Rudd to drive Yate's 88?

I've heard that this is a done deal, but I haven't seen much coverage about it. Maybe it's not "official" until the sponsor is ready to make the announcement. Speaking of sponsor, WTH is going to take over that role?

Rudd would be a good driver to play the veteran presence for Yates and new driver Gilliland, even with the bad memories in the past. With all due respect, I think we all know that DJ was not having much success.

Rudd is still a driver capable of winning at all types of tracks. And, nobody can question his toughness. Robert just needs to pair him with a decent crew chief. I guess that’s another unknown.

As for the young David Gilliland, I think that he will surprise many fans, in some races. He will also make some rookie mistakes. I think that he performed better than Sadler, in the same equipment. That is impressive, with the lack of experience of Gilliland. Hell, he had figure out what kind of feel he needed in the Cup car.

Gilliland did have T. Parrott helping him, but Sadler didn’t seem to want to be paired back up with Todd. Sadler said that he didn’t like the direction RYR was headed. And, then Robert brought back Parrott.

I think that RYR is going to be more of a factor, next season.

HACKETTSTOWN, New Jersey (Ticker) - Robert Yates Racing filled a new spot with an old friend.

Ricky Rudd, returning to NASCAR after a one-year break, will drive full-time on the Nextel Cup series in a second car for Robert Yates Racing, Masterfoods USA announced Thursday.

Rudd, 50, will replace 1999 series champion Dale Jarrett, who signed to drive a new Toyota with Michael Waltrip Racing. Rudd drove for Yates from 2000-02 and posted three wins, 34 top-five finishes and 53 top-10s in 106 starts.

Known as NASCAR's "Iron Man," Rudd will drive a Ford Fusion sponsored by Snickers, a product of Masterfoods USA. The company also sponsors the Yates racing Ford driven by David Gilliland with M&M's, another of its products.

"When I took a break from racing at the end of 2005, I knew that I would return to competition if the right opportunity presented itself," Rudd said. "Returning to Robert Yates Racing and partnering with Snickers was the ride to get me back into competition full-time."

Masterfoods USA is the only sponsor to have multiple brands from the same company on one Nextel Cup team.

"With this second partnership, we can now showcase other Masterfoods brands such as Snickers, in partnership with M&M's chocolate candies," Masterfoods USA director of sponsorships and sports marketing William Clements said.

Those sponsorships work more effectively if Rudd can recapture his past success with Yates. He planned to retire after the 2002 season but decided to sign with the Wood Brothers and drove the No. 21 Ford from 2003-05, going winless in 108 starts.

A Yates car failed to win a race for the first time since it began competing in 1989 with Davey Allison. Speculation around the team in the offseason has ranged from closing its doors to merging with another race shop.

Named one of NASCAR's "Top 50 Drivers of All Time" in 1998, Rudd sat out last season, ending his streak of 788 consecutive starts. He has 23 victories, 194 top-five finishes and 373 top-10s in 875 career outings.

Rudd made his debut on March 2, 1975, at North Carolina Motor Speedway in Rockingham. He was Rookie of the Year in 1977, finished second in the standings to Dale Earnhardt in 1991 and won at least one race every season from 1983-98.