Countdown to Daytona: Owner Point Style No. 23 (Travis Kvapil)

Today is unlucky Day 13, and it may have thrown me a curveball.

I’ve heard several rumors that this team will become the No. 98 team, which will be driven by former Dale Earnhardt Inc. driver Paul Menard.

The reason why? Well, Menard brings his family’s business as a full-time sponsor with him to Yates, while Kvapil’s team is still struggling to find full sponsorship,which makes no sense, as this team ran (most of the season) and finished 23rd in the points. They were never near the edge of the top-35 and had several decent runs, most of the time with a plain white car that simply asked for someone to sponsor their car.

From what I’ve heard, the reason David Gilliland (who finished behind Kvapil in points by the way) will keep his points is because he has more sponsorship than Kvapil’s team.

This ought to be interesting to see how everything plays out, but for time’s sake, I’m going to go with who’s listed as this driver now, and that’s Kvapil.

So here is a look at what this team will be like in 2009 (if Kvapil is behind the wheel):

Today’s Spotlight: No. 28

Team: Team Yates Racing

Driver: Travis Kvapil

Sponsor(s): Northern Tool + Equipment (Talladega - April)
K&N Engineering (Daytona 500)
Zaxby's Restuarant (Atlanta - March)
Discount Tire (Richmond - May)
Lafayette Ford (Darlington May)
DISH Network (1 race)
Dish Network Racing
Lumber Liquidators(1 race)
California Highway Patrol - CHP(1 race)
Hitachi Power Tools (6 races)
Academy Sports + Outdoors(2 races)
All Sport(3 races)

For a look at the team’s ’09 paint schemes visit: Jayski.com.

Driver 2008 Stats: Kvapil had a career best finish in points, at 23rd. He won more than $4.2 million and collected four top-10 finishes (another career best) and averaged a finish of 23rd.

(Simply as a point of comparison: Menard finished the season in 26th place with one top-five and top-10, and Gilliland finished the season in 27th, with two top-10 finishes and one top-five.)

News: Obviously, like I said before, the biggest news out of the No. 28 camp would have to be whether this team will remain the No. 28, or become the No. 98 for incoming driver Menard.

This team is also affected by the joining of Hall of Fame Racing, which brings Ask.com and Bobby Labonte on board, as a teammate from afar. These teams will all benefit from having another car to share notes with, and the leadership Labonte will be as a veteran and past champion.

This team also dealt with rumors during the off-season that crew chief Todd Parrott had left the organization. In the end, it was determined that he would return to be Kvapil’s crew chief in 2009.

My Prediction for 2009: OK, so here is my prediction if this team remains the No. 28, with Kvapil behind the wheel. This team has shown promise at points in the season (most notably at the restrictor plate races, where Yates has always run well). I don’t see this team making much ground up from last year and honestly I think that is exactly where they will run again this season.

Kvapil is a good driver and he is in good equipment, but Yates just can’t seem to get the same performances out of these cars as the Roush stable does. I think that Kvapil will finish someone in the neighborhood of 21st to 26th in the championship standings.

(It’s a good thing I’m keeping archives of all this. I can’t wait for that story at the end of the year showing how right, or how wrong I was back in January!)

Will this team remain in top-35: I don’t see this being a problem for this team. Being guaranteed a spot in the first five makes it really hard to fall out, barring a bad wreck or something early on.

This team needs to just take it easy in the first five races and secure their spot, and they should be set for the entire season. They never once got near the back of the top-35 last year, and I don’t think they will again this year.

Up Tomorrow: No. 43 Reed Sorenson (Didn’t I do him already? Here we go again!)

This story also appears on my blog: Sports 101

Reminder: Only 23 days until the Budweiser Shootout!

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