Breakthrough at Bristol? Ryan Blaney looking for first 2019 Cup win

Posted on August 17, 2019August 17, 2019 by Terrin Waack

BRISTOL, Tenn. — Ryan Blaney’s recent marks at Bristol Motor Speedway are pretty impressive.

The driver of the No. 12 Team Penske Ford has led at least 100 laps in the last three races at the .533-mile oval. Two of those instances were race-high marks.

A descriptor such as pretty, though, is needed. None of those runs converted into wins. Blaney’s best Bristol finish in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series is fourth – earlier this season after spending 158 of the 500 laps out front.

“It can get frustrating at times,” Blaney told NASCAR.com Friday. “But it’s all a learning experience, just trying to remember things very well, save information and apply it to the next time.”

That time is now.

BRISTOL: What to watch | Complete at-track gallery

The annual Bristol Night Race is Saturday (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN/NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Blaney will start 12th after circling the track at 128.082 mph during qualifying. His final practice speed was good for second fastest (128.245 mph) and better than his opening sixth-place go-around (127.368 mph).

“We’ve been really good here early,” Blaney said. “We just need to kind of be able to carry that toward the end.”

Then, maybe then he’ll get his first Cup Series victory at Bristol and first overall in 2019.

With just three races remaining in the regular season, Blaney sits ninth in the championship standings with 654 points. He’s the highest-ranked driver out of those who have not won this season and even a spot ahead of one who has won (Alex Bowman, 10th with 653 points). He’s currently safe since the playoff field is cut at 16 – for now.

“I don’t really think about the points,” Blaney said. “Really, the only time I think about the points is in the playoffs. You know, I just want to win races. That’s something that’s kind of eluded us during the regular season this year, which has kind of stunk. I thought we could have won two to three already this year, but it hasn’t worked out for us.”

The moments that stick out most to Blaney are Atlanta Motor Speedway, Chicagoland Speedway and Michigan International Speedway. He finished 22nd, sixth and 24th in those races, respectively. He thought those got away from him despite having what he considered a competitive car.

Blaney’s best finish so far is third. It happened twice: ISM Raceway and Sonoma Raceway. He has seven top-five performances and 10 top 10s. He has also led 365 laps, which once again leads drivers without wins.

To get really deep into the weeds of possibilities, Blaney can clinch a playoff spot this weekend on points alone if a winner repeats or if Aric Almirola, William Byron, Kyle Larson or Erik Jones wins and Blaney gets help. A victory, of course, would also guarantee him a berth.

“You can talk about playoffs and talk about the regular season, but at the end of the day, it’s the same goal: try to win the race and do the best you can,” Blaney said. “The pressure side of it, that’s all year. You’re under pressure to try to win races, to try to keep your job. That’s pressure in itself. But playoffs, you’re just fortunate to be a part of them. … If you’re worried about pressure, your mind is not focused on how to perform at the highest of your abilities.”

And that’s all Blaney needs to do this weekend. He has proved he can run well at Bristol. Now he just needs to seal the deal.

Saturday is another opportunity for the 25-year-old to yet again impress at Bristol — really, this time.

“You always got to be confident,” Blaney said. “I think there’s a fine line between confident and arrogant, so you try to be as confident as you can in your team and yourself. Believe in yourself, that you’ve been good at this track before.”

Posted on August 17, 2019August 17, 2019 by Nick Giffen

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One of NASCAR’s crown-jewel events takes place tonight at the half-mile bullring at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Bristol is a high-banked concrete track known for lots of action. Because it’s such a unique track, where the car is less in play and the driver more in play, it’s not uncommon to see a driver that generally runs midpack — or even worse — to run up front at Bristol.

Without a doubt, the most important factor in my model is track history, but because of the wild nature of Bristol, that doesn’t explain much of the variance in finishing position. Year-to-date driver rating and long run practice speed are also important.

MORE: Race-day betting odds

One important note: Post-qualifying inspection takes place in the afternoon, and any car that fails inspection will go to the rear of the field for the start of the race. That can have a major impact at a track like Bristol, where going a lap down is much easier due to its small size.

