Despite bouncing around all day, David Ragan came away with a 25th-place finish at Martinsville. Credit: Autostock

Ragan remorseful after ruining Schrader's run

Young Roush driver involved in three accidents in second start

MARTINSVILLE, Va. -- David Ragan's plans to rent a shop from Ken Schrader might have to be revisited.

It will all depend on whether Schrader is in a forgiving mood.

Ken Schrader was upset after being wrecked, but held his temper in check. Credit: AP

Subway 500 Official Results Pos. Driver Make 1. Jimmie Johnson Chevy 2. Denny Hamlin Chevy 3. Bobby Labonte Dodge 4. Tony Stewart Chevy 5. Jeff Gordon Chevy 6. Casey Mears Dodge 7. Kasey Kahne Dodge 8. Jeff Green Chevy 9. Kevin Harvick Chevy 10. Kyle Petty Dodge • Complete results, click here • Official standings, click here Victory LaneJimmie Johnson celebrates his Subway 500 win at Martinsville Top finishersHamlin, Dale Jr. and Kenseth talk about their day at Martinsville Final lapsJimmie Johnson tries to hold off Denny Hamlin down the stretch Sign up for TrackPass now BUY THE NEXTEL i836

Ragan, making just his second Nextel Cup start, bounced around wildly in the Subway 500 at Martinsville, finishing 25th after being involved in three accidents.

The worst came on Lap 311, when Ragan admittedly locked up his brakes, sending him into Schrader, who hit the fence hard in Turn 1.

"I am actually trying to rent a shop from him," Ragan said. "I try to talk to him as much as I can, because I know he is one of the guys in the garage that everyone respects. I hate that I ruined his day, but hopefully I can talk to him."

Schrader's car was so badly damaged that he was unable to continue -- a rarity at Martinsville -- and he finished 41st after spending 293 laps running in the top 10.

Schrader was enraged after the accident. As NBC's cameras rolled, the veteran picked up a piece of his Ford's rear clip, only to hurl it down when he walked across the wall to his team's pit.

By the time he reached the garage, Schrader had cooled off, but only slightly.

"I moved him earlier because you can't run like that two laps down," Schrader said. "Got back around him and he paid me back for moving him, but he was two laps down."

Ragan denied that he intentionally hit Schrader.

"I just flat-out overdrove it into [Turn] 1," Ragan said. "Locked up the brakes. That was totally my fault."

Ironically, Ragan was the recipient of three free passes late in the race by being the first car one lap down, and he finished on the lead lap. His No. 06 Ford had extensive cosmetic damage to the front- and left-rear, evidence of his long day.

On Lap 447, Ragan spun in Turn 4, and Kyle Busch slammed the wall while trying to avoid him. Busch, who ran in the top 10 the entire day before the accident, wound up 18th.

Tony Stewart witnessed much of the carnage, and he said that NASCAR should have parked Ragan.

"The best thing would have been to black-flag [Ragan] and park him for the rest of the day and save half of the cautions," Stewart said. "We had a rookie out there that was kind of a dart with no feathers out there."

Martinsville is unarguably one of the more difficult tracks on the Nextel Cup circuit, but Ragan says he has every right to run 500 demanding laps despite virtually no experience at the top level.

Just last week, team owner Jack Roush surprisingly named Ragan to drive the No. 6 Ford next season, replacing Mark Martin. Ragan has only 26 Craftsman Truck Series starts, and just seven in the Busch Series.

"It would have been a lot easier, but Jack does not want it to be easy," Ragan said. "They wanted it to be tough."

Ragan, only 20 years old, is the son of former Cup Series interloper Ken Ragan, who started racing in the Cup Series just a year before Schrader's debut.

"[My dad] is probably going to tell me, 'Man, you have got to call Schrader and talk to him,'" Ragan said. "You don't want to make any enemies."