Rebirth of a Racing Team: A NASCAR TL

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Introduction
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    • ThunderWolf53

    ThunderWolf53

    In 2002, Kasey Kahne was a name that was not too notable. He was racing with a top team in the NASCAR Busch Series in Robert Yates Racing, but their star drivers Ricky Rudd and Dale Jarrett were getting up there in age and would probably be retired by the end of the decade. Kahne was also only a part time driver in Busch, and his season was not going too well. In OTL, Kahne jumped ship to Akins Motorsports for the full 2003 Busch season and eventually ended up at Evernham Motorsports in Cup to kickstart a very successful racing career. But what if Kahne decides to stick it out with RYR and run full time in Busch with them in 2003, knowing their Cup drivers will be gone soon? This is... the rebirth of a racing team.

    Meta Note: I will try not to let this TL die like I did with my IndyCar one, as this is an ATL I have a lot more interest in working on. I will likely use a different way of running alternate races in this to ensure that things stay interesting. Hopefully you all enjoy following this TL!
     
  • Index
    • Rudd to leave Robert Yates Racing after 2003
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    • ThunderWolf53

    ThunderWolf53

    (Mooresville, NC) - After three successful seasons at Robert Yates Racing and another one to come soon, Ricky Rudd has announced that he will leave the team after the 2003 season. In the announcement, Rudd said "I had a lot of fun memories at this team and would like to thank Robert Yates for this opportunity of a lifetime, but my career is winding down soon and I want to find a different team to write my next chapter with". With Yates running Kasey Kahne full time in the Busch Series in 2003, it now appears like he may get his shot in 2004 to run for Rookie of the Year with the Cup team. Rudd's team that he will drive for in 2004 is still to be determined.
     
  • Index
    • 2003 Speedweeks Results, Pt. 1
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    • ThunderWolf53

    ThunderWolf53

    February 8th: Dale Earnhardt Jr. wins the Budweiser Shootout ahead of Jeff Gordon.

    February 9th: Ricky Rudd gets the Daytona 500 pole in his final season with RYR [1], with Dale Jr. joining him on the front row.

    February 13th: Rudd was able to bring teammate Dale Jarrett to the front of the field with him, but in the end the RCR cars of Jeff Green and Robby Gordon were better as Gordon won Duel 1. The DEI cars were the dominant pair in Duel 2 as Dale Jr. got the win over teammate Michael Waltrip.

    Notes:
    [1] Jeff Green and Dale Jr were the front row for the 2003 Daytona 500 OTL, but I decided to give this pole to Rudd since he was only 5th in said qualifying as part of a nice sendoff.
     
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    • 2003 Speedweeks Results, Pt. 2
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    • ThunderWolf53

    ThunderWolf53

    February 14th: Travis Kvapil wins an incredible Truck Series race at Daytona by about 0.02 seconds over Robert Pressley to begin the Daytona 500 weekend on a high note. [1]

    February 15th: Dale Jr. dominates the Busch Series race at Daytona en route to a win.

    February 16th: A Daytona 500 highlighted by a dramatic flip by Ryan Newman on lap 58 otherwise had little to no action, as Michael Waltrip won the race after it was called for rain only 9 laps after the halfway point needed to do so.


    Notes:
    [1] Already a classic Truck finish as is OTL, but I decided to have Pressley make contact with OTL winner Rick Crawford on Crawford's 2nd crossover, giving more momentum to Kvapil on the outside.
     
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    • February 2003 Post-Speedweeks
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    • ThunderWolf53

    ThunderWolf53

    February 23rd: Dale Jarrett duels for the win with Kurt Busch at Rockingham, the lead swapping multiple times over the final ten laps before Jarrett pulled ahead to win.

    February 24th: Cup rookie Jamie McMurray adds on to his top 5 from the day before by winning the Busch race at Rockingham.
     
  • Index
    • March 2003 Results Pt 1: KURT BUSCH GOT EM!
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    • ThunderWolf53

    ThunderWolf53

    March 1st: Joe Nemechek wins the Busch race at Las Vegas for his own team, NEMCO Motorsports.

    March 2nd: Matt Kenseth wins the Las Vegas Cup race.

    March 9th: Bobby Labonte makes a late move around Jeff Gordon to win the Cup race at Atlanta.

    March 14th: Another great spring weekend at Darlington begins with Bobby Hamilton winning the Truck race.

    March 16th: In what is known to this day as one of the most classic finishes of all time, Kurt Busch beats and bangs his way to a 0.002 second victory over Ricky Craven. [1]

    March 17th: A Busch race postponed to Monday manages to follow up the extremely close Cup finish as Todd Bodine and Jamie McMurray make contact and Bodine crosses the line first to win.

    [1] So yes, I wanted to mix it up somehow, Kurt Busch wins the iconic 2003 Darlington race in this timeline, which should result in a few different scenarios from OTL by itself...
     
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