As usual, I’ll post updates as inspection plays out, and as more books post lines.

Joey Logano +900

Logano’s odds actually got worse from opening to present, despite having the best car in practice for both sessions. It might be because of his 11th-place starting position, but expect him to move forward quickly.

Logano has finished in the top 10 in seven of his last eight Bristol starts, which is amazing for the randomness the track produces. That includes a third-place earlier this year, and a fourth-place at this race last year.

He also has wins in back-to-back years for this race in 2014 and 2015. That’s especially noteworthy because the 2014 aerodynamic package is the most similar to this year’s package during the Gen-6 car era.

Logano posted the fastest 20- and 30-lap average in final practice, and the best 10-lap average in the cooler opening practice (he did not make a 15-plus lap run in the opening session).

MORE: Which young gun to back?

Ryan Blaney +2000

Blaney is listed at this price at the DraftKings Sportsbook, and can be found at similar prices to this if you shop around. At the Westgate, he’s listed at +1000, so make sure you do your due diligence before placing a bet on him.

Blaney has led at least 100 laps in each of the last three Bristol races, including the first race of 2018 where he was collected in a wreck triggered by some lapped cars while in the lead. Blaney was also blazingly fast in final practice, posting the best five-, 10-, and 15-lap averages, and the second-best 20-lap average behind teammate Logano.

I have no problem betting Blaney down to +1400 to retain value, but the +1000 or +800 lines at most Vegas books are just too short for a driver with two career wins.

Sunday Updates

Here is another outright courtesy of the William Hill Sportsbook.

Kevin Harvick +1000: Harvick is listed in the +600 to +800 range at most books in Las Vegas, but William Hill has him at a generous +1000. Harvick has the third-best driver rating at Bristol over the last eight and had long-run practice speeds in the top five. He’ll start eighth tonight.

Posted on August 16, 2019 by Zack Albert

BRISTOL, Tenn. — Justin Allgaier’s Friday night frustration was evident after a slugfest of a NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway. The end to his so-far-winless season was within especially close reach, but like so many times this year, that victory slipped away in heartbreak.

“This one’s going to hurt for a while,” he said after a tire issue forced his JR Motorsports No. 7 Chevrolet into the outside retaining wall with 11 laps remaining. Allgaier had led 131 of the 300 laps in the Food City 300, a near repeat of his performance at the .533-mile track in April, when he set the pace for 138 laps before a crash sidelined him.

“Just super disappointed,” said Allgaier, who wound up eighth, two laps behind race winner Tyler Reddick. “I don’t even know, there’s no words that can describe tonight.”

Allgaier had the 300-lapper nearly in hand until he suspected that a tire was losing air pressure on the frontstretch. By the time he reached Turn 1, the No. 7 Chevrolet veered into the barrier, forcing him to stop for fresh rubber a lap later.

It was another stinging instance of aggravation for Allgaier & Co., who filled their win column with five victories last season but have gone bone-dry so far in 2019. The No. 7 team has placed among the top three eight times this year, but without reaching the top step on the podium.

“Tonight’s a perfect example of how our year’s gone,” Allgaier said. “I don’t know. I don’t know what could be the difference. Hat’s off to the guys at the shop. They built a great race car. It was obvious we had a fast car. Just nothing to show for it again at Bristol.”

The No. 7 operation recovered to extend its streak of top-10 finishes to six in a row. The team is also solidly in the Xfinity Series playoff picture with a moderately comfortable grip on fourth place in the drivers’ standings. But the lack of wins has made it difficult to wedge into the power triumvirate of Reddick, Christopher Bell and Cole Custer, who have combined to win 14 of 22 races this year.

Jason Burdett, the crew chief for JRM’s No. 7 Chevrolet, said there’s no single factor that’s kept the team out of Victory Lane.

“Obviously, we felt like we had that one pretty well covered. The year has been a year of stupid stuff like this,” Burdett told NASCAR.com. “It seems like every week, we have a good week and then get a couple of good finishes strung together and then something gets us. We had a good, fast race car tonight. Unfortunately, it didn’t make it to the end.”

