Wood Brothers Racing Wins 100th NASCAR Cup Series Race in Dramatic Fashion

Aug 26, 2024
3 MIN READ
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Another chapter was written in the storied history of Wood Brothers Racing when Harrison Burton delivered a thrilling overtime victory in the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway Saturday night to give the team its 100th NASCAR Cup Series .

“This is beyond words,” remarked Eddie Wood, CEO and co-owner. “This has been such a long time coming, the hundredth win. We’ve been with Motorcraft Quick Lane and Ford Performance for over twenty years and you just can’t put that into words. Edsel Ford, all his family, Jim Farley - there's just so many people in our world to make this happen. It’s just unbelievable.”

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Ever since Glen Wood made racing the family business in 1950, the family organization and Ford Motor Co. have been synonymous.  For the last 74 years, the team has only competed with Ford products, winning 64 times with the Mercury brand and 36 with the Ford Blue Oval.

“Ford and Motorcraft Quick Lane have stuck behind us for over twenty years now,” said Len Wood, COO and co-owner of Wood Brothers Racing. “To get our 100th win is so special, and we couldn’t do it without those people. It’s great to get a win here at Daytona. This is the place you want to be, right here.”

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The Wood Brothers delivered their first win on April 18, 1960 when Glen Wood won Grand National Race No. 13 at Winston-Salem’s (NC) Bowman Gray Stadium.  That was the first of his four career victories and set the tone that has now seen the organization win at least one NASCAR Cup Series race in seven straight decades.

“The Wood Brothers are family to us at Ford and to see them get their 100th win means so much to all of us who have followed them through the years,” said Mark Rushbrook, global director, Ford Performance Motorsports.  “When you think of Ford and its NASCAR program, you think of the Wood Brothers.  Their loyalty to us for the last 74 years is unmatched and we couldn’t be prouder.”

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It’s hard to quantify just how much the organization has achieved through the years, but consider they have had 19 different drivers win a Cup Series points race, including 12 NASCAR Hall of Famers.  David Pearson leads the way with 43 wins for the team while Cale Yarborugh is next with 13.

In addition, they have served as a springboard to many drivers who won their first series race, a list that includes Tiny Lund, who won Ford’s first Daytona 500 with the team in 1963, and Ford champions Dale Jarrett (1999) and Ryan Blaney (2023).

Burton’s victory means the team has qualified for the playoffs, which get underway in two weeks at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

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FULL LIST OF WOOD BROTHERS WINNING DRIVERS:

David Pearson (43); Cale Yarborough (13); Neil Bonnett (9); Marvin Panch (8); A.J. Foyt (5); Glen Wood (4); Dan Gurney (4); Speedy Thompson (2); Kyle Petty (2); Tiny Lund (1); Curtis Turner (1); Donnie Allison (1); Buddy Baker (1); Dale Jarrett (1); Morgan Shepherd (1); Elliott Sadler (1); Trevor Bayne (1); Ryan Blaney (1); Harrison Burton (1).

 

BY THE NUMBERS

1 – Championships won (Owner’s title in 1963)

4 – Number of original Wood Brothers who founded the team (Glen, Leonard, Delano and Ray Lee)

5 -- Daytona 500 Wins (Tiny Lund, 1963; Cale Yarborough, 1968; A.J. Foyt, 1972; David Pearson, 1976; Trevor Bayne, 2011)

7 – Car number that Kyle Petty won his first series race with at Richmond in 1986

8 – Number of drivers who got their first Cup win (Glen Wood, 1960; Tiny Lund, 1963; Kyle Petty, 1986; Dale Jarrett, 1991; Elliott Sadler, 2001; Trevor Bayne, 2011; Ryan Blaney, 2017; Harrison Burton, 2024)

12 – NASCAR Hall of Famers who drove at least one Cup race (Donnie Allison, Buddy Baker, David Pearson, Cale Yarborough, Glen Wood, Curtis Turner, Dale Jarrett, Junior Johnson, Ricky Rudd, Joe Weatherly, Fred Lorenzen, Bill Elliott)

16 – Car number that won 3 times (team’s first three wins by Glen Wood)

19 – Number of drivers who have won a points race

21 – Famed car number that has won 90 Cup races

36 – Number of wins in a Ford

41 – Car number that won twice (A.J. Foyt at Daytona and Curtis Turner at Rockingham in 1965)

43 – Cup races David Pearson won (most by any driver)

64 – Number of wins in a Mercury

74 – Current number of years driving Ford products in NASCAR

121 – Car number that Dan Gurney won with 4 times at Riverside (1964, ’65, ’66, ’68)