“Here we are in the summer of 2013 celebrating Henry Ford’s 150th birthday, and in the same year, we’re celebrating our 1,000th win in NASCAR,” Ford Racing Director Jamie Allison said. “We all know how Ford Motor Company started, and I think reaching this milestone really honors the spirit of what Henry Ford started.”

Trevor Bayne claimed NASCAR win 999 just a week prior in the Pioneer 250 Nationwide Series race at Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa. Bayne’s Iowa win also marked the 200th win for Ford, specifically, in the Nationwide Series.

The win total includes 100 from Lincoln-Mercury and 900 from various Ford models including the current model, Fusion, and others like Taurus and Thunderbird. A Lincoln took the the checkered flag in the first NASCAR-sanctioned top-tier NASCAR race in June 19, 1949, in Charlotte, N.C. It was driven by Jim Roper. The first victory for the Ford brand came in 1950, courtesy of Jimmy Florian at Dayton (Ohio) Speedway.

In addition to 1,000 race wins, Ford has also recorded 20 manufacturer’s championships and 13 driver’s championships across the three national divisions.

Of the 1,000 victories, 715 were claimed at the Sprint Cup level, 200 in the Nationwide Series and another 85 in the Camping World Truck Series.

In all, 124 drivers have won NASCAR national events from behind the wheels of Ford Motor Compnay entries. That driver list includes such names as Mario Andretti, A.J. Foyt, Dan Gurney, Parnelli Jones, Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, Jeff Gordon, Mark Martin, Dale Jarrett, Ned Jarrett and David Pearson.

Mark Martin has claimed the most race wins for Ford with 89, including 35 at the Cup level, 47 in the Nationwide Series and seven in the Truck Series. Second on the list is David Pearson with 73, all comping at the Cup level.

“I’m sure if my great-grandfather was alive today, he would be extremely proud of our racing program’s accomplishments,” Edsel Ford said. “We’ve come a long way since 1901 and still have more to achieve, but winning 1,000 races at NASCAR’s highest level is something we can all take great pride in.”

– Photo courtesy of Ford Racing

Follow Stock Car Spin on Twitter @SCSblog or like Stock Car Spin on Facebook. Amanda’s also on Twitter @NASCARexaminer and has a fan/like page on Facebook: NASCAR Examiner

“It is a hard-fought battle,” Biffle said. “It wasn’t easy. “I kept working on this car and working on this car. The guys did a great job. The pit stops were flawless.”

Kevin Harvick finished second, inheriting the position with three laps to go when then-second-place driver Jimmie Johnson had a tire go down and made contact with the wall.

Martin Truex Jr. finished third, Kyle Busch was fourth, and Tony Stewart rounded out the top-five.

Johnson wasn’t the only Hendrick driver to have trouble while running up front. All four Hendrick cars had some kind of trouble. Jeff Gordon was part of the first caution of the race on lap five when he was unable to avoid a spinning Bobby Labonte.

The other two Hendrick drivers, Kasey Kahne and Dale Earnhardt Jr., like Johnson, also had trouble while leading. Kahne was up front, having taken the lead from Earnhardt on lap 90, when Kahne made hard contact with the while after either a tire issue or a part failure.

Kahne’s problem handed the lead back over the Earnhardt, who pulled out to a four-second lead by lap 123. But a few laps later his engine failed, and Johnson moved into the lead.

After the caution for Earnhardt’s engine, Carl Edwards restarted first and Joey Logano second. Soon after the restart, Biffle took the second spot from Logano and then, several laps later, took the lead from Edwards.

Both Biffle and Edwards hit pit road under green around lap 164. The yellow flag waved a lap later, allowing those who didn’t pit under green to make their final stops of the race under caution. Biffle stayed on the lead lap after his green-flag stop and moved into the lead when drivers who pitted under caution headed down pit road.

“I was nervous I wasn’t going to be the leader, but I was excited when they told me I was the leader, still, and the 48 (Johnson) was in 10th. I knew he had his work cut out for him, and we were able to beat him that way.”

Edwards, though, wasn’t able to stay on the lead lap, and took the wave around to get back on the lead lap under the yellow. As a result, he wound up restarting outside the top-20. By the end of the race, though, Edwards was able to work his way back into the top-10 to finish eighth.

With Biffle leading, Harvick moved up to second on the restart. But with 10 laps to go, Harvick gave up second to Johnson. Johnson was gaining on Biffle in the closing laps before his tire issue. But with the tire and contact with the wall, Johnson fell back, and Harvick reclaimed second.

Matt Kenseth finished sixth, Clint Bowyer was seventh, Edwards eighth, Logano ninth, and Jeff Burton 10th.

– Photo courtesy of Getty Images for NASCAR

Follow Stock Car Spin on Twitter @SCSblog or like Stock Car Spin on Facebook. Amanda’s also on Twitter @NASCARexaminer and has a fan/like page on Facebook: NASCAR Examiner