 |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
Ragan Regains Form With Top-Ten Finish at Texas |
|
|
|
|
|
Fort Worth, Texas (April 5, 2008)
David Ragan and the No. 6 Discount Tire team regained their form this weekend at Texas Motor
Speedway. The team had struggled a bit in Nashville but bounced back with a great run in the
Nationwide Series O'Reilly 300 on Saturday afternoon. The field was set by owner points due
to inclement weather on Thursday evening. Ragan rolled of the starting grid in the seventh
position and stayed in the top 10 for much of the race, securing a brilliant eighth-place
finish when all was said and done. |
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
It was a beautiful day at Texas Motor Speedway. The temperature at the start of the race was
67 degrees. The Discount Tire team was anxious to get back on the track and show what they
could do after a lackluster performance in recent weeks. The team had average practices on
Thursday, but crew chief Mike Kelley thought the Discount Tire Ford Fusion would react
brilliantly during race conditions. Ragan was instructed by Kelley to stay aggressive early
and try to stay in the lead pack. Ragan did just that, running in the seventh position the
first 25 laps. |
|
|
|
|
|
On lap 34 Ragan commented his Ford Fusion was a little tight on late exit. The handling problems
continued for the next 10 laps. Ragan fell to the 12th position, but a green-flag pit stop was
just a few laps away. Ragan was called to the pits on lap 56 for major adjustments. Kelley
ordered four tires, fuel, an air pressure adjustment and a wedge adjustment. Upon exiting the
pit stall Ragan was in the 15th position. |
|
|
|
|
|
Ragan maneuvered through the pack the next 30 laps running the high line on the race track. Ragan
found some speed during the long green-flag run, gaining three positions and settling in the 13th
position by lap 80. A debris caution slowed the action on lap 91. Ragan said his Ford Fusion was
loose through the middle. Ragan was called to the pits on lap 93. Kelley called for four tires,
fuel and a track bar adjustment. |
|
|
|
|
|
Ragan restarted on lap 96 in the 11th position. Ragan proceeded to lay down some of the most
impressive lap times of the young season. Ragan gained four positions the next 50 laps and was
the fastest car on the track on lap 150. |
|
|
|
|
|
The Discount Tire team braced for one last green-flag pit stop. On lap 153 Kelley ordered Ragan
to the pit stall for four tires and fuel. A great effort by the pit crew put Ragan in the eighth
position upon exiting the pits. The caution flew just three laps later when the No. 41 hit the
wall in turn four. Kelley told Ragan to stay out and take advantage of the good track position.
It was a great call that allowed Ragan to stay in the eighth position when racing resumed on lap
159. For the next 20 laps Ragan put on a dazzling display of skill and patience, fighting through
lapped car traffic and passing many cars still on the lead lap. On lap 178 Ragan was in the sixth
position and the fastest car on the track. The action was halted yet again when an untimely caution
flew on lap 189. A decision whether to stay out or pit loomed large for the Discount Tire team. |
|
|
|
|
|
Ragan stayed out with the race leaders. On the restart on lap 193 Ragan was in the third position
behind the No.18 of Kyle Busch and the No. 29 of Jeff Burton. Ragan drove his Discount Tire Ford
Fusion like a mad man, trying to keep his track position and fend off other drivers with fresh tires.
Ragan and the Discount Tire team managed to take the checkered in the eighth position. Ragan's fourth
top-ten finish of the season. |
|
|
|
|
|
"This was a nice run for us," said Ragan. "You always want to run a little better than you did,
but what a great rebound from a few weeks ago. We just didn't have enough to secure a top five
there at the end. I was doing everything I could to hold off some of those guys behind me. I
think we made the right call to stay out on the last caution because it may have been too difficult
to get back in that top 10 if we had come to the pits. It was a good run for everyone at Roush
Fenway Racing, a solid point's day." |
|
|
|
|
|
The eighth-place finish leaves Ragan fourth in the Nationwide Series point standings. Ragan and the
team will return to action next Friday, April 11th at Phoenix International Raceway. |
|
|
|
|
|
About Roush Fenway Racing
Roush Fenway Racing is NASCAR's largest team operating 13 motorsports teams,
five in NASCAR Sprint Cup with drivers Matt Kenseth, Jamie McMurray, Greg Biffle,
Carl Edwards and David Ragan; seven in the Nationwide Series with Kenseth, Biffle,
Edwards, McMurray, Ragan, Erik Darnell and Colin Braun; and three in the Craftsman
Truck Series with Braun, Darnell and Joey Clanton; and one in the ARCA/REMAX Series
with Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.
For more information on any of the Roush Fenway Racing teams, log onto
www.RoushFenway.com.
For sponsorship inquiries please contact Robin Johnson at 704.720.4645. |
|
|
|
|
|
Go to: |
|
|
DTC Motorsports Home for the Latest Racing News |
|
|
or |
|
|
The Racing News Archive to read previously featured stories. |
|
|
|
|
