David Ragan gunning for another Talladega triumph

By Oct 16, 2013, 5:00 PM EDT
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David Ragan is still getting props.

With the help of his Front Row Motorsports teammate David Gilliland, Ragan was able to beat the odds and deliver the team’s first Sprint Cup victory in a green-white-checkered finish back in May at Talladega Superspeedway.

And with respect to Brian Vickers’ own unlikely triumph this summer at New Hampshire, Ragan and Gilliland’s 1-2 finish may wind up as the most surprising race outcome of the NASCAR season.

Front Row’s victory over the NASCAR powerhouses resonated among many fans as a classic underdog tale. And that’s why months after that wild Talladega night, Ragan continues to hear from those that witnessed it.

“I get it a lot,” Ragan said in a release from Ford while preparing for his return to the 2.66-mile oval this weekend in the Camping World RV Sales 500. “Obviously, a couple of weeks after the Talladega win that was what most everyone talked about, but even six months later I still get fans, friends and guys on the team who relive that day and that moment.

“That’s good because there are a lot of struggles in the world of Sprint Cup racing. Your winning percentage is not anywhere near 50, 40, 30 percent, so it is a tough sport and it’s fun to go back and relive that moment, and it’s neat that a lot of people were watching that evening and enjoyed the win as much as we did.”

Earlier this morning, Front Row announced that both Ragan and Gilliland would return to their camp in 2014 and help continue the team’s progress toward becoming a regular contender.

The Talladega win was certainly a milestone in that progress, and Ragan considers it an even bigger victory for himself than his first career win for the much bigger Roush Fenway Racing in the 2011 Coke Zero 400 at Daytona.

“Both wins were incredible days and big wins, and even the top teams that have won hundreds of races and championships over the year, they still are really, really pumped up when they win a Sprint Cup race,” he said. “But I think [Talladega] will always mean more because it was [Front Row’s] first win.

“This is a building organization with a lot of potential for the future and they’ve only been around for a few years, so to get that first win you’ve got to start with one before you get to two before you get to three, so that’s something that you’ll always remember.”

But while it’s clearly fun for Ragan to reflect on these past memories, he certainly wants another Talladega trophy this weekend. And he knows that in order to get back to Victory Lane at NASCAR’s biggest track, he’ll need to keep out of trouble.

“We know that if we play our cards right, if everyone executes their job with no mistakes, we’ll have a shot to win again,” he said. “But it’s easier said than done. Talladega is a very, very hard track to run 500 miles at with no mistakes.

“Even if you do that with no mistakes and you have a shot to win, it’s hard to do it, but it can be done and we’re looking forward to going back for sure.”

It’s been said that lightning never strikes twice. But Ragan and Front Row will do all they can to make it happen on Sunday.

Ford unveils a new Mustang for 2024 Le Mans in motorsports ‘lifestyle brand’ retooling

Associated PressJun 9, 2023, 7:00 PM EDT
Ford Mustang Le Mans
Ford Performance
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LE MANS, France — Ford has planned a return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans with its iconic Mustang muscle car next year under a massive rebranding of Ford Performance aimed at bringing the automotive manufacturer “into the racing business.”

The Friday unveil of the new Mustang Dark Horse-based race car follows Ford’s announcement in February (and a ballyhooed test at Sebring in March) that it will return to Formula One in 2026 in partnership with reigning world champion Red Bull.

The Mustang will enter the GT3 category next year with at least two cars in both IMSA and the World Endurance Championship, and is hopeful to earn an invitation to next year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. The IMSA entries will be a factory Ford Performance program run by Multimatic, and a customer program in WEC with Proton Competition.

Ford CEO Jim Farley, also an amateur sports car racer, told The Associated Press the Mustang will be available to compete in various GT3 series across the globe to customer teams. But more important, Farley said, is the overall rebranding of Ford Performance – done by renowned motorsports designer Troy Lee – that is aimed at making Ford a lifestyle brand with a sporting mindset.

“It’s kind of like the company finding its own, and rediscovering its icons, and doubling down on them,” Farley told the AP. “And then this motorsports activity is getting serious about connecting enthusiast customers with those rediscovered icons. It’s a big switch for the company – this is really about building strong, iconic vehicles with enthusiasts at the center of our marketing.”

Ford last competed in sports car racing in 2019 as part of a three-year program with Chip Ganassi Racing. The team scored the class win at Le Mans in 2016 in a targeted performance aimed to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Ford snapping Ferrari’s six-year winning streak.

Ford on Friday displayed a Mustang with a Lee-designed livery that showcased the cleaner, simplified look that will soon be featured on all its racing vehicles. The traditional blue oval with Ford Performance in white lettering underneath will now be branded simply FP.

The new mark will be used across car liveries, merchandise and apparel, display assets, parts and accessories and in advertising.

Farley cited Porsche as an automaker that has successfully figured out how to sell cars to consumers and race cars in various series around the world while creating a culture of brand enthusiasts. He believes Ford’s new direction will help the company sell street cars, race cars, boost interest in driving schools, and create a merchandise line that convinces consumers that a stalwart of American automakers is a hip, cool brand.

“We’re going to build a global motorsports business off road and on road,” Farley told the AP, adding that the design of the Mustang is “unapologetically American.”

He lauded the work of Lee, who is considered the top helmet designer among race car drivers.

“We’re in the first inning of a nine inning game, and going to Le Mans is really important,” Farley said. “But for customer cars, getting the graphics right, designing race cars that win at all different levels, and then designing a racing brand for Ford Performance that gets rebranded and elevated is super important.”

He said he’s kept a close eye on how Porsche and Aston Martin have built their motorsports businesses and said Ford will be better.

“We’re going in the exact same direction. We just want to be better than them, that’s all,” Farley said. “Second is the first loser.”

Farley, an avid amateur racer himself, did not travel to Le Mans for the announcement. The race that begins Saturday features an entry from NASCAR, and Ford is the reigning Cup Series champion with Joey Logano and Team Penske.

The NASCAR “Garage 56” entry is a collaboration between Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet and Goodyear, and is being widely celebrated throughout the industry. Farley did feel left out of the party in France – a sentiment NASCAR tried to avoid by inviting many of its partners to attend the race so that it wouldn’t seem like a Chevrolet-only celebration.

“They’re going right and I’m going left – that NASCAR thing is a one-year deal, right? It’s Garage 56 and they can have their NASCAR party, but that’s a one-year party,” Farley said. “We won Le Mans outright four times, we won in the GT class, and we’re coming back with Mustang and it’s not a one-year deal.

“So they can get all excited about Garage 56. I almost see that as a marketing exercise for NASCAR, but for me, that’s a science project,” Farley continued. “I don’t live in a world of science projects. I live in the world of building a vital company that everyone is excited about. To do that, we’re not going to do a Garage 56 – I’ve got to beat Porsche and Aston Martin and Ferrari year after year after year.”

Ford’s announcement comes on the heels of General Motors changing its GT3 strategy next season and ending its factory Corvette program. GM, which unlike Ford competes in the IMSA Grand Touring Prototype division (with its Cadillac brand), will shift fully to a customer model for Corvettes in 2024 (with some factory support in the IMSA GTD Pro category).