Burdett indicated that Friday night’s performance was of some consolation as the series moves forward to its next round, Aug. 24 at Road America.

“What else do you do? I don’t know,” Burdett said. “Everybody works really hard. You feel bad for all the guys that were working hard all week long, the guys at the shop. They deserve to get a win because we’ve been close and we’ve had opportunities. Whether we’ve messed up, not had a good enough car, or Justin’s sped on pit road … it just seems like every time we turn around, it’s something little that gets us. Tonight is nothing that anybody did wrong. We had a good car, he did a fantastic job, pit stops were great. We just came up 10 laps short.”

Posted on August 16, 2019August 16, 2019 by Reid Spencer

BRISTOL, Tenn. — Tyler Reddick’s No. 2 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet had the word “BEAST” in big block letters on its hood Friday night.

The car was aptly named.

Even though Reddick had to come from the rear of the field twice in his Tame the Beast Camaro — once the result of a stiff penalty and once after a spin — he still needed a bit of luck to win the Food City 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway.

A bit of luck — and large measure of heartache for Justin Allgaier.

RELATED: Official race results

On older tires than Reddick had, Allgaier shot forward after a restart on Lap 287 of 300 and had a comfortable advantage until a flat tire sent him into the outside wall on Lap 289 and handed the top spot to Reddick, who had battled Brandon Jones and eventual runner-up Chase Briscoe for the second position behind Allgaier.

“I don’t know (how we did this),” said the reigning NASCAR Xfinity Series champion, who picked up his fourth victory of the season, his first at Bristol and the seventh of his career. “I thought we made the wrong adjustment on the last (pit) stop, but we had a really fast Chevrolet. We had fresher tires than Justin Allgaier there. We came down pit road and we were just too tight and I thought we were done for.

“I don’t know what happened. Everything just happened at the right spot. I fell back to fourth, and Jones hit the fence and then (Allgaier) had some sort of issue. As you can see, I’m speechless. I couldn’t believe what was happening.”

Minutes after limping home in eighth place, two laps down, a crestfallen Allgaier was still struggling to process what had just happened.

“I’ll be honest with you, this is the story of the year,” said Allgaeir, who led 131 laps, second only to the 137 of Kyle Busch, who fell out because of engine failure after winning the second stage. “We had a great car tonight. I don’t know if we could have beaten the 18 (Busch) apples to apples, but when he fell out, I thought — especially at the end — we had the best car.

“I don’t know what else to do, man. It’s just so frustrating. These guys deserve a win. It’s just a tire went down, and there’s nothing you can do about it.”

John Hunter Nemechek ran third, followed by Jeremy Clements, pole-winner Austin Cindric and Gray Gaulding, the last driver on the lead lap.

Reddick’s adventurous evening started with the first 85-lap stage. After his No. 2 Chevrolet failed pre-qualifying inspection four times, Reddick was not allowed to post a lap in time trials, started from the rear of the field and immediately served a pass-through penalty that put him a lap down.

But Reddick earned a free pass as the highest-scored lapped car when NASCAR called the first caution on Lap 7 for Mason Diaz’s crash on the backstretch. Back on the lead lap, Reddick hustled his car through the field, and on Lap 81 he was fighting Allgaier for the lead.

But Reddick spun in Turn 4 underneath Allgaier’s Chevrolet, knocking the right rear of Allgaier’s car into the outside wall. Brandon Jones sped past and scored the stage victory under caution.

Stage 2 was even more bizarre. Reddick worked his way back to second, passing Allgaier for the position with eight laps left in the stage. Kyle Busch was first to the green-checkered flag on Lap 170, but his engine had begun to fail with five laps left and gave up the ghost as he crossed the start-finish line.

That came long after championship contenders Christopher Bell and Cole Custer and Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series regulars Erik Jones and Joey Logano all sustained serious damage to their cars in a multi-car pileup on Lap 37.

Custer went three-wide on the top to pass the lapped car of Matt Mills, who moved up the track, pinching Custer’s No. 00 Ford into the outside wall. Custer’s car bounced off the wall and slammed into Bell’s Toyota, sending both cars sliding sideways. With no clear lane, Jones plowed into Custer’s car, and Logano’s Ford slid into Jones’ Toyota.

