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DAVID RAGAN
David Ragan began racing in the Bandolero Series in 1997, at 11 years old. Under the guidance of his father, former Winston Cup driver, Ken Ragan, David had years of experience instilled in him before he ever hit the racetrack. Not wanting to be known as just the son of a former driver, David made sure to let his on-track performance prove that he was out to establish his own reputation. He accomplished his goal, winning 12 races and the National Championship in just his second year of competition.
David continued to race in the Bandolero Series for the next two years, again winning the National Championship in 1999. He progressed to a full-size car soon after when he began competing in the Goody’s Dash Series. This move would help him prepare for the next step in his career.
David partnered with Dash Series driver, Cam Strader, and went to work in his shop. The experience he gained would prove invaluable to his future. When they were not getting the Dash cars ready to run, they were working on two late model cars that David would run the following year.
David ran several late model races across the southeast in 2002. Still too young to compete in the NASCAR divisions, David made sure he was running the most comparable equipment possible. He began his relationship with Mark Martin, driving for him in the Legends Pro-Division, finishing fourth in series points out of 60 plus drivers.
As soon as he turned 18, David made his first foray in NASCAR, running select Craftsman Truck and Busch Series events, along with a limited ARCA schedule. He started second in his first ARCA start, and led a number of laps before a cut tire took him out of contention. It was obvious his hard work and preparation were well on the way to paying off, and David was on his way to making it in NASCAR’s premier series.
After participating in Roush’s “Driver X” competition in 2005, Ragan was selected as co-driver of the No.6 Roush Racing Ford F-150 with teammate, Mark Martin. In the 19 races that David started in the Craftsman Truck Series he was able to achieve one top five, eight top 10s and one pole. He also competed in a select number of Busch and Cup Series events.
David’s hard work really paid off towards the end of the 2006 season when he was selected by Jack Roush to be the driver of the No. 6 AAA Ford Fusion in 2007. David finished off the season as runner up for the Rookie of the Year title in the NEXTEL Cup Series and was named the Rookie of the Year in the NASCAR Busch Series.
Ragan concluded his rookie season in the Cup Series with two top-five finishes. His first came when he finished fifth in the Daytona 500 in February 2007 and then again when he crossed the finish line in third place at Richmond in the fall.
The 2008, season marked Ragan’s sophomore season in the Sprint Cup Series. In just his second year competing full-time in the series, Ragan finished 13th in the point standings and earned six top-five and 14 top-10 finishes all while barely missing the cut off for the Chase. Ragan led the Sprint Cup Series in number of laps completed and earned the respect of many of the veterans in the sport. On top of competing full time in the Sprint Cup Series, Ragan also was one of four drivers that pulled double duty competing full-time in the Nationwide Series as well. Ragan finished out the Nationwide Series fourth in the point standings with seven top-five and 21 top-10 finishes.
In 2009, Ragan will run the full Sprint Cup Series schedule in the No. 6 UPS Ford Fusion while cutting back to a partial schedule in the Nationwide Series.
