FORD PERFORMANCE NASCAR: ROAD AMERICA ADVANCE
This marks the second straight year Road America will host a Fourth of July weekend doubleheader featuring the NASCAR XFINITY and NASCAR Cup Series. Last year marked the first Cup race at the road course since 1956. Here’s a look at Ford’s road course history, which includes three NXS victories.
This Week’s Schedule:
Saturday, July 2 – NASCAR XFINITY Series, 2:30 p.m. ET (USA)
Sunday, July 3 – NASCAR Cup Series, 3 p.m. ET (USA)
FLOCK WINS ROAD AMERICA CUP DEBUT
The first time the NASCAR Cup Series raced at Road America was on Aug. 12, 1956 when NASCAR Hall of Famer Tim Flock, driving a ’56 Mercury, won the inaugural event. Flock, who led the final 10 laps, beat Billy Myers (2nd in a Mercury) and Fireball Roberts (3rd in a Ford) as Ford Motor Company swept the top three positions and had five of the top seven finishers.
FORD’S ALL-TIME ROAD COURSE WINNER IS…
NASCAR has competed on 16 different road courses during its history and Ford has had 21 drivers win 33 times overall. Dan Gurney leads the way with five, which included four straight wins at Riverside International Raceway from 1963-66 while driving for the Wood Brothers. Mark Martin, on the strength of three straight triumphs at Watkins Glen International from 1993-95, is second.
FORD’S ALL-TIME ROAD COURSE WINNERS
5 – Dan Gurney
4 – Mark Martin
2 – Fireball Roberts, Marvin Panch, Parnelli Jones, Ricky Rudd, Marcos Ambrose
1 – Chuck Stevenson, Eddie Gray, Richard Petty, A.J. Foyt, Bobby Allison, Bill Elliott, Davey Allison, Geoffrey Bodine, Ernie Irvan, Rusty Wallace, Carl Edwards, Joey Logano, Kevin Harvick, Ryan Blaney.
FORD’S ACTIVE WINNERS
There are three current drivers who have won a NASCAR Cup Series race on a road course with Ford. The most recent winner was Ryan Blaney, who captured the inaugural event at the Charlotte Roval in 2018. Kevin Harvick, who goes into this weekend with 23 career Ford victories in just over five years, got his first with the Blue Oval in 2017 when he won at Sonoma. Joey Logano scored his Cup victory at Watkins Glen International in 2015, which completed a weekend sweep after he won the NASCAR XFINITY Series race one day earlier.
OTHER FORD WINNERS
Besides the drivers mentioned above, Ford has five other competitors who have won on a road course in either the NASCAR Cup or NASCAR XFINITY Series. Brad Keselowski (Watkins Glen NXS with Ford, 2013); Chris Buescher (Mid-Ohio NXS with Ford, 2014); Michael McDowell (Road America NXS, 2016); Chase Briscoe (Charlotte Roval, 2018 and Indianapolis, 2020); and Austin Cindric (Road America NXS, 2020).
FORD NASCAR XFINITY SERIES WINNERS AT ROAD AMERICA
2010 – Carl Edwards
2013 – A.J. Allmendinger