• No Sophomore Slump For No. 6
On the strength of five top 10s in the last seven races, David Ragan has become a serious threat for a 2008 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup berth.
Ragan is in 13th, just 12 points behind 12th-place Clint Bowyer. It is a spot few could have predicted for Ragan, who finished last season 23rd in the series standings. The difference between this season and last year’s rookie campaign is remarkable. Take a look:
David Ragan Through 24 Races (2007 vs. 2008)
Year Avg. Fin. ARP FLR LT15% DR Led
2007 24.8 27.9 43 12.4% 53.9 2
2008 15.9 16.9 97 54.0% 80.3 14
ARP: Average Running Position
FLR: Fastest Laps Run
LT15%: Percentage of Laps in the Top 15
DR: Driver Rating
Led: Laps Led
Two statistics in particular bode well for a Chase berth – and both pertain to the next two races. One, Ragan has been strongest this season on the 1.5- and 2-mile tracks (this weekend’s Pepsi 500 is at Auto Club Speedway, which is two miles long). Of his eight best Driver Ratings this season, four have come at 1.5- or 2-mile tracks.
Track Driver Rating
Talladega 114.3
Daytona 108
Michigan-2 106.1
Martinsville 100
LMS 99.8
Chicagoland 97.6
Darlington 97.5
Michigan-1 93.4
The second promising statistic is his Richmond Driver Rating. Last season at the Richmond cut-off race, Ragan registered a Driver Rating of 90.7 – his best in 2007.
There’s a good chance he’ll top that this season. He already has nine races in 2008 where his Driver Rating surpassed 90.7. He has improved on last season’s Driver Rating in an incredible 22 of 24 races. Below is the race-by-race breakdown of last year compared to this year:
David Ragan Driver Rating (2007 vs. 2008)
Track 2007 2008 Difference
Daytona 52.4 65.6 13.2
ACS 66.7 86.2 19.5
Las Vegas 28.0 83.1 55.1
Atlanta 35.4 61.1 25.7
Bristol 44.6 54.0 9.4
Martinsville 69.9 100.0 30.1
Texas 28.0 83.6 55.6
Phoenix 26.8 73.3 46.5
Talladega 75.1 114.3 39.2
Richmond 66.3 68.1 1.8
Darlington 53.8 97.5 43.7
LMS 64.3 99.8 35.5
Dover 62.1 82.4 20.3
Pocono 45.2 53.9 8.7
Michigan 50.3 93.4 43.1
Infineon 49.6 44.5 -5.1
New Hampshire 68.2 52.4 -15.8
Daytona 69.5 108.0 38.5
Chicagoland 45.1 97.6 52.5
Indianapolis 60.7 89.7 29.0
Pocono 43.2 92.5 49.3
Watkins Glen 36.2 38.4 2.2
Michigan 79.0 106.1 27.1
Bristol 72.0 80.7 8.7
Loop Data Defined: NASCAR statistics generated from electronic scoring loops embedded around each track hosting races in NASCAR’s three national series – the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.
-Mike Forde-
More reports from this category all copyright automobilsport.com.
