Martinsville II: David Ragan preview

NOTES & QUOTES

* David Ragan will attempt to make his second career NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series start at Martinsville Speedway in Sunday's Subway 500.

* Ragan's first NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series start came at Dover in September where he started 37th and finished 42nd after being involved in an accident.

* The No. 06 team will be bringing chassis 229 to Martinsville. This is the first time the No. 06 team has raced this chassis.

* Ragan competed last week in the NASCAR Busch Series race at Lowe's Motor Speedway. Ragan qualified 10th in a backup car and finished 36th after being involved in an accident.

* Ragan comes to Martinsville fresh off a two-day test at Homestead-Miami Speedway where he participated in the NEXTEL Cup test session with the No. 06 team.

* Last Wednesday, Ragan was named by team owner Jack Roush as the driver to replace Mark Martin as driver of the No. 6 AAA Ford Fusion in 2007.

* In addition to racing in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series race this weekend, Ragan will also attempt to make the field for Saturday's NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race in the No. 50 Ford F-150.

David Ragan on Martinsville Speedway:

"Martinsville is one of my favorite racetracks, and I couldn't be happier to be entered in the NEXTEL Cup race here this weekend. I really like racing at short tracks, and Martinsville has some of the best racing you'll see. We'll go there with the intention of completing all the laps and staying out of trouble. As a rookie you want to earn the respect of all these guys and you'll do that by racing them clean and not pushing issues unnecessarily. It's going to be a trying day, that's for sure, but if we can keep our cool we should be able to bring the car home in one piece and gain some good experience."

-credit: roush racing