Q&A: Sadler/Yates/McSwain.

"A lot of people get to make decisions time after time again about their life and what direction they're going; to me, this is a career opportunity. This is a once-in-a-lifetime deal. To be in connection with Robert Yates next year is hard to put in words. His commitment to their engines, the work Doug [Yates] and he does every single week shows up every Sunday.

"The commitment and intensity that Fatback [Michael McSwain] shows, I think is unbelievable. You can tell when he's running well, you can tell when he's running badly, and that's the type of crew chief I want. Somebody that looks like they'll go to war for you each and every week. So, I'm looking forward to starting that relationship also in 2003." - Elliott Sadler

ELLIOTT SADLER, driver-38-M&M's Taurus "This is pretty exciting for me. I get to meet with you guys [the press] on a regular basis, it seems like, the last few months, and I've been dying to tell you, I really have. And I sat in my motor coach last night and wondered, 'What are you going to say?' This is the biggest honor and privilege I've ever had.

"A lot of people get to make decisions time after time again about their life and what direction they're going; to me, this is a career opportunity. This is a once-in-a-lifetime deal. To be in connection with Robert Yates next year is hard to put in words. His commitment to their engines, the work Doug [Yates] and he does every single week shows up every Sunday.

The commitment and intensity that Fatback [Michael McSwain] shows, I think is unbelievable. You can tell when he's running good, you can tell when he's running bad, and that's the type of crew chief I want. Somebody that looks like they'll go to war for you each and every week. So, I'm looking forward to starting that relationship also in 2003.

"Also, let me tell you about teammates. I think teammates are well-underrated in NASCAR Winston Cup racing. I've never had one in Winston Cup racing, and I'm looking forward to working with, I think, the best teammate there is in the garage - not only what he does on the track, but off the track. Everybody's who's interviewed me the past years knows how highly speak and think of Dale Jarrett. So, to be able to work with him for a common goal to win Robert Yates a championship is a big honor to me.

"And then to get lucky enough to have a sweet company like M&M's come in here and put this deal together is another great opportunity. A family-owned business like Robert Yates, a family-owned company like M&M's Chocolate Candies, and my family is very well involved in my racing, also, so it just seemed like a perfect fit when this all came together. We're looking forward to getting these guys to Victory Lane for the first time next year, and we're going to work very hard at that.

"We think that's our main goal: just to win races. And that's all I've said from the very beginning: I want to win races. And I think with how hard Robert and Doug and everybody at Robert Yates Racing works, I think we'll be able to do that."

ROBERT YATES, owner-38-M&M's Taurus "I'm happy to be here. Certainly, probably got the first good nights sleep last night because I knew what the deal is and what it's going to be. And we're excited about that. We're looking forward to creating something that nobody knew about, but we'll know about early on next season.

"To have in our deal Michael McSwain, crew chief, Elliott, extremely talented, very motivated, extremely motivated. I think everybody has seen that. So, we're excited about all those things. To have a world-class company behind us is a good comfort feeling. We can go do what we love to do, and that's just go race hard - it's a performance business - and we're just glad they chose us."

MICHAEL McSWAIN, crew chief-38-M&M's Taurus "I think everyone with dreams and wishes, and when your dreams start coming true, you think, 'Well, all my dreams may not come true,' but they keep coming true bigger and bigger and bigger. People you work with, being associated with Robert, now to be associated with a company that I knew we all grew up with, M&M's. It's pretty unbelievable for me to be associated with somebody like Robert and M&M's.

"And then to bring Elliott - I've never worked with a young driver before; I'm really pumped up about it. I've been fortunate to work with a lot of mature drivers. And to get someone who's the energy that Elliott's got, the intensity that's he's got, the desire that he's got, it's pretty exciting for me as a crew chief to see someone that's young and wanting to be a big name in this business. And I think all three of us together, along with M&M's, can make a big deal out of this."

IT MUST HAVE BEEN A DIFFICULT FEW WEEKS. HOW ARE YOU NOW?

RY "A lot of people ask me that. It's been pretty difficult, I've had a lot of back pain, I've been to a lot of doctors, MRI, CT scans, what have you. And I think that it was probably all about just trying to figure out the best deal. And we've got that, I'm excited about it, and my back's not hurting today. We've had this deal in hand for a while and it has melted, so it's in our mouth and we can get with it. So, we're excited about it."

WHAT ABOUT NOT HAVING THE NO. 28?

RY "My first reaction to do something different was positive. Because I was around when we had the Gatorade 88 car and we were going to do the Miller deal, and Gatorade just had so much invested in the 88, and it's like, 'Hey, this is going to be a new deal. It's Miller Time.' And we put the 22 on it.

"And my first win as an engine builder, 98 car in Daytona, 1969, LeeRoy Yarbrough. So, throughout my life I've had a lot of these things on the shelf and I look back and they're not all the same numbers, like I didn't work at the same place all my life. So, it's pretty interesting. I think that picking a number and putting it on this, it's a new deal, we're teaming up together and we're putting our identity as a different number.

