JJ Yeley netted a solid top 10 result at Atlanta. (Photo: Trish McCormack | The Podium Finish)
HAMPTON, Ga. – Despite racing a limited NASCAR Cup Series schedule, JJ Yeley has tallied competitive results for Rick Ware Racing.
Yeley, who has raced Rick Ware’s Nos. 15 and 51 Ford Mustangs at different points of the season, had a performance for the ages. The 46-year-old Phoenix native showcased his agility and race craft alongside Rick Ware’s incredible attention to details in 2023.
Prior to last Sunday’s Quaker State 400 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Yeley tallied six top 25 results in his past 12 starts. Notably, the veteran racer finished 11th at Talladega and 16th in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte.
By far, Rick Ware Racing had its most competitive outing this year with Yeley working his way from his 24th starting position. Despite slipping to a 31st place finish in Stage 1, he kept himself in contention without panic, driving to a 21st place Stage 2 result.
As drivers and teams raced against the impending storms to the west of the 1.54-mile quad-oval, different strategies were deployed. The field primarily split between the aggressive, track position game versus the conservative, long ball effort by pitting for tires and fuel.
In this case, Yeley genuinely kept himself in the hunt, particularly as a genuine top 10 runner. Before the final caution for a Turn 3 incident involving Bubba Wallace, Ryan Preece and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. on Lap 179, the Arizonan worked his way up to seventh.
Although rain eventually shortened an otherwise eventful race, Yeley and his No. 15 Patriot Mobile Ford Mustang entry tallied a solid seventh place result. By all means, he was pleased with his first top 10 result since the 2013 Daytona 500.
Last Sunday’s strong performance by Yeley and the No. 15 Rick Ware Racing Ford entry showcased the benefits of a recently established technical alliance. (Photo: Kevin Ritchie | The Podium Finish)
“There’s no complaints from me,” Yeley said to NASCAR on NBC’s Dustin Long. “I can guarantee you that Rick Ware is not going to complain. We’ve been in the top 10 for quite a while and had some great runs.”
Prior to the 2023 season, Rick Ware Racing established a technical alliance with RFK Racing. With the latter having a remarkable turnaround from last year, it should not be a total shock to see the Ware-owned team following suit.
“We’re in the middle of the season,” he said. “We’re learning a lot of things. I think just running well, building our credibility also gives us a little more credibility with RFK and that will continue to help us make us faster.”
Pace and strength have been prevalent with this multidiscipline motorsports organization. All things considered, Yeley observed how the longtime stock car team is reaping the benefits and maximizing their alliance on a weekly basis.
“It’s been awesome,” he said. “Their relationship is the key to why we are where we are. They’ve really taken upper management, our crew chiefs and showed them things and really helped mold these cars.
“They’re still new but there’s so many small things that make a difference in speed in these cars. We just didn’t know these things. We didn’t have that access and we have it now. And we have fast racecars.”
