Booker T. & the M.G.'s to give each other three months to finish up all of their individual projects. They would then devote three years to what would be renamed "Booker T. Jones & the Memphis Group". Nine days later (October 1), Al Jackson, the man Cropper would remember as "the greatest drummer to ever walk the earth", was murdered in his home. The remaining three members and drummer Willie Hall (a session musician who had played on many Stax hits, such as Isaac Hayes's "Theme from "Shaft"") regrouped under their old name, Booker T. & the M.G.'s, and recorded the album "Universal Language" for
BTC-T MG ZS EX259 the Manufacturers championship, as that team remained dominant. For 2003, the team entered 3 cars for Reid, Turkington and Hughes, this time all entered as works drivers. The season proved to be less successful than 2002 - with Honda Racing demoting MG to 3rd in both the Constructors and Teams standings, although MG once again won 3 races, with Reid slipping to 6th in the Drivers championship. After 3 seasons, MG withdrew their works support for WSR in 2004. WSR, however, continued to enter a pair of MG ZS, driven by Reid and Turkington, whilst Jason Hughes entered an older