It couldn't be much better for Ford
Conversation With Joey Logano
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Logano Finishes Fine Ford Foray
By John Oreovicz
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Joey Logano's victory for Team Penske in the Daytona 500 capped a remarkable 2015 Speedweeks for the Ford Motor Company.
Ford's run of success started in late January when Chip Ganassi Racing triumphed in the Rolex 24 sports car race with a Ford EcoBoost-powered Daytona prototype.
Tyler Reddick followed that by driving an F-150 to his first triumph in the Camping World Truck Series to open the Daytona 500 weekend, and Ryan Reed kept the momentum going by claiming the win in the Xfinity Series on Saturday afternoon -- also a career first.
Logano's victory -- his first and Team Penske's second in the 500 -- was the icing on the cake. Ford has won the Daytona 500 14 times, including three of the past five years.
"What a start for Ford in 2015!" exclaimed Raj Nair, group vice president, global product development for Ford Motor Company.
"We are now 4-for-4 in all the major races we have competed in. We couldn't ask for a better start to the year."
Many of Ford's Daytona winners have been icons of the sport, including Fred Lorenzen (1965), Mario Andretti (1967), Bill Elliott (1985 and '87) and Dale Jarrett (1996 and 2000).
But the Blue Oval brass on hand at Daytona this weekend, including Edsel Ford II, had to sweat out the final laps knowing that Roush Yates-built FR9 engines had already failed for Logano's teammate Brad Keselowski and Ryan Blaney of Penske alliance team Wood Brothers Racing.
To their immense relief, Logano's engine held through the extra laps of a green-white-checkered finish -- and a vigorous victory celebration.
"I asked Todd [Gordon, crew chief] if there was anything I could do to try to protect the engine, because we saw Brad and Ryan had problems," Logano said. "He told me all we could do was go for it and hope for the best.
"This is a really big deal for Ford. They've swept everything here at Daytona this year. The feeling of winning the Daytona 500, I can't explain how cool this is. I said in an interview that this was our worst racetrack last year and we worked really hard to figure out how we could get better at it.
"All the hard work got us the win today."
The victory almost certainly guaranteed Logano one of the 16 berths in the 2015 Chase for the Sprint Cup. Last year, he qualified for the final round at Homestead-Miami Speedway, but a relatively poor race relegated him to fourth place in the final standings.
After winning at his worst track, Logano and the No. 22 team will be looking for a better result at Homestead in November. But that's a long way down the road.
"We're just going to have fun the next 25 weeks [before the Chase starts] and build up those bonus points," team owner Roger Penske said, smiling.
Craven: Breaking Down Logano's Win
By John Oreovicz
Penske Wins Second Daytona 500
By John Oreovicz
Xfinity: Reed Earns First Win
By John Oreovicz
The first race of the new era of the Xfinity Series produced a first-time winner in the form of Ryan Reed.
The 21-year-old, who has diabetes, made an authoritative pass on Brad Keselowski on the final lap of the Alert Today Florida 300 to lead teammate Chris Buescher in a 1-2 finish for Roush Fenway Racing.
It was a highly successful start to a 2015 campaign in which Roush has committed to youth, with Reed, 22-year-old Buescher and 21-year-old Bubba Wallace on the team. Wallace finished 12th in his RFR debut.
Reed, like IndyCar Series driver Charlie Kimball, has managed to build a successful racing career while managing Type 1 diabetes.
His No. 16 Ford Mustang is sponsored by pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly's diabetes awareness program.
"Four years ago I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes and I thought I would never drive a race car again," Reed said. "I can't describe the emotions and the feelings that go into the first win.
"We got shuffled back with about three [laps] to go and I thought our race for the win was over," he added. "But when the wreck broke out on the last lap, Keselowski was left out on an island and we got a massive run and set it up perfectly."
Buescher also achieved a career-best result in the Xfinity Series.
"For our organization this is huge," Buescher said. "We have good things coming. We worked really hard in the offseason. We have a lot of new personnel behind the scenes and new teammates in Bubba Wallace and Elliott Sadler that will really help us going forward."
A more serious accident a few laps earlier had much greater implications. Kyle Busch, the all-time leader in Xfinity Series race wins, crashed hard into a concrete wall inside the track that was not protected by SAFER Barrier.
Busch suffered a compound fracture in his right leg and a fracture to his left foot. He underwent surgery for the broken leg Saturday night in Daytona and will require additional treatment to his broken foot when he returns to Charlotte this week.
Busch, who also competes for Joe Gibbs Racing in the Sprint Cup Series, is expected to miss at least eight weeks.
Camping World: Reddick's First
By John Oreovicz
The Camping World Truck Series race at Daytona International Speedway lived up to expectations by featuring several accidents.
Tyler Reddick, embarking on his first full season of Trucks for Brad Keselowski Racing, took the lead on a late restart and held off a charging pack for his first career win in the category.
Reddick seized the advantage with six laps to go and his Ford edged the Toyota of Erik Jones at the flag.
He credited teammate Austin Theriault with giving him the push he needed to defeat Jones.
"I hope I can do the same for him down the road," Reddick said. "It feels amazing. We got here in Victory Lane at Daytona. It's just unbelievable."
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