"It's probably no different than the 48. All I knew about 48 was James Hylton, and now they've created their own deal. That's what we want to do with this. This is a special 38, not a .38 special."

TO MAINTAIN A FRONT-RUNNING PRESENCE, HOW MANY CARS WILL YOU NEED FOR THE SEASON, AND IS THE SPONSORSHIP AT THAT LEVEL?

RY "It takes about an average of 20 cars to cover the different style race tracks. NASCAR is tightening that up, so they would love for us to have just one vehicle, but with back-to-back races, you have to manufacture them on a very timely schedule to have something ready each week. Right now, with the new rules for next year, I had about 45 cars between the two teams, and unless they give us an inch we won't have any. But the good news is maybe it's just one more change and we'll be good to go for a couple of years."

CAN YOU TALK ABOUT REPLACING RICKY RUDD?

ES "I don't think you replace a veteran or a legend, I think that's a pretty steep statement. But as far as becoming a part of Robert Yates Racing, this is a dream for me.

"I'm going to the best I can. I'm going to try to step in his shoes. This is a championship-running car. They're in the championship hunt again this year. So that tells you how good that team is and how hard they work. So, I need to step in there starting at Daytona next year and try to run for a championship. That's what's on our mind, that's the mentality we're going to have, and that's what we need to do. Hopefully, I'll be able to step right in and go with the flow.

"We're going to try to do some testing here at the end of this year to get Mike and myself acquainted more with each other so when we go to the Daytona 500, we can hit the ground running. So, that's our plan, to win as many races as we can for M&M's and hopefully get them a championship."

WHY ELLIOTT SADLER?

RY "We've really had our eye on Elliott since his dad passed on to one of his friends a message that said, 'Hire my son,' and that probably goes back to about the time he was still racing go-karts. Because his dad is in the oil business - very good friends.

"What I probably like so much about it is his dad didn't strong-arm a deal to bring him earlier. He sat back, paid his dues and impressed us, so I like that part because sometimes a dad tries to buy their way in and he didn't do that. He let his boy work it the hard way. He's doing it because he wants to do it, and not because his father wanted him to do it. And that always impresses me. So, certainly talented, motivated, youth, and we're excited about it.

"We think he has the toughness of some of the drivers we've had in the past. He's got a lot of great character in him - several different characters. So, I think he's watched and learned. Dale Jarrett's been extremely pleasant and we'll get some Dale Jarrett in him, too. That's one of our big plusses here."

WHEN DID THIS DEAL START, AND IS THIS THE DEAL THE REASON YOU ASKED FOR YOUR RELEASE FROM THE NO. 21 EARLIER THIS YEAR?

ES "No, this is not the reason I asked for my release. I didn't know anything about coming to Robert Yates Racing. I just wanted to ask for my release early in the year to explore all options, and not just particularly this one that came up - though I am glad it did.

"As far as how long has this been going on, I think this about the second or third time I've tried to get in Robert's car, so this has been going on a right long while. As far as this year, it'd probably be better for Robert to answer, but when I did ask for my release, no, this was not the direct intention I was coming to drive the 38 M&M's car or be a part of Robert Yates Racing. That had not evolved yet."

RY "I would like to add to that. As M&M's looked for a team, he was looking for something, and certainly timing is everything. It all just came together. We're excited that M&M's chose us and Elliott chose us. So, we think it's a wonderful package, we're excited about it.

"But none of this was conjured up to get Elliott to leave the Wood Brothers or M&M's leave from where they were. This was all on the business table out in the open. We put our name in the hat and we're excited we were the ones chosen - by Elliott and M&M's."

HOW DIFFICULT WILL IT BE TO BE IN A LAME-DUCK SITUATION WITH YOUR CURRENT TEAM FOR THE REST OF THIS YEAR?

ES "Speaking of the lame-duck situation, you know, they made that comment when I said in Richmond that I wanted my release. And we went from 25th to 18th in points. And that shows that I'm not a lame-duck race-car driver. I think I got a big heart, and that's what it takes to race in this business. When we leave this pressroom it's back to business as normal. I've need to get that 21 car to the front and run as hard as I can. And I know that Fatback is in the same position. He's got a championship to win.

"So, this is a great deal for 2003, that's what we need to do, but I'm a racer, I got a race on Sunday at 2 o'clock, and I'm going to everything I can to give the Wood Brothers the best finish I can give them. Hopefully, give them a win, that's what we want to do. That's what's on Pat [Tryson, crew chief] and my minds. That's my standpoint from it."

MM "I just want to say something about that. I think that we're all professionals and we all got common goals. We're actually closer in numbers than we were last year to the championship. No one's really had a dominant car all year. So, I think at this point it's anybody in the top 10, and we consider ourselves one of the front-runners to win the championship.

"Since everything started happening, and Ricky was doing the things he was going to do, we've won a race, we're running better, we're probably not as good as we were last year, consistent-wise. But, we're working hard, we haven't let up, we're probably testing twice as much as we did last year. And our goal is to give Robert a championship with the 28. We haven't let up and we have no intentions of letting up."

