte and the Brickyard 400 and at Michigan in August and finished third in the final Winston Cup points standings behind Hendrick Motorsports teammates Terry Labonte (the Champion) and Jeff Gordon. Later years Yates was given his first championship as a NASCAR owner in 1999 with Dale Jarrett. His engines had won championships with him as an engine builder before, notably 1983 with Bobby Allison and DiGard Motorsports, and also with Darrell Waltrip. After that season the team began to slump a little. Eddie D'Hondt joined the team as Manager after leaving Evernham Motorsports and the team seemed to be heading in the right direction with the hiring of Mike Ford. Ford hired several key members including Russ Salerno, as his Pit Crew Coordinator. Shortly after that RYR found itself with a team that was improving and becoming a contender again. Elliott Sadler joined Robert Yates Racing for the 2003 season and won two races for Yates in 2004. As of July 2007, Yates' last win was with Dale Jarrett at Talladega Superspeedway in October 2005. Yates retired as a NASCAR Sprint Cup Team Owner after 2007, giving Yates Racing to his son, Doug. In 2010 he came out of retirement to form a new company, Robert Yates Racing Engines, with his son-in-law Chris Davy as his partner. On May 24, 2017, Yates was voted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame's Class of 2018. In November 2016, Yates began undergoing treatment for liver cancer. Yates said he was told by a doctor in early August to gather his family and make plans for hospice because “you’re done in four weeks.” Four hours later, Yates’ future looked much better. Another doctor told Yates that the terminal diagnosis was wrong. “I need both doctors, but I need a little cheerleading, too,’’ said the 74-year-old