Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Is No Longer Just “Danica Patrick’s Boyfriend”
By Asher Fair
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. claimed his first career NASCAR Cup Series victory this past May at Talladega. He added to it with Saturday night’s win at Daytona.
When Ricky Stenhouse Jr. won his first career NASCAR Cup Series race two months ago at Talladega in his 159th career start, many were quick to dismiss it as a fluke. After all, he won at Talladega in a plate race where pretty much everyone had an equal chance to win, and it was just his first win in 159 career starts. While subtle, the reaction of Kyle Busch, who finished in 3rd place in that race, to the result of the race pretty much told this story.
"“We go to a real racetrack next week and try to win there.”"
Well, seven races after Talladega in career race #166, Stenhouse Jr. took his #17 Roush Fenway Racing Ford back to Victory Lane, this time at Daytona at another plate race, proving that his success at the Talladega plate race was no fluke.
Up until this season, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was only really known to the average NASCAR fan as Danica Patrick’s boyfriend. While that is what he is, that is pretty much all he was known for. The two-time NASCAR Nationwide Series champion had been driving in the Cup Series as a full-time driver for four seasons prior to the start of the 2017 season, and he had never before qualified for the playoffs. His top finish in the championship standings was 19th place in his rookie season. It only made sense that all of the attention he got was simply because of the fact that he was dating one of the most popular drivers in NASCAR. After all, he wasn’t anything special on the track itself.
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Now it’s official. From a NASCAR perspective, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. is much more than just Danica Patrick’s boyfriend. In fact, he is probably more relevant than her at this point. While neither driver had really done anything special in their first four seasons (2013-2016) in the sport, now he is amounting to something beyond publicity. While she has had no top 5 finishes in 171 career races, he now has two victories over the past eight.
No, Stenhouse Jr. is still not one of the most consistent drivers in the field. He still sits in only 16th place in the standings, which is the 2nd-lowest among drivers who have won at least one race so far this season and lowest among drivers who have won more than one race so far this season. But the fact is he can win races, and wins are what really matter in NASCAR, even more than consistency does, especially when the playoffs roll around.
Stenhouse Jr., who is in a 2nd place tie with three other drivers with two victories in 2017, trails only seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson in total victories this season. Since wins lock drivers into the playoffs, Stenhouse Jr. has qualified for his first career playoffs in his fifth career season as a full-time Cup Series driver.
And while he is only in 16th in the standings, the playoffs points that he has earned as a result of his two victories this season would put him in 5th place to begin the playoffs if the season ended today. Wins certainly do matter more than consistency does, and Stenhouse Jr. has shown that this season.
Maybe he won’t end up winning this year’s championship. In fact, he probably won’t, and if he did, it would be a massive upset. But the fact is, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has made a name for himself this season in NASCAR and it has nothing to do with his girlfriend. People are now starting to associate him with his driving as opposed to his life off of the racetrack, and for good reason too.
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