JD Motorsports with Gary Keller (JDM) is proud to announce that NASCAR Next Class of 2018-2019 member Ryan Vargas will make his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut next Saturday at Iowa Speedway driving the No. 15 Cranio Care Bears Chevrolet Camaro.
Vargas, who is a NASCAR Drive For Diversity alumni, most recently competed in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East for Rev Racing, where he earned six Top 10 finishes finished sixth in the season’s standings last year.
The 18-year-old driver out of La Mirada, California has spent most of his 2019 campaign racing in late model competition on both the East and West Coasts, driving for Lee Falk Racing and Alec Martinez Racing on the respective coasts. So far this year, he notched himself two wins on the West Coast at Irwindale (CA) Speedway, where he is chasing after a track championship.
This will be Vargas’ first start in NASCAR’s national touring series, but it will not be his first at Iowa Speedway. Last season, Ryan finished seventh after running inside the Top 5 for most of the night in the K&N Pro Series race. He believes that this track time will help him in Saturday afternoon’s race.
“Making my NASCAR Xfinity Series debut at Iowa just makes sense. Last year, I felt that I was able to run my best race all year at the speedway, and to have the chance to drive for a well-respected team owner in Johnny Davis really adds to the excitement heading into the weekend. I think if we can keep all the fenders on my No. 15 Chevrolet and run as many laps as possible, the weekend will be a success. At this point in my career, I want to learn as much as I can so I can keep moving up the NASCAR ladder, so I am not necessarily worried about what the results show.”
Supporting Ryan in his debut race will be Cranio Care Bears, a nonprofit organization whose goal is to spread awareness and support to families and children that struggle with Craniosynostosis, a condition that causes problems with a child’s brain and skull growth. This organization hits close to home for Vargas, who at just the age of eleven months, had to undergo surgery to correct such problems.
“It means a lot to me to be able to help bring awareness to this great charity in Cranio Care Bears through the sport that I love so much. I know that I will have a lot of little supporters cheering me on that look up to me as a role model in the Cranio community, and I want to show them that anything is possible, even with the condition.”
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