Midway through the 2024 Coca-Cola 600, Ryan Preece found himself yet again languishing at the back of the pack. What had been billed as a dream opportunity for him to join Stewart-Haas Racing, a multi-car powerhouse with a championship pedigree, had by this point turned to the grim reality of being collateral damage of the organization’s terminal decline.
Despite taking the wheel of a No. 41 car that had won the Daytona 500 and many more races in the past, it had become well and apparent that Preece did not have what he needed to win races. Rather, he had to shoulder many burdens in trying to carry his car and his team forward – all the way to the point of having to play crew chief from the cockpit and motivate his actual crew chief atop the pit box.
Preece stated: “I’m gonna go with that did not wake the front up, and it didn’t do what we need to. So, I don’t care how much track position we lose right now, I can’t even maintain what I have.” His crew chief responded, expressing doubt about his decisions.
Ryan continued with determination, saying, “Well, you need to be right now the leader – like I know you can be – and let’s figure it out. Because we’ve got 600 miles, 220 laps to pull this together. Let’s make a direction and figure it out.”
In just over a year since then, the situation for Preece has changed dramatically. After Stewart-Haas Racing sold its assets and shut down at the end of 2024, Preece not only landed with a new third team at RFK Racing, but has been better for it. As the driver of RFK’s No. 60 Ford, Preece is in the middle of the best season of his Cup career, with a career-high six top 10s through 16 races putting him right in the thick of the fight to make the NASCAR playoffs later this season.
Preece stated about his mindset, “I went in with an open mind of ‘I’m gonna work on me, I’m gonna trust the process and I’m gonna continue to push myself.'”
The driver expressed optimism for the rest of the season, saying there is a good chance he can get his first career win before the end of the regular season, as he approaches every weekend with the mindset of winning. “I thrive off pressure. I enjoy it,” Preece indicated.
He emphasized the importance of striking a balance between being competitive and also ensuring he does not take unnecessary risks. “Our goal is to win and win multiple times,” he reiterated.