Both Logano and Jones retired from the race. Bell and Custer lost three laps and four laps, respectively, while their teams hustled to repair their cars.

“Typical Bristol crash,” Logano said. “You see them wrecking in front of you, and you’re on the brakes as hard as you can, and they just keep piling in, and you can’t stop quick enough. Some of that comes from a poor qualifying effort and from that you get caught up in things.

“I thought we were OK. Even saying that, we were still up to seventh or eighth. We weren’t that far back from starting 19th. We were picking our way through there, but it just happens.”

Posted on August 16, 2019August 17, 2019 by Terrin Waack

BRISTOL, Tenn. — Though there are no irons in the fire right now, Matt DiBenedetto is ready to strike as soon as they’re hot. A team owner needs to show interest in order for that to happen. His future in racing depends on it.

News broke Thursday that DiBenedetto will not be returning to Leavine Family Racing next season.

“I don’t want to retire yet,” DiBenedetto said Friday at Bristol Motor Speedway. “I’m only 28 years old, just getting started. I want to win in the Cup Series. That’s my goal. I’m here to keep climbing the ladder, not go backward.”

DiBenedetto has been a full-time fixture in the Monster Energy Series for five seasons now. This was his first in LFR’s No. 95 Toyota, though. He used to race for BK Racing (2015-16) and Go Fas Racing (2017-18).

Next year is now up in the air, yet one thing is for sure: Cup is the only option.

“I want to win in Cup, so whatever gets me there,” DiBenedetto said. “… I’m not just going to be like, ‘Oh, this is a job and this will pay the bills. I’d rather live in a box knowing I put it all out there versus just taking a job.”

Through 163 starts in the premier ranks, DiBenedetto has notched two top-five finishes and eight top-10 showings. Both of the top-fivers and half of the top-10s were both this season.

DiBenedetto should start Saturday’s Bristol Night Race (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN/NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) seventh, clocking a qualifying lap of 14.937 seconds (128.46 mph) around the .533-mile track. He had the fastest time in Friday’s second practice and fourth-best in the first.

Overall, DiBenedetto is currently ranked 23rd in the championship standings with 397 points (leader Kyle Busch has 892; cutline Clint Bowyer has 559) with three regular-season races left until the 16-driver playoff field is set.

“Matt, in my opinion, has been doing an incredible job and he deserves to keep that ride,” Stewart-Hass Racing’s Daniel Suarez said. “I was very surprised to see that. If he wasn’t performing, well, he didn’t perform, right? I think he’s doing a better job than what people were expecting and what the team was expecting. So, it’s a little bit disappointing to see a good driver and a good guy to have something like that.

“All I can do is wish him the best, and hopefully he can find somewhere that actually trusts in him and trusts in him for real, not just for a year.”

Similar sentiments run strong throughout the field — competition or not.

“I can’t imagine what he’s going through and his thought process,” Joe Gibbs Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. said. “It’s difficult. Tough time in the sport, it just is. I feel for him. He’s a good guy. He’s done an awesome job in that car, and hopefully he’ll get a good opportunity somewhere.”

The support has not only helped DiBenedetto personally get through this tough time with his head held high, it has also helped him reassure his wife. He said she has been a “big ball of tears.” Messages from fellow drivers and other owners, though, are visible proof DiBenedetto has been doing something right this season.

Hopes are it’s only a matter of time before any new opportunity arises.

“She knows, I think in her heart, my whole life I’ve always prevailed,” DiBenedetto said. “I’ve always pulled something out and kept on opening better doors. It’s all happened for a reason, so I think she knows that.

“But, of course, you wouldn’t be human if you weren’t worried.”

Posted on August 16, 2019August 16, 2019 by Reid Spencer

BRISTOL, Tenn. – Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson played a late game of King of the Mountain in Friday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series time trials at Bristol Motor Speedway.

After 38 drivers made qualifying runs, it was Hamlin who was left at the top of the peak.

