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Monster Mile Gives Ragan a Rough Ride at Dover Busch Race |
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Dover, Del. (June 2, 2007)
David Ragan and the No. 6 Discount Tire Ford Fusion
team endured one of the toughest days of the season
at Dover International Speedway. Ragan was primed
for a good run after a great qualifying run, starting
7th in the field. Ragan was consistently in the
top-15 most of the day, but a pit road violation on
lap 117 would send him to the back of the field where
danger lurked just a few laps later. Ragan got caught
up in a wreck ahead of him on lap 125. It was an
unlucky break and disappointing end to a promising
weekend. |
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It was an extremely hot afternoon in Dover and the
fireworks would fly early on in the race. On lap
nine a two-car wreck off of turn two would set the
tone for the entire afternoon. The race went under
caution for the next five laps. |
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Green-flag racing resumed on lap 16 with Ragan
running in the 9th position. The Ford Fusion was
as fast as any car on the track for the first 20
laps. But on lap 37 Ragan radioed the car was
tight center off and rigid all the way through
the corners. A much needed caution would fly
on the same lap. |
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Crew chief Mike Kelley ordered Ragan to pit on
lap 39 so they could address the handling problem.
Kelley called for an air pressure adjustment in
the right rear, four tires and fuel. Ragan would
pick up one position after a great effort by the
Discount Tire pit crew during the stop. |
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Ragan picked up two positions over the next 40
laps and it appeared the Discount Tire Ford Fusion
had finally come to life. But on lap 84 Ragan said
the air pressure was off and the car was increasingly
difficult to handle. The caution would fly again a
lap later and Ragan would make his second pit stop
on lap 86. Kelley ordered four tires, fuel and
another air pressure adjustment in the right front
and rear. The No. 6 Discount Tire Ford Fusion would
exit the pit stall in the 13th position. Ragan raced
all over the running order for the next 25 laps
climbing as high as the 11th position. |
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A debris caution would halt the action on lap 116.
Upon entering the pit stall on lap 117 Kelley ordered
a track bar adjustment, fuel and two tires. This
move was made to increase track position, but it
was impeded when NASCAR penalized Ragan for speeding
on to pit road. The penalty sent Ragan back around
to the pit stall and left him in the 21st position
on the restart. The Discount Tire team was optimistic
they could make up track position if they got a long
green flag run. The race went green on lap 123 but
obstacles lurked just two laps later. The No. 7 car
driven by Mike Wallace got loose and hit the wall
hard on the front-stretch. Ragan was driving on the
high side of the track when he tried to go low to
avoid a spinning Wallace. He was unable to avoid him,
hitting the right rear of the No. 7 then bouncing off
two other hard charging cars. The Discount Tire Ford
Fusion had severe front-end damage. |
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It was a bad break for Ragan and the Discount Tire team. |
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"It was a disappointing day for the No. 6 Discount
Tire team," said Ragan. "This was on me today. I
saw the wreck in front of me and I didn't slow down
enough. I thought I could avoid it but I was wrong.
We should have never been in that position in the
first place. We had a very fast car today. I have
no doubt in my mind that we could have made some
noise and challenged for a top-five finish. All
we can do is learn from this experience and focus
on next week." |
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The 32nd-place finish leaves Ragan 12th in the Busch
Series point standings. Ragan and the team will
return to action next Saturday, June 9th at
Nashville Superspeedway. |
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About Roush Fenway Racing
Roush Fenway Racing is NASCAR's largest team operating 13 motorsports teams,
five in NASCAR NEXTEL Cup with drivers Matt Kenseth, Jamie McMurray, Greg Biffle,
Carl Edwards and David Ragan; five in the Busch Series with Kenseth, Biffle,
Edwards, McMurray, Ragan, Todd Kluever, Michel Jourdain Jr. and Danny O'Quinn Jr.;
and three in the Craftsman Truck Series with Edwards, Peter Shepherd, Travis Kvapil
and Erik Darnell. 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. |
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