That just didn’t realize that “one day” would be on May 5, 2013.
Ragan captured the first victory in the nine-year history of the organization Sunday at Talladega Superspeedway. The team had made 411 starts with just two top-five and four top-10 finishes before Ragan took the checkered flag in the Aaron’s 499.
“You always believe that it can happen, but I don't know that I ever really practiced my victory lane speech in my head or anything,” said Ragan, who earned his second career Cup win. “I didn't think about it that much.
“But absolutely you believe in yourself, your team.”
The team, founded by restaurant owner Bob Jenkins, has put three full-time cars in most races the last four years. One of those has been a start-and-park on several occasions.
Using Roush-Yates Engines the last few years, the team often has bought cars from other teams and repurposed them for its own use. It also has built several of its own cars.
Not only did Ragan win, he was pushed to the victory by teammate David Gilliland. Both drivers had come from bigger Ford organizations – Gilliland from what was Yates Racing and Ragan from Roush Fenway Racing — after they no longer had those big-time rides.
“There's a lot of owners out there that they get the best available driver they can get, and they're like a hired gun,” Jenkins said. “But the thing that I think makes our team different than some of the rest is we're so close, and more than anything we're friends.
“I know I've got drivers that are capable of winning races.”
Ragan’s 28th-place finish in the standings last year was the team’s best driver finish in the points.
“The thing that makes him so different from a lot of other drivers is his expectations of himself and his team never changed, and he brought that to Front Row,” Jenkins said. “He didn't look at it as if, ‘Hey, I'm taking a step down here. I realize I'm going to be a backmarker or whatever.’
“He continues to expect a lot out of himself and a lot out of his team, and I think what happened is people bought into that and they followed behind him and we've seen results from it.”
Ragan has an experienced crew chief in Guy, who has served stints at Penske Racing and Furniture Row Racing.
“Did I think when I woke up this morning that we were going to be sitting here today? No,” Guy said. “I thought we had a good shot at being in the top 10 solidly. Last year we finished seventh and fourth, but that's last year. You can't live off what you did yesterday.
“But I thought our pit crew has taken a big step forward, and our team has gotten stronger as a whole. I thought we had a chance, but to be up here today, I'd be lying if I said, ‘Yeah, I expected to be here.’”
So what happens next? Does this team just go to Darlington and have finishes like it did last year, where Gilliland was 25th, Ragan was 28th and Josh Wise parked it in 43rd.
“It goes a long way for our guys that work six days a week that don't get to enjoy the racetrack perks of traveling every weekend,” Ragan said. “It gives them some confidence and hope, and it's a big thing.”
The team often has the logos of Jenkins’ restaurants (Taco Bell and others) on its cars but had gotten money from Farm Rich foods for Ragan and Love’s Travel Stops for Gilliland for Talladega.
“(This) gives them the (sponsors the) confidence that we haven't been telling them a story or we're lying to them,” Ragan said. “We know we're getting better, that we're working hard.
“They've took a chance on us, and we've worked hard and we've done what we said we're going to do.”
The team didn’t necessarily back up its talk this year. It had just one top-20 finish — a 20th by Ragan a week earlier at Richmond.
“We're up against it every week,” Gilliland said. “There's weeks we don't have enough (new) tires to put on our car so we've got to put scuffs on and everything else and then race against guys that have stickers.
“We're just continuing to build and for Front Row Motorsports, a one two finish and to be there to help make that possible is very special for me.”
Gilliland also hopes that the 1-2 finish does more than just be a special day.
“It's definitely big for us,” Gilliland said. “I know Frank Kerr, my new crew chief, has a big wish list of parts and pieces for our race cars, trying to make them lighter and faster.
“I'm sure he'll get a couple of those, so hopefully that'll help.”
Jenkins probably knows those requests are coming. He fights a tight budget daily.
“The challenge for me is as we build cars to make them better every week and put ourselves in a position to win a race,” Jenkins said.
“That's what happened today. … It's so satisfying that over the last nine years every year we've gotten a little bit better, and I felt the progress and I knew it was just a matter of time before we'd win one of these things.”
source: aol.sportingnews.com