RELATED: Unofficial qualifying results

Larson was the 34th driver to take to the track, and his impressive lap at 129.004 mph (14.874 seconds) put him on the provisional pole for Saturday’s Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race (7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Larson’s stay on the pinnacle, however, lasted less than a minute, as Hamlin followed with a lap at 129.330 mph (14.848 seconds) to secure his first Busch Pole Award of the season, his fourth at the .533-mile high-banked concrete short track and the 31st of his career.

Strapped in his car as he readied for his run, Hamlin was unaware that Larson had jumped to the top of the speed chart. Even when he came to the media center for his post-qualifying interview, Hamlin thought he had beaten Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Martin Truex Jr. to earn the first pole position of the season for Toyota.

“It was Larson?” Hamlin asked. “I was wondering why he was giving me the finger when he went by. I thought it was Martin — even better.”

Based on practice, though, Hamlin was confident he could make a run at the top starting position.

“I was confident, as long as the crew chief (Chris Gabehart) did his job, and I did my job, we definitely had a chance,” Hamlin said. “I’m proud of this whole team for giving me such a great car. The guys are on it right now — it’s just unbelievable what they’re doing with these race cars.

“I’m just trying to learn every week, doing everything I can to get better, and the results are showing it.”

Hamlin has three victories this season, his most since an equal number in 2016, and he comes to Bristol riding a wave of five straight top fives and four straight top-three finishes, including a win at Pocono.

Larson, on the other hand, hopes to break a winless streak of 69 races, dating to Sept. 9, 2017 at Richmond.

“I was just a little bit too tight to kind of roll through the center like I needed to and get to the gas just a little bit sooner,” Larson said of his qualifying run. “But, overall, I’m happy with how we qualified and the grip I had in my car. In practice, I was really loose. So hopefully we’ll have a good race tomorrow and try and get my first Bristol Cup win.”

Bristol is one of Larson’s favorite tracks, and he believes that the top groove will open up during the course of Saturday’s race, whereas the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Trucks on Thursday night seemed dedicated to the lower lanes.

“We got up there enough in practice, and honestly, it felt so far the same (as in previous races),” Larson said. “But you never know how it’s going to lay rubber down up there and things like that.”

Truex (128.995 mph) will start third, followed by Kurt Busch (128.813 mph). Aric Almirola claimed the fifth spot on the grid in the fastest Ford at 128.770 mph.

Among the four drivers fighting most closely for the final two spots in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, Ryan Newman will start 14th, Daniel Suarez 18th, Clint Bowyer 20th and Jimmie Johnson 30th. Newman and Bowyer currently occupy the last two provisional playoff berths, with Suarez six points behind Bowyer in 16th and Johnson 12 points in arrears.

Posted on August 16, 2019August 17, 2019 by Holly Cain

If positive energy and the right mindset alone were enough to land Clint Bowyer in the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, then the Stewart-Haas Racing driver would be leading the championship charge.

The good vibes will be helpful, however, as Bowyer has three regular-season races remaining to hold on to a playoff position. His positive mindset was on full display Friday following opening practice at Bristol Motor Speedway, where the series races Saturday (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). He was playfully trading barbs with reporters, pointing to nostalgic posters on the wall and full of the kind of enthusiasm he will need as the regular season closes out.

RELATED: Driver standings | Bowyer driver page

Bowyer, who was ranked as high as ninth place in the season standings following an early May race in his native Kansas, has been plagued by both bad luck and inconsistency in the weeks since.

He’s had only one top 10 in the last nine races and is coming off a 37th-place finish at Michigan in his No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford.

However, and that’s however with a capital H, despite the tough summer months, Bowyer is ranked 16th in the standings — six points up on 17th-place Daniel Suarez and 12 points up on 18th-place Jimmie Johnson. He trails 15th-place Ryan Newman by 10.

The top 16 in the driver standings following the Sept. 8 regular-season finale at Indianapolis Motor Speedway will advance to the 10-race playoffs that begin Sept. 15 at Las Vegas.