YOU'VE ALWAYS BEEN TOUGH ON YOURSELF. NOW YOU'RE MOVING UP A NOTCH. HAVE YOU LEARNED TO HANDLE THAT BETTER.

ES "I thought the more you'd race, the easier it would get, and it has not. Expectation levels of myself is pretty high, and I want to do good. Nobody's putting pressure on you to do good, but that's just the intensity and competition that we all have, I guess, as drivers, or crew chiefs, or owners. Like I told you before, I never pointed fingers. If I can't help these guys to get this car right or get it handling the best we should or get the best finishes, than I need to do a lot of work. And I've had a lot of sleepless nights before I got this deal done, and now that it's done, I think I'm sleeping worse, because now, it's a lot of pressure to get in this race car next year.

"I need to win races. We need to run good each and every week. Why? Because this car has always run good. So, I think the pressure on myself is probably going to go through the ceiling. So, I don't know what kind of state of mind I'll be in by the time I get to Daytona. But I want to have fun doing it also, and if we run good, I'm going to have fun.

"But right now, sitting in front of you, I feel like there'll be more pressure on me next year to perform than there ever has been. And that's going to be a tough deal to swallow, but because I know how competitive they are, they want to win races. And I know how competitive I am, so I need to come in and do my job and test as much as we can and really be focused week-in and week-out to not only run up front but try to get in Victory Lane. And, that's what we want to do."

M&M's HAS NEVER BEEN TO VICTORY LANE. WHAT DO YOU SEE IN ELLIOTT THAT WILL GET YOU THERE NEXT YEAR?

MM"His intensity, his desire to win. When you watch a driver on the race track, you look at things more than is he leading. How he handles himself around other cars, how he handles himself on pit road. There's a lot of things it takes to drive other than just getting out front and making laps. I think the more you're around it, the more experience you get at seeing those things.

"And he's done things throughout his career, much less this year, that me and Robert saw and a lot of times Robert would see it and I'd see it, and he'd be on different places on the race track and afterwards he'd say, 'Did you see how he handled that?' And we'd be like, 'Yeah, we like that.' So, we're really excited about that. I got my first win with Robert. I knew how special it was, and I hope way before this time next year, we can do the same for Elliott and for M&M's."

ON GOING WITH A YOUNGER DRIVER.

ES "He's so experienced and has got a lot of youth and I think for our organization, you all have been wearing me out about getting some youth in it, here we go, answers some of the questions of why don't you get that. We're excited about that, very talented, but yet he's on the level with Doug and Michael and all our guys. Very knowledgeable of the car itself, too.

"The choice was made based on the guy can get the job done. I don't have one thing wrong with the age. I can look back at almost everybody and have them covered on age. I never have been one, 'The guy's too old to do it.' Maybe I've seen some guys that are too smart to get up on the wheel or didn't need to. As Junior Johnson always said, you have to be a little hungry to get after it. But, I don't have any problem with the age deal. It just happens to be that he's very talented and he is younger than I am by quite a bit."

HOW MUCH OF YOUR INCOME WILL BE PERFORMANCE-BASED AND HOW MUCH IS SALARY, IN A PERCENTAGE BASIS?

ES "The way I like to do things is performance-based. I don't want you to pay me anything that I don't deserve. How can I be a race-car driver and these fans come here and spend all their vacation, part of their vacation money, to come watch us put on an event for them each and every Sunday, and I'm going to go out there and try to worry about if I'm making this much or this million or this that or the other? I just need to go out there and race.

"How can I look a fan straight in the eye and say, 'Well, if I don't get this, we're gonna strike,' or, 'If I don't get this, I'm not going to drive the car'? I want my stuff to be performance-based. I want to be hungry. I think that makes me look at the natural race fan a lot easier in the eye - 'Hey, man, I'm doing this because I love it.' That's just the way it is. I think that's the way it should be for any sport, not just ours."

YOU'VE HAD A LONG ASSOCIATION WITH THE NO. 28. WHAT HAPPENS TO THAT NUMBER NOW?

RY "I can't really answer that today. I can tell you what we are going to do. Go right back to explaining the 38, a new program, a new deal, a nice, sweet package to put up there that we want to create our own identity. Sometimes, it's a struggle to try live off the legacy of somebody else's deal. So, we're looking forward. This is the new deal starting next year.

"Those few heartstrings that tear a little bit, but I got over that the first night. This is what I want to do. And it's based on experience, my experience. I don't look as my career has been just a car owner. I probably had more fun back working on cars and wins and performances that I really contributed to - more than I contribute even the 28 the last couple years, at least. So, I don't really care to work at the same place all the time.

"Numbers, it's a whole a identity, and certainly I think it's great that M&M/Mars that we have a number that's really -- don't remember in my, and I've been here almost all the time since the beginning - but I can't recall a 38 ever being special, so it's one we picked out. We're going to make this number special."