NASCAR At Daytona International Speedway: David Ragan Wins Wild Coke Zero 400

When David Ragan made his transition into the big leagues of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, there were high hopes and even higher expectations. Over the past five seasons however, Ragan has struggled to live up to those expectations.

The young driver had a solid season in 2008, scoring six top-fives and 14 top-10s to finish 13th in the final season standings, but the following two seasons failed to produce consistent performances. Questions began to arise about whether UPS would return as the team’s sponsor, as well as Ragan’s future with Roush Fenway Racing.

Saturday night’s Coke Zero 400 once again featured the two-car tandem drafting partners throughout the night, making for some interesting racing throughout the event. At the end of the night, David Ragan was able to charge to the front with a push from teammate Matt Kenseth while the field wrecked behind them.

Here is what a few of the competitors had to say following the race:

David Ragan’s Daytona International Speedway victory on Saturday night moved him up three spots in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series point standings – and into a coveted wild card position for the Chase.

With one win apiece, Ragan and Denny Hamlin (11th) currently occupy the wild card spots – which are awarded to the drivers in positions 11-20.

Jeff Gordon made one of the most memorable saves of the season on Saturday night at Daytona International Speedway when he was spun in the middle of a pack with three laps to go – but didn’t hit anything.

Even more amazing? After his night looked like it was practically over, he rallied to finish sixth.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. teed off on the tandem-style of racing after a 19th-place result at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday night, calling it a “foolish frickin’ race.”

After the media asked him his opinion of the night’s racing, Earnhardt Jr. – who has made it well known he dislikes this type of racing and prefers controlling his own destiny – began to vent.

The finish to Saturday night’s Coke Zero 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race from Daytona International Speedway was as wild as expected, as it was extended into two attempts at a Green-White-Checkered finish.

While the two-car tandem of David Ragan and Matt Kenseth were working to hold off the tandem of Joey Logano and Kasey Kahne on the white flag lap, the field jockeyed for position behind them as they raced around for the final time.

Roush Fenway Racing’s David Ragan opened the door for Trevor Bayne in February’s Daytona 500 when a late-race penalty for changing lanes before the restart ruined the young driver’s dreams. But on Saturday night, Ragan was able to make up for the mistake by scoring his first career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.

Running strong throughout the night and surviving two green-white-checkered restarts, Ragan was able to use a strong push from teammate Matt Kenseth to pull ahead of the rest of the field as they wrecked behind him, resulting in a much-needed victory.

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Danica Patrick emerged from the JR Motorsports team hauler right about the time her crew was wheeling her wrecked No. 7 car to the lift gate.

Patrick glanced at the demolished front end of the car and the pancaked right side. And she smiled.

Mark Martin captured the pole for Saturday night’s Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway on Friday afternoon, knocking Daytona 500 winner Trevor Bayne from the top spot with just five cars to go in the qualifying session.

Martin, the elder statesman of Hendrick Motorsports and the NASCAR garage, picked up his 50th career pole and will lead the Daytona starting lineup thanks to his lap of 182.065 mph. Bayne’s lap was 182.002 mph.

Carl Edwards first realized just how devoted some NASCAR fans can be when he encountered a fan named Andy at the track formerly known as Indianapolis Raceway Park.

Here’s Edwards’ story:

Last weekend at Infineon Raceway, Tony Stewart made it clear he had enough of drivers blocking.

On Friday at Daytona International Speedway, he reasserted his position, saying others in the garage agree with his point. Talking about the incident with Brian Vickers – the driver he wrecked at Sonoma for blocking – Stewart said he had simply hit a point in which he had enough.

Five-time Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson stopped by the pediatrics unit of Daytona Beach’s Halifax Health medical center on Friday to deliver ice cream to patients and their families.

Johnson hosted an ice cream party for some of the kids, then loaded up a tray full of various Blue Bunny desserts and went room-to-room making deliveries before heading to Daytona International Speedway for Cup qualifying.

Moist, unsettled air will continue to dominate across central and northern Florida for Friday. I am expecting another repeat performance of the showers and storms. The toughest part of this forecast is not if it will rain, but when and for how long it will rain – and how long the no-rain windows are.

From what I have learned over the years, it can take anywhere from two to three hours to completely dry Daytona International Speedway. Any shower or storm that forms will have access to plenty of moisture in the atmosphere, so expect any rain to come down heavy. Best time for all of this activity will be afternoon into the early evening. Like Thursday, there will be clusters of showers and storms, which can last for a few minutes to possibly an hour or two.

Unless you’re skilled at reading between the lines, Danica Patrick said little about her NASCAR future on Thursday at Daytona International Speedway.

Patrick, widely speculated to be making a full-time move to NASCAR next season, said she still doesn’t know if it’ll happen yet.

No matter what their background, all of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers grew up with the same mentality: During races, you have no friends.

But since two-car drafting came into prominence at the Daytona 500 this season, drivers have realized they must work with a partner to win a restrictor-plate race. And for Dale Earnhardt Jr., that concept just isn’t right.

After Sunday’s Sprint Cup Series race at Sonoma, Kyle Busch walked up to a startled Kevin Harvick and extended his hand.

According to Queers4Gears.com, which captured the moment with a photo, Busch told Harvick “Good race.” Later, Harvick tweeted that he thought Busch’s gesture of sportsmanship between the two rivals was “weird.”

Almost every week in SB Nation’s crowd noise ratings from the pre-race driver introductions, Jeff Gordon gets a result of “mostly cheers” – and even all cheers, in some cases.

But just a few years ago, Gordon would get mostly boos or a 50-50 mix, at best. And before that, of course, it was a Kyle Busch level of boos.