Edsel B. Ford II comments on the Yates Family:
"I think it’s fair to say I bleed Ford blue – these days it’s Ford Racing blue.
But today, I want to talk about a family who I think really does bleed Ford blue — The Yates family.
I know because there are very few people in the world who love Ford Motor Company as much as Doug Yates.
Doug, and his father Robert, symbolize what’s right with the Ford Racing program, but also what is right about the sport of motor racing itself.
Robert started his career working for Ford NASCAR powerhouse Holman Moody in 1967, and two years later built his first Daytona 500 winning engine. He had a few key highlights in the early 1980s, including building engines for the 1983 Cup championship team that took Richard Petty to his 200th victory.
But Robert found his true place when Robert Yates Racing was formed in 1988, with 57 victories, three Daytona 500s and a championship in the next nine years.
All the while, he was mentoring and teaching his son Doug, who carries his father’s legacy with him every day.
What can we say about Doug? Well, when Ford engine rivals Jack Roush and Robert Yates agreed to merge their engine operations in 2004 for the betterment of the Ford Racing program, they turned to one person who had the trust and integrity both wanted and needed. And that was Doug.
Since 2004, Doug has led Roush Yates Engines to more than 400 NASCAR race wins across three series, and also a victory at Le Mans for Ford in 2016 with the Ford GT.
He has created a state-of-the-art business that works closely with Ford powertrain engineers and Ford race teams that has brought forth seven Daytona 500 wins and three of the past four Cup championships.
But, more importantly, he has done it with honesty, integrity, calmness and an innovative forward-thinking approach that we at Ford, and so many in the sport, have come to admire.
So, as we enter into our 125th season of racing at Ford, it is my honor to announce that the Yates Family is the 30th winner of the Spirit of Ford Award, the highest honor Ford gives to individuals and families who have made a significant contribution to the sport of auto racing on and off the race track."
QUOTING DOUG YATES:
“What an honor. I could have never imagined being more proud of being part of the Ford family. I wish my dad was here to celebrate this with us today, but it’s really special being part of the Ford Racing family.”
“I wouldn’t be here today without the Ford support and, obviously, what that means to us. It’s pretty emotional, to be honest with you. You just put in your hard work and you just do the best you can. You work hard and you want to come down here to win races and make the Ford Motor Company proud, and the Ford family proud. We’ve won 449 Cup, O’Reilly and Truck wins to this point, so the next one will be 450. Hopefully, we can get that done Sunday afternoon, but thank you so much for this award. This really means a lot to me.”
THE YATES FAMILY RECORD IN NASCAR
ROBERT YATES RACING
Won 57 NASCAR Cup Series races from 1989-2007, including the Daytona 500 three times (1992 – Davey Allison; 1996 and 2000 – Dale Jarrett).
Won the NASCAR Cup Series championship in 1999.
Won 5 Daytona 500 poles (1991 – Davey Allison, 1995 – Dale Jarrett, 2000 – Dale Jarrett, 2005 – Dale Jarrett, 2007 – David Gilliland)
ROUSH YATES ENGINES
Won the Daytona 500 seven times (2009 – Matt Kenseth, 2011 – Trevor Bayne, 2012 – Matt Kenseth, 2015 – Joey Logano, 2017 – Kurt Busch, 2021 – Michael McDowell, 2022 – Austin Cindric)
Won five Daytona 500 poles and swept the front row four times (2004 – Greg Biffle (pole) and Elliott Sadler, 2005 – Dale Jarrett, 2007 – David Gilliland (pole) and Ricky Rudd, 2012 – Carl Edwards (pole) and Greg Biffle, 2024 – Joey Logano (pole) and Michael McDowell)
Won five NASCAR Cup Series championships (2004 – Kurt Busch, 2018 – Joey Logano, 2022 – Joey Logano, 2023 – Ryan Blaney, 2024 – Joey Logano)
Celebrated its 200th NASCAR Cup Series victory in 2025 when Austin Cindric won at Talladega Superspeedway.
ROBERT AND DOUG YATES
Robert Yates started his career at Holman Moody as an engine builder in the 1960s and built the engine that propelled Richard Petty to his 200th and final win.
He became a team owner in 1988 after purchasing the No. 28 team from Harry Ranier. His first win came with driver Davey Allison on May 7, 1989 and final victory with driver Dale Jarrett on Oct. 2, 2005. Both wins came at Talladega Superspeedway.
Robert Yates was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2018.
Doug Yates began his career at Robert Yates Racing in 1990 after graduating from North Carolina State University with a degree in Mechanical Engineering.
He has been the CEO of Roush Yates Engines since it started in 2004.
He currently has 449 career NASCAR wins in all three series combined between his time at Robert Yates Racing and Roush Yates Engines.
ABOUT THE SPIRIT OF FORD AWARD
The Spirit of Ford Award is the highest honor in Ford Racing. It recognizes men and women who have made significant contributions on and off the track to the sport of auto racing.
SPIRIT OF FORD AWARD WINNERS (30):
- Bill Stroppe (1988)
- Bob Glidden (1989)
- Chris Economaki (1990)
- Richard Petty (1992)
- Bob Bondurant (1993)
- Mario Andretti (1994)
- Sir Jackie Stewart (1994)
- Bud Moore (1995)
- Parnelli Jones (1996)
- Jim Clark (1997)
- Phil Hill (1998)
- Sterling Moss (1998)
- The France Family - Bill Sr. and Bill Jr. (1998)
- Junie Donlavey (1999)
- The Wood Brothers - Glen and Leonard (1999)
- Dan Gurney (1999)
- Denise McCluggage (2000)
- Bill Elliott (2000)
- Carroll Shelby (2001)
- Wally Parks (2001)
- Ned Jarrett (2003)
- Mose Nowland (2005)
- Jack Roush (2006)
- John Force (2010)
- Kevin Kennedy (2011)
- A.J. Foyt (2017)
- Lyn St. James (2021)
- Alan Mann Racing (2024)
- Dick Johnson (2025)
- The Yates Family - Robert and Doug (2026)