“Every time I get that feeling, ‘You’re in a good place, just ride right here,’ something happens,” Bowyer said. “A flat tire in Watkins (Glen) leading up to last weekend. Things were going good and we were gonna put probably a 30-pad on what we needed to. I mean, literally just trying to get to the end of the thing and survive, and couldn’t. So snake-bit, I’m definitely feeling that.’’

If a fond feeling for a venue can make even a subtle difference, then Bowyer should feel good about his chances at Bristol. He has never won a Cup race on the famous half-mile high-banks, but was runner-up in 2017. He led 120 laps and finished sixth in this night race last year and led 24 laps and finished seventh in the Bristol spring race earlier this season.

Beyond his performance at Bristol — 14 top 10s and seven top-five finishes in 27 starts — Bowyer just likes the facility and the atmosphere.

“Anybody that hates this place shouldn’t be in racing because this is the mecca of all race tracks,’’ Bowyer said. “This is the granddaddy of them all. There’s no question.

“A fan, if they want to be a fan of this sport, they need to learn short-track racing and they need to learn of Bristol Motor Speedway,’’ Bowyer continued. “There’s not a fan, a family member, a friend, anybody that I know that I wouldn’t point in the direction of Bristol Motor Speedway, so as a racer on the track, it’s no different.’’

And for the challenges of what is unfailingly a busy, action-packed night of racing, Bowyer says that’s exactly the draw for him. Bristol provides the sort of “old-school, hard-knocks” competition that attracted him to stock car racing.

“Just the unknown, being able to go for it, being able to not worry about an aero push or horsepower deficit or whatever the case may be — get ahold of the steering wheel, get ahold of the gas pedal and make something happen and this is a track where you can do that.”

MORE: Best lap averages at Bristol

Posted on August 16, 2019August 16, 2019 by Staff Report

BRISTOL, Tenn. — NASCAR officials announced Friday that the Richard Childress Racing No. 2 Chevrolet driven by Xfinity Series points leader Tyler Reddick was handed an L1-level penalty after failing pre-race inspection four times at Bristol Motor Speedway.

The inspection issues mean that the RCR No. 2 will not be allowed to qualify and will start at the rear of the field for Friday night’s Food City 300 (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, PRN, SiriusXM). Additionally, Reddick will serve a pass-through penalty with a trip down pit road after the green flag.

RELATED: Bristol weekend schedule

NASCAR officials also ejected No. 2 car chief Cam Strader for the remainder of the weekend and tacked on 10-point deductions in both the drivers standings and team owner standings.

Reddick, the series’ defending champion, has three Xfinity Series wins this season. He rides a streak of five consecutive top-five finishes heading into Friday night’s 300-lap event.

Posted on August 16, 2019 by Terrin Waack

BRISTOL, Tenn. — Family finished first in this race.

David Ragan is retiring as a full-time NASCAR driver after this season to spend more time at home. The 33-year-old who has been in the sport since the age of 18 and his wife, Jacquelyn, have two daughters he wants to be around more. Julia is the eldest at 5; Meredith is 3.

“One of the things that was kind of a catalyst to this decision was they have some interest in different things they haven’t been able to do because of my schedule,” Ragan said Friday at Bristol Motor Speedway. “They can’t go and do extra gymnastics on the weekends or go to swim lessons because I’m leaving to go to the track or I’ve got a commitment somewhere. … I think it’s an important time in their years as they’re developing and growing older – learning the difference between right and wrong – that I’m there to show them, teach them and love them.”

Currently in the middle of his third consecutive year driving the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford, Ragan is ranked 30th in the Monster Energy Series champion standings with 256 points – for perspective, leader Kyle Busch has 892 – and his place in the standings did play a minor part in his Wednesday announcement that he will retire, he said. His last win was in 2013, and he has two Cup victories and 15 top fives since he began competing in the series full time in 2007. The highest he has ever finished in the standings is 13th in 2008.

The season isn’t over, though. There are three races, starting with Saturday’s Bristol Night Race (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN/NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), until the NASCAR Playoffs begin. Ragan’s hope is to right the ship and have a sold, final run with his team.

