Yates, a longtime engine builder and team owner in NASCAR, died of complications from liver cancer on Oct. 2 last year. He knew of his election to the Class of 2018 but wasn’t able to participate in the ceremony. However, Yates had written his acceptance speech before his death and before a hushed crowd at the Charlotte Convention Center, Yates former driver, Hall of Famer Dale Jarrett, read the speech in a moving tribute. “When I started in racing, this was not the goal.