Rick Ware Racing has been navigating one of NASCAR’s rockiest roads this year. With a $150 million sale looming and an abrupt legal battle with Legacy Motor Club over charter rights, the team’s future has felt anything but steady. Yet amid the drama, Cody Ware, at Daytona, delivered a reminder that performance never takes a week off.

Competing full-time in 2025 behind the wheel of the No. 51 Ford Mustang Dark Horse, he pulled off a career milestone, pushing RWR’s heart rate back into the green. Now, a rare bright spot offers a sliver of momentum for both driver and team heading into the final 10 races of the season.

Cody Ware’s Daytona Run Signals RWR’s Best Yet

Though finishing 20th after pit strategy shuffled the order late, Cody Ware’s showing at Daytona was far stronger than the box score suggests. “Obviously, uh, you know, P20 for us here isn’t a phenomenal result, but I think as far as the race and what we showed on track was the best we’ve ever done, and so really proud of the RWR team,” Ware reflected. For context, his best points-paying finish this year before Saturday was 13th at Atlanta, making this run a clear step forward.

For Cody Ware, Saturday’s performance wasn’t just another finish. Rather, it was proof that Rick Ware Racing is closer than ever to breaking through. “We were upfront all day and we were fighting for the win as much as we could and I’m proud of that,” Ware said after a career-defining race.

The numbers back him up. Ware led 23 laps, more than his entire Cup Series career combined, including an impressive stretch of 16 consecutive laps where the No. 51 Ford held its ground against perennial contenders. What made the run even more remarkable was how close Cody Ware came to shocking the field. He crossed the line just 0.524 seconds behind Ryan Blaney, the narrowest gap between him and victory he’s ever experienced.

For a team often dismissed as backmarkers, the performance shifts perception. Ware himself wasn’t shy about hinting at what’s next. “I think people better start wrapping their brains around, sometime soon we’re gonna be in victory lane.” While he hasn’t locked himself into the playoffs, consistency in these final 10 races could built the foundation for a future breakthrough. As Ware put it, “Looking forward to just keep hitting our marks and getting closer to that day.”

Momentum is a rare commodity in NASCAR. And Cody Ware and RWR will hope THAT momentum from Daytona can help them in a different ongoing, off-track battle with Legacy Motor Club.

RWR Faces Another Obstacle in Their Legal Battle

A major legal development rocked the NASCAR garage this weekend as a North Carolina judge issued a preliminary injunction blocking RWR from selling its team amid a heated charter dispute. The case, as you may be aware, centers on two charters. These are essential guarantees of Cup Series participation and a key source of revenue, owned by RWR.

Earlier this year, Legacy Motor Club, led by seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson, struck a deal to buy one of RWR’s charters for $45 million. The NASCAR legend aimed to expand to three cars for 2026. Under NASCAR’s charter system, these “franchises” determine how many cars a team can enter and how prize money is distributed. However, the transaction quickly turned contentious.

Ware argued the deal was for the 2027 season because one of his charters was already committed to RFK Racing for 2026 under a leasing agreement. Legacy countered that the signed contract stipulated a 2026 sale. Now, this could effectively force Ware out of the sport a year sooner than he anticipated. In the midst of this back-and-forth, RWR attempted to sell its entire team for $150 million to a broker involved in the initial deal.

This added further complexity and urgency to the legal wrangling. Judge Clifton Smith has sided with Legacy for now. He ruled that there was a strong likelihood Legacy would succeed in its breach-of-contract claim. As a result, they would suffer “irreparable harm” without court protection.

The judge also noted the potential for greater harm to Legacy Motor Club outweighed that to Ware, keeping Legacy’s $5 million bond in place. The injunction remains effective until a trial scheduled for January. On the other hand, a related legal action proceeds against the broker for alleged interference with the original agreement.

The clash underscores the soaring value (and heated competition) surrounding Cup Series charters as teams fight for guaranteed access to racing’s biggest stage. What do you think? Could RWR’s on-track momentum with Cody Ware help stabilize the team’s future, or will the legal storm off-track overshadow its progress? One thing’s certain: the next few months could define whether Rick Ware Racing emerges stronger or disappears altogether.