When Ryan Blaney and Team Penske took the checkered flag in the Quaker State 400 at EchoPark Speedway, the victory represented far more than another dominant performance. It marked the 750th NASCAR Cup Series win for Ford Racing, placing another milestone in a history that stretches back to before the sport’s inception. From the coupes of the 1950s to the Mustang Darkhorses of today, Ford has remained one of the sport’s defining manufacturers.
The first win for the Ford Motor Company came on June 25, 1950, when independent driver Jimmy Florian won a 100-mile race at Dayton Speedway in Dayton, Ohio. This marked the first victory of a long journey for the OEM out of Detroit, Michigan.
Florian was the first of many drivers who took at least one trip to Victory Lane with a blue oval. However, no other driver won more races for Ford than ‘Gentleman Ned’ Jarrett. 43 of Jarrett’s 50 career wins came when driving a Ford, making him the winningest of the manufacturer’s 91 drivers who went to Victory Lane. He also won the first of their 12 championships in 1965.
Other notable Ford drivers included Hall of Fame-caliber champions such as David Pearson, Bill Elliott, Alan Kulwicki, Dale Jarrett, Matt Kenseth, Kurt Busch, Joey Logano, and Ryan Blaney. Hall of Fame car owners play a major role in the legacy as well, with organizations such as Holman-Moody, the Wood Brothers, Junior Johnson, Stewart-Haas Racing, and RFK Racing who leads the manufacturer in all-time wins at 141.
Today, 750 wins cannot be attributed solely to one driver, team or era. They belong to generations of racers, from the pioneers who first carried the blue oval to wins on dusty fairgrounds to today’s stars in the modern Mustang Dark Horse. Ford has remained a leading presence through decades of technological change and fierce competition.
