Stenhouse Jr. dives into his No. 47 pit crew after a riveting Daytona 500 win. (Photo: Cornnell Chu | The Podium Finish)
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Ricky Stenhouse Jr. must have channeled his best Han Solo in terms of not wanting to know the odds, at least, of winning the Daytona 500 from the 31st starting position.
Regardless of the generation of NASCAR Cup Series stock car and level of competition, a toward the back of the field starting position is not insurmountable as evident by the Olive Branch, Mississippi native’s drive on Sunday night.
It was a bit of a slow and steady climb to the front for the 35-year-old as he drove to a 24th place finish in Stage 1.
Then, like Solo, the tenacious Stenhouse navigated through a flurry of action packed wrecks amidst the aggressive drafting packs, as he netted a third place result in Stage 2.
Before Stenhouse considered the prospects of winning this year’s Daytona 500, he was mired in a victory drought that spanned over five years.
Fittingly, his most recent victory was the 2017 Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway.
Moreover, Stenhouse kicked off his fourth season with the JTG-Daugherty Racing team after competing for RFK Racing from 2013 to 2019.
Similarly, the driver of the No. 47 Kroger/Cottonelle Chevrolet Camaro consistently contended for superspeedway victories en route to frustrating defeats, mostly from late race accidents.
On Sunday night, Stenhouse stayed out of trouble and in contention during the meaningful moments of “The Great American Race.”
Doding more late race wrecks in Stage 3, Stenhouse worked his way to the lead on Lap 203 ahead of the race’s ultimate overtime restart.
The late race wrecks pushed Sunday’s Daytona 500 into a lengthy overtime session by historic proportions, namely with making it the longest version of this race in its storied history.
Aside from these multiple external factors, Stenhouse had a bevy of usual contenders who were ready to snatch the victory, namely Kyle Larson and Joey Logano.
Unlike past efforts, particularly from 2012 to 2022, Stenhouse would not be denied of his Daytona dreams.
As Stenhouse battled Logano for the victory, the caution lights turned on for a Turn 2 accident involving Larson, Ryan Blaney, Aric Almirola, Austin Cindric, Bubba Wallace, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin and AJ Allmendinger.
Luck was on Stenhouse’s side as he led at the time of the race’s final caution which resulted in his first Daytona 500 victory.
Once Stenhouse clambered out of his No. 47 ride, he relished his latest victory in awe and relief.
Stenhouse made all the right moves in all the right places at Daytona. (Photo: Cornnell Chu | The Podium Finish)
“When the 8 (Busch) went to the bottom there, I was able to push the 22 (Logano) and the 5 (Larson),” Stenhouse said. “We had a huge run. I was hoping we were going to get to the white there, and we didn’t, so I knew I was going to take the top. I was hoping the 22 was going to follow, and he did. He was able to push us out.
“I went to the bottom, the 8 and the 22 got a huge run. The 5 split me in the middle, but another fellow dirt racer with Bell gave me a good shot down the little short chute into 1, and we were out front when the caution came out.”
All things considered, Stenhouse scored a popular victory among his peers after a frustrating five year snag.
Perhaps fortune was truly on Stenhouse’s side considering that he had enough fuel to finish and win this year’s 500.
His only setback came after his frontstretch celebration as he ran out of fuel to drive his way to Victory Lane.
In this case, Stenhouse and his winning No. 47 Chevy Camaro needed some assistance to Daytona’s most hallowed grounds.
“We were out of fuel so the fuel light was going crazy. I hope y’all had fun. That was a heck of a race,” he said.
Stage 1 Top 10 Finishing Order:
Kesleowski-Preece-Buescher-Harvick-McDowell/Gibbs-Johnson-Almirola-Truex Jr.-Gilliland
Stage 2 Top 10 Finishing Order:
Chastain-Bowman-Stenhouse Jr.-Logano-Cindric/Truex Jr.-Byron-Allmendinger-Buescher-Bell
Daytona 500 Top 10 Finishing Order:
Stenhouse Jr.-Logano-Bell-Buescher-Bowman/Allmendinger-Suárez-Blaney-Chastain-Herbst
