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With a 14.1 average finish, Ricky Stenhouse Jr currently ranks 14th in the championship standings. In addition to his one win, which presently guarantees him a place in the playoffs, he has four top-10 finishes and two top-five finishes in his previous 12 races.
The Daytona 500 champion stated early in the 2023 Cup Series season that he wants to approach each race as though he were winless, with an average finish of roughly 15th. This remark made headlines, but Stenhouse Jr has subsequently followed through on his words.
During the media day at Kansas Speedway, Ricky Stenhouse Jr said:
“I mean, even without our win at Daytona, we’re hitting the goals that we kind of set out for, which is really nice, I mean, and now that we’re hitting those, I mean, it’s easy to sit there and try and change your goals, but we want to keep trying to do that.”
Ricky Stenhouse Jr's season has not gone as planned. His weekend at Dover Motor Speedway is an appropriate example. He and the No. 47 crew believed they had a stronger Chevrolet Camaro to the one that finished second to Chase Elliott in 2022.
After some difficulties on the pit road and throughout restarts, the team ended 15th. However, the team has seen glimpses of growth, which can only help them gain confidence for the remainder of the regular season.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr is optimistic ahead of upcoming races
Ricky Stenhouse Jr has achieved several great finishes in the first 12 weeks of the season, putting himself in place to meet his aim of finishing in the top-15 on average. The latest best finish was a 12th-place result at Kansas Speedway.
Stenhouse Jr is aware that there are possible problems ahead. Some circuits may cause issues for JTG Daugherty Racing as it attempts to maximize its points.
The next race is at Darlington Raceway, which has proven hit or miss in the past. Ricky Stenhouse Jr has finished ninth in the 2022 Goodyear 400, but a collision in September placed him out of the top 30.
Following that, next on the calendar is Charlotte Motor Speedway, World Wide Technology Raceway, Sonoma Raceway, and Nashville Superspeedway.
Stenhouse Jr finished in the top 10 in the 2022 Coca-Cola 600, but he fell short of the top 20 in both WWTR and Sonoma. Despite this, he recovered with a top-20 finish at Nashville Superspeedway.
The focus for this period will be less on winning races and more on "stop the bleeding," as Stenhouse Jr put it. Maintaining consistency will be critical for the single-car team as it prepares for a challenging summer stretch leading up to the playoffs.
