For the first time since 2011, #60 will appear on a NASCAR Cup Series circuit. On Wednesday, RFK Racing announced the creation of Stage 60, which will field the #60 Ford Mustang part-time for various drivers starting with David Ragan at the Daytona 500. BuildSubmarines.com will sponsor the effort.
Ragan returns to RFK, having previously been a development driver in the 2000s before competing full-time in the Cup Series from 2007 to 2011. He eventually moved to ally Front Row Motorsports, where he spent the second half of his career before stepping away from regular competition after 2019, though he has occasionally returned for superspeedway races with Ford. Despite not racing in 2023, he remains a test driver for Ford to this day.
He is often regarded as one of the top superspeedway racers in the series, with both of his Cup victories coming at Daytona and Talladega along wth eighteen top-ten finishes. His first Xfinity Series win also came at Talladega in 2009.
“It’s really exciting to be back in an RFK Ford,” said Ragan. “I spent some of the best years of my career driving for Mr. Jack (Roush) and the team at RFK. They really gave me my first opportunity in the sport and I have to thank BuildSubmarines.com for helping make this happen. We had a really strong run going in my last year at Roush at the 500, and hopefully we can go back and finish what we started.”
#60 is a number long used by Roush’s Xfinity programme. Its last Cup appearance came in 2011 with Germain Racing running much of the calendar as a start-and-park operation. Roush has only employed #60 once at the Cup level for Matt Kenseth, who failed to qualify for what would have been his Cup début at Talladega in 1998.
“The #60 car represents an opportunity for us to honor our past and look forward to the future of RFK Racing,” offered team president Steve Newmark. “We’re thankful to have partners like BuildSubmarines.com, who, like us, have a mission to grow and be best in class in all endeavours.”
Stage 60 is designed to be Ford’s answer to each manufacturer’s “all-star” cars. Chevrolet’s Trackhouse Racing Team fields the #91 under the PROJECT91 for international stars like Kimi Räikkönen and Shane van Gisbergen, while 23XI Racing has the #67 Toyota Camry which Travis Pastrana and Kamui Kobayashi have raced.
As the #60 is a part-time entry, it is not guaranteed to run every race entered and has to qualify for each.
RFK Racing won three races in 2023 courtesy of Chris Buescher. Team co-owner Brad Keselowski finished eighth in points, a spot behind Buescher.