Ricky Stenhouse Jr

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Bio

Richard Lynn Stenhouse Jr., known professionally as Ricky Stenhouse Jr., is an American professional stock car racing driver born on October 2, 1987, in Memphis, Tennessee. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 47 Chevrolet ZL1 for Hyak Motorsports. Stenhouse is best known for winning back-to-back NASCAR Nationwide Series championships in 2011 and 2012, and for capturing the 2023 Daytona 500, the most prestigious race in stock car racing. A versatile racer with deep roots in dirt-track competition, he is one of only a handful of drivers to have won in both NASCAR and in USAC Silver Crown, National Sprint Car, and National Midget series.

Early Life and Background

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was born in Memphis, Tennessee, and raised in Olive Branch, Mississippi, where his parents, Ricky Stenhouse Sr. and Lisa Stenhouse, supported his early interest in motorsports. Growing up in the Mid-South, he gravitated toward racing at a young age and began kart racing at six, where he amassed 47 wins and 90 podium finishes before stepping up to bigger machines. By the time he moved into sprint car racing in 2003, he had already developed the aggressive style that would define his career.

Stenhouse began his sprint car career in 360 cubic-inch winged sprint cars, earning the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame Driver Poll and the Dirt Winged Sprint Car Rookie of the Year in 2003. He progressed to the USAC sprint car series in 2004, and by 2006 had collected multiple wild-card honors in both 360 and 410 winged divisions. In 2007, he earned dual USAC Rookie of the Year honors in the sprint car and midget series while also capturing the Knoxville Midget Nationals and the 4-Crown Nationals Midget, establishing himself as one of the top open-wheel prospects in the country.

Path to NASCAR

Stenhouse made the leap to stock cars in 2008, joining Roush Fenway Racing in the ARCA Racing Series. In only his sixth ARCA start, he won the Drive Smart! Buckle-Up Kentucky 150 at Kentucky Speedway. He went on to record two ARCA wins in 21 starts and finished fourth in series standings as a rookie, convincing Roush to advance him to the NASCAR Nationwide Series in 2009.

Running a partial Nationwide schedule that year, Stenhouse posted his first top-ten finish at Kentucky Speedway and followed it with a strong fifth-place run at Milwaukee, where he led 46 laps. The 2010 Nationwide season began with heavy crashes, and he was briefly replaced by Brian Ickler. After veteran crew chief Mike Kelley joined the team, Stenhouse rebounded with a third-place finish at Daytona, secured seven top-tens, and locked up the 2010 NASCAR Nationwide Series Rookie of the Year award.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Career

Early Career (2008–2010)

Stenhouse’s earliest national results came in the ARCA Racing Series in 2008, where his two victories and fourth-place championship finish for Roush Fenway Racing announced his arrival on the stock car scene. He transitioned to the NASCAR Nationwide Series in 2009 with a part-time slate before running the full 2010 schedule, pairing with crew chief Mike Kelley late in the season. The pairing produced immediate improvement, and the rookie title that year set the stage for Stenhouse’s championship run in 2011.

NASCAR Nationwide Series Breakthrough (2011–2012)

Stenhouse broke through on May 22, 2011, holding off Carl Edwards and Brad Keselowski for the final 18 laps to win the John Deere Dealers 250 at Iowa Speedway in his 51st series start. A second Iowa win followed in August in unusual fashion, as teammate Carl Edwards rear-ended him across the line after his engine expired. With 16 top-fives, Stenhouse clinched the 2011 Nationwide championship by 45 points over Elliott Sadler.

In 2012, Stenhouse opened with a win at Las Vegas and added victories at Texas, Iowa, Atlanta, Charlotte, and Kansas, again holding off Sadler to claim a second consecutive Nationwide Series title. The dominant stretch, paired with his Roush Fenway ride, established Stenhouse as one of the premier young talents in NASCAR and paved the way for his full-time promotion to the Cup Series.

NASCAR Cup Series (2013–2019)

Stenhouse debuted in the Cup Series as a substitute for Trevor Bayne in the 2011 Coca-Cola 600, finishing 11th. He moved to the No. 6 Roush Fenway entry for the 2012 Daytona 500 and was promoted full-time to the No. 17 Ford for 2013, replacing Matt Kenseth. Paired with crew chief Scott Graves, he earned the 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Rookie of the Year after posting a third-place finish at Talladega and a pole at Atlanta.

The 2014 and 2015 seasons were lean years for both Stenhouse and Roush, with a best finish of second at Bristol in 2014 and a 25th-place points result in 2015. The 2016 season brought gradual improvement, capped by a career-best second-place run at Bristol Motor Speedway in August. Then, on May 7, 2017, Stenhouse won his first Cup race in the GEICO 500 at Talladega, passing Kyle Busch on the final lap and ending a 101-race winless streak for Roush Fenway Racing. A second win followed at Daytona in July 2017, vaulting him into the playoffs.

