Darlington: David Ragan preview

Ragan on racing at Darlington Raceway: "Darlington certainly has the high speeds of a track like Charlotte, but it's a smaller track. I think with the new pavement being put down, the racing speeds have been upwards around 170-180 mph. It's a very ...

Ragan on racing at Darlington Raceway:

"Darlington certainly has the high speeds of a track like Charlotte, but it's a smaller track. I think with the new pavement being put down, the racing speeds have been upwards around 170-180 mph. It's a very fast racetrack, but you have that characteristic of beating and banging and close racing under the lights. It's definitely one of my top five places to go. It's a very challenging race but it's also very rewarding if you can run well and win there."

Crew chief Donnie Wingo on racing at Darlington Raceway:

"The biggest challenge at Darlington is keeping it off the wall. You want to get as close as you can without hitting it, which isn't easy. Tires haven't been much of an issue there lately since the track surface is getting back to the way it was, but it might not ever get all the way back since the surface is a lot smoother now. I like racing in Darlington because it's one of those tracks with a lot of history and the fans love the racing there."

* Ragan has three prior Cup Series starts at Darlington. His best finish came in 2008 when he qualified 15th and finished fifth.

* Ragan has competed two times in the Nationwide Series at Darlington. His best finish came in 2007 he qualified eighth and finished 13th.

* UPS Maximum Center Recognition--Darlington Raceway The Spartanburg South Center (SLIC - 2965) of the South Carolina Group in the South Atlantic District was selected to be recognized at the Southern 500 Race at Darlington Raceway on May 8. This recognition goes out to the entire Spartanburg South Center team for achieving Best Overall results among the centers in the old South Carolina District for 2009.