“We admire David for making what I’m sure was a very difficult decision,” Front Row Motorsports team owner Bob Jenkins said of Ragan’s retirement in a statement. “We also commend him for his reason. David has always put family first, and as a father, I understand what it’s like to not be at that game or big event for your child.”

When Ragan looks back on his career, sure, he’d like to have won a title. But he’s not willing to stick around and see if that’ll eventually happen. The sacrifice is too large.

“I think, first off, we should be remembered for who we are, not the accomplishments that we had, the trophies that we had and the amount of zeros in our bank account,” Ragan said. “Those are material things that come and go. When I’m dead in the ground down the road, that stuff doesn’t make any difference. It’s the impact you have on others and what you do for your family, for others that you care about. So, I hope (people) remember me as a good guy, a guy who loves the Lord, loves my family and loves racing. That’s who I am.”

There are specific events – the Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway and the Eldora Dirty Derby at Eldora Speedway – Ragan would love to participate in now that he’ll have a rather open schedule. Short tracks and late models are also on his radar. He could even break out his Legends car again.

Future plans include an increased involvement with Shriners Hospitals for Children, a sponsor he has a strong relationship with outside of work, too.

Then his TV deal with FOX as an analyst on RaceHub will be further discussed.

Long story short: Ragan will be around the racing world, still. Just not as much. Other responsibilities will take precedence.

“Gymnastics and swimming coach,” he said. “We’ll see how that goes. That’s a real-life stress.”

Posted on August 16, 2019 by Team Release

HARRISBURG, N.C. (AUGUST 16, 2019) – For Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Rookie of the Year contender Ryan Preece, his first Darlington Raceway throwback weekend means more than a new paint scheme. Preece and the No. 47 Kroger team will tribute Ron Bouchard, who not only raced the No. 47 in the NASCAR Cup Series from 1981-1987, but also raced for Bob Judkins, Preece’s grandfather who passed in October 2018.

The No. 47 Kroger Camaro ZL1 resembles the No. 47 Majik Market/Hawaiian Punch car, driven by Bouchard at Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway in 1984. Preece and Bouchard both began their racing careers at their roots in the Northeast, racing short tracks locally in the Modified Series. Bouchard, a native of Fitchburg, Massachusetts, won track championships at Stafford Motor Speedway, Thompson Speedway and Seekonk Speedway racing for Judkins before moving up to what was then known as NASCAR’s Grand National Division in 1981.

“This paint scheme means more to me than just running a throwback,” Preece said. “We lost my grandfather in October, and this is the perfect way to honor someone that meant so much to me in my racing career. Not only in the Modified Series but persuading me to continue fighting for my dream of racing in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. I couldn’t think of a more perfect way to run my first Cup race at Darlington Raceway, and I’m so grateful to Kroger for allowing us to race a paint scheme that Ron raced during his NASCAR tenure.”

PHOTOS: Every Darlington throwback scheme

Judkins, a legendary team owner in the Modified racing world, passed on Oct. 25, 2018. Judkins began building Modified cars in the 1960s, fielding cars for a multitude of top drivers including Ed Flemke Sr., Bugsy Stevens, Ron Bouchard, Brett Bodine and Jerry Marquis. Judkins was also the driving force behind what became known in Modified racing in the early 1970s as the “Pinto Revolution.”

In addition to running the same number, running in the Modified Series in the Northeast and Bouchard racing for Judkins, Bouchard and Preece have one final thing in common. Bouchard won Rookie of the Year in 1981 driving the No. 47 despite running only 22 races. Preece is in the hunt for the Rookie of the Year battle in his first season driving the No. 47 Kroger Camaro ZL1.

Bouchard began his career as a standout Modified driver, but pulled off one of NASCAR’s most stunning victories when he shot from third to first on the final lap at Talladega Superspeedway (then known as Alabama International Motor Speedway), passing Darrell Waltrip and Terry Labonte to score his lone premier series victory coming in just his 11th start during his rookie season.

The Bojangles’ Southern 500 from Darlington Raceway waves the green flag on Sunday, Sept. 1 at 6 pm ET broadcast on NBCSN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.