Stenhouse was eliminated in the second round of the 2017 Playoffs and failed to return to victory lane in 2018 or 2019. On September 25, 2019, Roush Fenway Racing announced he would be replaced by Chris Buescher in 2020, ending a decade-long relationship with the organization.

JTG Daugherty Racing Era (2020–2024)

On October 16, 2019, JTG Daugherty Racing announced that Stenhouse would drive for the team in 2020, taking over the No. 47 Chevrolet. He opened the new chapter by winning the pole for the 2020 Daytona 500 and narrowly lost the spring Talladega race to Ryan Blaney by .007 seconds. The 2020 season produced three top-fives and four top-tens, all in the first half of the year.

After a winless 2022, Stenhouse returned to victory lane by winning the 2023 Daytona 500, his third career Cup win and his first playoff appearance since 2017. The 2024 season was turbulent, highlighted by a post-race altercation with Kyle Busch following the All-Star Race that resulted in a US$75,000 fine and crew suspensions, but he closed the year with a dramatic win in the YellaWood 500 at Talladega, beating Brad Keselowski by .006 seconds.

Hyak Motorsports Era (2025–Present)

Before the 2025 season, JTG Daugherty Racing rebranded as Hyak Motorsports, with Stenhouse continuing in the No. 47 Chevrolet ZL1. He opened 2025 with an 18th-place run at the Daytona 500 and climbed as high as 13th in points with ten top-20 finishes in the first 15 races. A second-half slump left him outside the playoffs, and he finished the year 30th in the standings with three top-ten results. He returned to form with a second-place finish in the 2026 Daytona 500 and signed a contract extension with Hyak Motorsports on May 11.

Driving Style and Strengths

Stenhouse’s racing identity was built on dirt, and his aggressive instincts still shine on the high-banked restrictor-plate tracks of Daytona and Talladega, where he has collected three of his four Cup wins. He pairs that superspeedway craft with a long-standing partnership with crew chief Mike Kelley, who helped steer him to the 2010 Nationwide Rookie of the Year and remains a trusted voice on the pit box.

Notable Races and Milestones

The 2017 GEICO 500 at Talladega, the 2017 Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona, the 2023 Daytona 500, and the 2024 YellaWood 500 stand as his signature Cup wins. Two back-to-back Nationwide Series championships in 2011 and 2012, plus Rookie of the Year honors in both the Nationwide and Cup ranks, round out his career-defining milestones.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Career Wins

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has built a versatile résumé that includes a NASCAR Cup Series total of 4 wins, two NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (formerly Nationwide/Xfinity) championships with 8 wins, two ARCA Menards Series victories, and several prestigious dirt-track titles.

NASCAR Cup Series Highlights

Stenhouse’s four Cup victories include back-to-back Talladega wins in 2017 and 2024, a summer Daytona triumph in 2017, and the 2023 Daytona 500, the crown jewel of the sport. His Cup career totals also include 66 top-ten finishes and 3 poles, with a best championship result of 13th in 2017.

Other Wins and Performances

Outside the Cup Series, Stenhouse captured the 2007 Knoxville Midget Nationals and the 2007 4-Crown Nationals Midget, and won the inaugural Junior Knepper 55 in 2015. He also owns two ARCA Menards Series wins from 2008, a NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series title in 2011 and again in 2012, and 8 total wins, 63 top-tens, and 8 poles in that series.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Family

Family Background and Racing Lineage

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. is the son of Ricky Stenhouse Sr. and Lisa Stenhouse. His father, Ricky Sr., has been closely involved in his racing journey, and the family raised Ricky Jr. in Olive Branch, Mississippi, where his early karting and sprint car foundation began.

Personal Life

Stenhouse stands 5 feet 10 inches tall and is a devout Baptist and an Ole Miss Rebels football fan. He was in a long-term relationship with fellow racer Danica Patrick from November 2012 to December 2017. He became engaged to Madyson Goodfleisch in November 2021, and the couple married on October 26, 2022, in Charleston, South Carolina. They have a son, Stetson Steele Stenhouse.

2025 Season Performance

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. entered the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season at the wheel of the No. 47 Chevrolet ZL1 for the rebranded Hyak Motorsports. He opened with an 18th-place finish at the Daytona 500 and showed early promise, climbing as high as 13th in the standings with ten top-20 results across the first 15 races. The strong start suggested he and crew chief Mike Kelley had built real momentum in the new-look organization.

The second half of the regular season told a different story, as finishes outside the top 20 piled up and Stenhouse fell out of playoff contention. He ended the year 30th in the final standings with only three top-ten finishes, a sharp contrast to his fast first half. The team will look to recapture the early-2025 form and push back into the postseason in 2026, where he already has a second-place Daytona 500 result to build on.