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Beard Motorsports announces death of spotter Ron Lewis Jr. at 53

JHby:Jonathan Howard•10/11/24•

Jondean25

Beard Motorsports
Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-Imagn Images

Sad news from Beard Motorsports. Ron Lewis Jr., longtime spotter for the No. 62 team, has died. He was 53 years old. Lewis spotted for Parker Retzlaff earlier this season at Daytona as the young driver pushed Harrison Burton to the win.

Beard Motorsports has been a common entrant in NASCAR for decades. From the Xfinity Series to the Cup Series, they have been around in some form or fashion for decades. For the last eight years, Ron Lewis Jr. worked with the team.

During that time he spotted for Justin Allgaier, Noah Gragson, Austin Hill, Anthony Alfredo, Brendan Gaughan, and Retzlaff, as well as others. He participated in an Xfinity Series race earlier this year with DGM Racing and Kyle Weatherman.

Beard Motorsports posted a short statement expressing their grief over the news.

“The Beard family and Beard Motorsports team are heartbroken over the passing of Ron Lewis. Ron has been with us since 2017. We have so many wonderful memories over the last eight years and we send our sincere condolences to his family. Rest easy, Ron.”

At the spring Talladega race, Anthony Alfredo finished P6. That was the second-best finish for Beard Motorsports since the Cup Series organization was launched in 2014. The team followed that up with a P7 finish with Retzlaff at Daytona for the Coke Zero 400. This is the first season since 2020 with two top-10 finishes.

In 2022, Beard Motorsports scored its one and only top-5 in the Cup Series with Noah Gragson. I am sure the loss of Lewis will reverberate through the garage. He has worked with a ton of drivers and Beard has been a stop for many drivers in the national series today.

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Beard Motorsports made headlines at Daytona

Earlier this season at Daytona, Beard Motorsports made headlines. Parker Retzlaff, in his second Cup Series start ever, was on the second row on the final restart with a real chance to win.

Despite words from his team and possibly his spotter Ron Lewis, Retzlaff made a bold move. He chose to push Harrison Burton way out front on the outside line. The idea would be that Retzlaff would clear the inside line as well and could take the lead on the inside. It did not work that way.

Instead, Retzlaff, in a Chevy, pushed Harrison Burton, in a Ford, to the win. Not the most ideal situation at Daytona. Teams are always going for the manufacturer win if they can’t get it themselves, and Retzlaff went rogue.

Still, it was a fun race and great finish. As Ron Lewis’ final Cup race on the spotter stand, I think it is fitting his driver left if all out on the track. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Beard Motorsports team as well as the family and loved ones of Ron Lewis.