(Photo: Blake Ulino | The Podium Finish)
Daytona is a place where anything can and usually does happen. It is a place where dreams come true, and dreams are crushed.
Both happened this weekend.
Rick Ware Racing had a dream come true day, even if it did require waiting a day to see the green flag fly and having the patience to wait out the three-hour rain delay the following afternoon. In what to most would seem like a vivid dream, near the end of the race both RWR cars, the No. 51 of Cody Ware and the No. 15 of David Ragan had a chance to contend for the win.
The Coke Zero 400 was marred with many incidents involving a large portion of the field. The RWR cars were able to capitalize on other drivers’ misfortunes and were in a position to spoil the day for Ryan Blaney and Martin Truex, Jr., both of whom were fighting for a chance to compete for the NASCAR Cup Series Championship by earning a playoff position. With a scant 16 laps to go, Ware took the green in the third position and Ragan in the ninth position.
The last 16 laps of the race were tame compared to the prior 274 laps, and at the end of those 16 laps, RWR found themselves with two top-10 finishes – Ware in sixth and Ragan in ninth.
With this ninth-place finish, Ragan has completed the All 40 Challenge, finishing in every position, 1-40, in his NASCAR Cup career.
(Photo: Blake Ulino | The Podium Finish)
After the race, Ragan said, “What a crazy three or four days. I feel like this has been a marathon, but a big shout out to Select Blinds.
“Rick is pumped up by two cars in the top ten. You know we had a shot at the win. I thought taking the white flag we really had the momentum, but when we got hung out on the outside, I just didn’t have enough friends with me that last half a lap. So, you know, a great day for our Ford, our Ford Mustang. A lot of fun. We soldiered through. Had a lot of issues to work through but great to come out of here with a top 10 and a chance to win. Thank you to Destination Boat Clubs, Fr8Auctions, and a big thank you to SelectBlinds.com.”
When the checkered flag fell, Ware found himself with a sixth-place finish, his best in the Cup Series.
(Photo: Blake Ulino | The Podium Finish)
“I’m just super proud of everyone with the No. 51 team,” Ware said. “I just want to thank Nurtec ODT and Ford Performance and everybody who has made this possible. There’s a lot more downs than ups in NASCAR, but to be here and to get my first top 10 and have both RWR cars in the top 10 this weekend is phenomenal. I can’t thank Steve Barkdoll and my crew and everyone who was involved in making this happen today.”
