Ryan Preece Working On Restructured Plans For 2017 Racing Season

Ryan Preece

The tentative plans for Berlin driver Ryan Preece for the 2017 racing season, as of right now, is to return to the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour full-time.

Tentative being the key word in that sentence.

Preece recently completed his first full-time season with the NASCAR XFINITY Series, running for JD Motorsports and team owner Johnny Davis

Preece started all 33 events with the XFINITY Series in 2016, finishing 17th in the series standings with one top-10 finish for JD Motorsports.

“I think it’s time to pursue another opportunity and I hope the best for Johnny,” Preece said. “I’m sure he’s going to be just fine.”

Preece said his plans right now are to focus on chasing a second Whelen Modified Tour championship, though with a “but” involved currently.

“But also in pursuit of trying to get in a good [XFINITY Series] car that can win races,” Preece said. “That’s kind of where I’m at right now.”

With plenty of offseason remaining, Preece isn’t giving up hope of possibly landing another XFINITY Series ride before the start of the 2017 season.

“I’m not giving up,” Preece said. “There’s three ways I’ve come up with plans in my racing career. Plan A was to get in a car where I felt like I could make a difference and we could run good and hopefully catch an eye an get an opportunity. Well I felt like we ran good when we needed to, we caught some eyes, but I didn’t get that opportunity.

“So now the next option for me, the way I think, is to get in a good car that has resources and everything that I feel is capable that when I go out there the only reason that I feel that we’re not going to be able to win races is if I don’t do my job. So that’s the next stop. And then option number three is, if all that doesn’t work, at the end of the day if I win those races and something doesn’t come about, at least I knew I did what I needed to do and I can’t hang my head. So basically I’m just trying to do everything I can to get myself the best opportunity to live the dream that I’ve been trying to live. If it all doesn’t work out, at least I know I gave it everything and anything I could do to make it happen. … I think we all know that I’ve always been looked at as someone who goes out there to win and I don’t want that to change.”

If it remains that Preece focuses on the Whelen Modified Tour for 2017 he will doing it driving for the Ed and Connie Partridge owned TS Haulers team that he has been with since the start of the 2015 season. He drove part-time for the team in 2016. Preece won the 2013 Whelen Modified Tour championship running for Flamingo Motorsports. He also had runner-up finishes in the series standings in 2012, 2014 and 2015.

With JD Motorsports, Preece ran for a team that was somewhat behind many of the series frontrunners in terms of the level of equipment being run.

“I felt like we had runs that people didn’t really expect,” Preece said. “We did have runs and it’s hard for people to see if you look at the results on some of these races because there were races that, we could have had four of five top-10’s this year but just had things that were out of my control or out of our control happen and it cost us those good runs. I’ll say it was an equal thing. There was times when we had mechanical failures and didn’t get the top-10’s that we probably shold have. But there were times that I overdrove a corner at Road America and we finished 11th instead of 10th.”

Preece said he expects to continue to run full-time in the SK Modified division at Thompson Speedway again in 2017 for team owners Al and Cathy Moniz. He said he also may make some spot starts in the SK Modified division at Stafford Motor Speedway next season.

Comments

  1. Andy Boright says

    I told you so!

    If Ryan really wants a winning Xfinity ride, all he has to do is write a check. Unfortunately he’s waited a little too long to buy a good ride for 2017.

    How could anyone not notice all the great runs he was having all season long with the press releases ever week describing the spectacular race he had to finish 21st?

  2. Long Time Fan says

    I don’t think we will be seeing him in an XFinity series ride again any time soon. Seems to have a bit of an entitled attitude to me. Sure, he’s a great modified driver-that goes without saying, but to give up on the chance to progress in the national series after one full time season appears impatient. I thought he was signed up with the 01 again for the 2017 season, I could be mistaken. If he had that ride again why not take advantage of it, try to have some good runs and get noticed in hopes of landing a better ride. He’d certainly have a better shot at moving forward while running an XFinity car instead of the modified. Well, at least it’s some more competition for Coby this year.

  3. Wow. You guys are really on the ball, here. So he drops an under-funded, middle of the pack ride to try and get a better one. And he’s willing to take a chance to get it done. Definitely not “giving up a chance” with a team that is down on horsepower. That was the biggest difference. He had good runs on tracks where handling was the differentiator, not so good runs on horsepower tracks. Seems like a no brainer to me.

    As far as an entitled attitude goes? Really? He says right there that he made some mistakes that cost them a better finish, and that there were some mechanical issues that cost them a better finish. Can’t see ANYTHING to criticize about either his statements or being a young man willing to chase his dreams. Maybe you 2 Debbie Downers should have tried that instead of being keyboard jockeys.

    Best of luck, Ryan !!!!

  4. Happy to see Ryan and the 6 back on the tour [maybe].I totally understand his decision.Riding around in a car that can’t compete with a team that can’t compete will sooner not later turn you into a slug.Even when he got the car to run at its best he would come into pit lane 12th and come out 23rd.There is still time for 2017.I heard and read many positive comments from big name guys.I don’t know what happened in the last two weeks at JD but I think he’s made the right decision

  5. speed kills says

    he is not a GREAT modified driver .. he is a very good modified driver.. dumb statement by preece as it was clear this was not a “winning ” ride from the get go … its all about the money now and not talent . he just shot himself in the foot..

  6. Well Andy this is the Press release website.

  7. Crazy in NY says

    …..he is not a GREAT modified driver .. he is a very good modified driver…..

    And proved that during the SK feature at Bemer’s Big show when after working his butt off to pass Teddy he gave him the bottom on an ensuing restart. Giving TC the inside in a race for 5k was not exactly brilliant.
    I still can’t believe he did that. Another year of looking at Coby’s rear bumper?

