Ricky Stenhouse Jr. strives to join elite company with another Daytona 500 victory
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. arrives at Daytona with the clear mission of defending his standing as a former Daytona 500 winner and pushing his small team back into contention. The 2023 champion says momentum from that breakthrough remains, and he believes a second win in the sport’s biggest race would place him among a select group of repeat winners.
What the 2023 Daytona win means for Stenhouse and his team
Stenhouse, who celebrated victory in the Daytona 500 on Feb. 19, 2023 (ET), frames that landmark as both a personal milestone and a boost for his entire operation. "Anytime you can put Daytona 500 champion next to your name, it’s something that we've been striving for, " he said, noting how the triumph changed fan perceptions and propelled his squad through a strong season afterward.
That win came with the realities of running a compact operation. Stenhouse has been candid about the limits and advantages of a smaller crew: they know their resources, set realistic performance goals and savor the occasions when race results exceed expectations. For his team, top-15 finishes on a regular basis are considered a successful campaign; wins remain the ultimate target but are understood to be difficult to come by in today’s competitive Cup Series landscape.
Mindset and preparation: staying level-headed under pressure
Stenhouse described the mental game of NASCAR as similar to golf — a few wins can define a truly great season, while many drivers build long careers on consistent top-10s. "It’s very similar to golf, as in, you know, a good season's gonna be two, three wins, right?" he said. That perspective informs how he evaluates both bad weeks and strong ones: pick up the pieces, learn what you can and move on to the next race.
He emphasized readiness and confidence going into Daytona. "I'm ready to go. My team, we got a lot of good things working with our team, and everybody's ready to go, " Stenhouse said, painting a picture of a group that intends to be aggressive but measured during the unique chaos of restrictor-plate-style racing. His recent success at superspeedways — including another high-profile victory at Talladega in 2024 — underlines his competency in pack racing and provides optimism for another strong showing at Daytona.
Daytona weekend outlook and the role of media-day momentum
Daytona Media Day offered a lighter glimpse into the week ahead, where Stenhouse expressed enthusiasm about shared track time with veteran competitors and a growing interest in cross-series appearances. He’s taking on additional starts this season, including truck races, to broaden his seat time and sharpening across different machinery.
Beyond competition, Stenhouse framed Daytona as a time when teams can rally around objectives bigger than a single race. The 500 is a legacy event where victories linger in the sport’s history, and a repeat triumph would make Stenhouse only the 13th driver to win the Daytona 500 twice — a distinction that carries weight among drivers and fans alike.
For now, Stenhouse and his crew will focus on the fundamentals: steady practice runs, smart drafting alliances, and executing in the Duels and the main event. If everything clicks, the small-team hope is to transform careful preparation into another historic weekend at Daytona International Speedway on race day.
