page_title: David Ragan
section_title: 2012–2014
hierarchical_section_title: David Ragan / Racing career / 2012–2014
caption_attribution_description: David Ragan at the 2013 Sprint All-Star Race.
context_page_description: David Lee Ragan is an American professional stock car racing driver. He currently competes part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 36 Ford Mustang for Rick Ware Racing, and part-time in the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series, driving the No. 17 Ford F-150 for DGR-Crosley.
  Ragan was born in Unadilla, Georgia, the son of former racer Ken Ragan, and began his racing career racing in the Bandolero Series at age 12. Four years later, he began competing in the Goody's Dash Series with Cam Strader. After one year, he moved to the Legends Pro-Division to race for Mark Martin. He concluded the season by finishing fourth in the point standings. At age 18, Ragan began racing in the Camping World Truck Series, Nationwide Series, and the ARCA Racing Series.
  In 2007, he moved up to the Sprint Cup Series, replacing Mark Martin in the No. 6, and driving for Roush Fenway Racing. Between 2007 and 2011, he has recorded 30 top-tens in the series.
  On July 2, 2011, Ragan won his first career Sprint Cup Series race, the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway.
context_section_description: In January 2012, Ragan signed with Front Row Motorsports to drive the No. 34 Ford for the team in 2012. He drove for GC Motorsports International in the season-opening Nationwide Series event at Daytona. Ragan got off to a bad start with FRM, crashing out on lap 2 of the Daytona 500 and finishing last. He would eventually go on to finish 28th in Cup Series points.
  Ragan started the 2013 season with a rotating roster of sponsors. He started the season wrecked at the Daytona 500 (along with his two other teammates, David Gilliland and Josh Wise) and had no finish better than 20th in the first nine races. However, during the Aaron's 499, Ragan started the green–white–checker restart in 10th-place. On the last lap, teammate Gilliland was able to help push him past Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth, and Carl Edwards to win the race. This was his first win with Front Row Motorsports and the team's first Sprint Cup win, as well as the first NASCAR win for his sponsor for that race, Farm Rich.  The 34 team improved more in 2013 earning sixteen top-25 finishes including the win, a 12th-place finish at the Irwin Tools Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway, and a sixth-place finish at the fall Talladega race.  However, three consecutive engine failures during the Chase dropped Ragan to 28th in points.
  For 2014, Ragan returned to the Front Row Motorsports No. 34 to run the full season with sponsorship from Farm Rich and CSX. In the Nationwide Series, Ragan joined Biagi-DenBeste Racing in the No. 98 Ford for several races throughout the season. Ragan got his first top-10 finish on a non-restrictor plate track with Front Row Motorsports in the 2014 Goody's Headache Relief Shot 500 at Martinsville Speedway by gambling on track position with 5 laps to go in the race. It was his first top-10 of the season and came with a paint scheme paying tribute to the late Wendell Scott, who had also driven the number 34. Ragan finished 32nd in points.
caption: Ragan at the 2013 Sprint All-Star Race.
exif: {"Image Copyright": "2013 NASCAR"}