  8. How ungrateful. He lost any chance of going to the cup

  9. I think the kids awesome!!! Never has an attitude or snubs anyone, driver or fan. I wish him all the best in whatever he drives.

  10. Hate to say it but that’s exactly what we all knew would happen. Another driver that went south and will return with a chip on his shoulder. When he is older and more mature he will realize that with the money he spent in racing he could have a good retirement fund in the bank and his house paid for.

  11. When this news broke I braced for the Preece haters posts,but some have been actually positive.Billy’s post is strange to say the least,”a good retirement fund”.Doesn’t Billy have his own kids or grandkids to spew his poor advice to?

  12. He wasn’t racing on “his” money look what sponsors he brought and if i have to list them for u your not a fan. U are just some low life thst hasn’t aclue.

  13. Andy Boright says

    Hey RichC, that Xfinity team isn’t any slower or smaller budgeted now, than it was when Preece started the season. He knew he was joining a backmarker.

    The way NASCAR is now, if you are not jumping in with one of the big teams, you won’t be working your way up there, not as a driver anyway.

    It’s not like JR or Gibbs, or Childress will be offering him a deal anytime soon (unless he is willing to write a big check).

    He thought he would like being a guppy in a big lake, better than being a big fish in what is turning into a mud puddle.

  14. When so many rides in NASCAR go to drivers who can bring money to a team, drivers need to make hard choices. All you have to do is look at the standings to understand that his team did about as well as it could with the resources it had. http://www.nascar.com/en_us/xfinity-series/standings.html

    Would riding around the back fighting for a Top 20 finish really help his career?

  15. darealgoodfella says

    Well, driving around with your foot mashed to the floor all the time and hoping you break the top 20 is no way to get a prestigious team to give you a look. A driver can’t make up for a serious lack of horsepower. Better to leave than have to explain why he stuck around so long.

  16. Risky move. He not only gave up a ride but also a job, career, a paycheck. Middle of the pack drivers still live very large. It’s awesome news for us modified fans but a real roll of the dice for him. This is a kid who had been to Cup already too. Id like to see him get some spot starts with JR Motorsports or 54 team. A team that showcases his skills. Ryan got the most out of the 01 and brought it home in one piece every week. Maybe a truck ride? I don’t think this story is over with. Too good a driver.

  17. Besides money, the route to the top 3 series is via a Late,Model or Super Late Model; it’s seems running a modified is irrelevant. I remember when Spencer Davis left the 79, some here say he,was overated. He seems to be holding his own in the K&N series and Super Late Models. Maybe drivers like Ryan and Keith need to run a fender race down south to get better exposure.

  18. People, people, people.

    What is with all of this effing whining???

    The kid has talent. Mommy and Daddy have some bucks, and Bobby Judkins is his grandfather. A Modified legend.

    If you put Ryan in a Giibs car or JRM car, Childress car. Lookout

    Rant over.

    KC

  19. Agree 100% with everything you said except the truck ride. Don’t think that would go far. Ask Mike Stefanik how that worked for him.

  20. Andy Boright says

    Super Late Models and Late Models have zero to do with getting a quality ride in NASCAR. You either have the money to put your kid in one of the 4 or so teams in Xfinity that can win a race, or you don’t.

    The Preeces obviously don’t and wasted a bunch of money to be a backmarker for one lost season.

  21. The future of forums says

    Explain to me how you came to the conclusion that it was the Preece’s money?

    Andy boright, explain to me how you have so much knowledge about everything? You should right a book with all the answers you have.

  22. DougDaCheater says

    I dont think it was all the preece’s money “Future of Forums”. Its a known fact that they needed to swindle some money out of some sponsors. I know what you are thinking, sponsors get ad time so its not swindling. The problem with that is if you need to draw a salary from the sponsor money to live, then it sure seems like swindling to me. Especially when you are taking money from small businesses that get nothing from national advertising.

  23. The Future of Forums says

    I hear you DougdaCheater, and I see what your saying.

    As far as “swindle” some money out of small business. Is it public knowledge for a drivers salary via records on the internet? Do they do that with NASCAR like some other Sports? Do you have a copy a contract of how he was getting paid? I would be curious to see or see how much a driver in that type of car would be making.

    Also, just for kicks and giggles, Is this the Doug DiPesa since your user name is ” Doug the Cheater”.

  24. Spencer Davis left the 79 because that team is garbage with David Hill running the show.

  25. DougDaCheater says

    Here is a great story on how racing really works down south. Granted this is a top truck team at KBM. They have big overhead with engine leases and professional crew members and Boston was paying 3.2Million for the ride and drawing a salary of $3k per race for 23 races (69k total salary with points). They also got some purse money back.
    http://www.espn.com/racing/nascar/truck/story/_/id/13516939/nascar-kyle-busch-motorsports-suing-former-driver-boston-father-company

    This is a top truck team though. Id consider the JD motorsports team slightly more expensive than a top southern super late model team. Id estimate he had to come up with $750k-1MM with most all of the purse money going back into the program. I dont think he paid himself more than $1000 per week out of that.

    You will never make it down south without spending at lease 5MM dollars. I feel bad for him, but at lease he is smart enough to know when to stop burning money up.

    I know the Tour haters hate to hear facts, but if he runs the tour in that 6 car, he will:
    A. not pay any money to race. Most likely Zero.
    B. Make more money than he did driving that xfinity car. Id guess around $75k.
    C. Win at least 1 race.

    The Grass isn’t always greener in upper divisions.

    Yes My name is Doug “Dipesa” and I am a cheater.

  26. Preece will get the job done!! I believe he’s one of the best.

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