Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Kyle Busch didn’t always get along, and they even came to blows at the 2024 All-Star Race. But this weekend, Stenhouse will race a paint scheme in honor of the fallen NASCAR legend.
The 2x NASCAR Cup Series died suddenly of pneumonia that progressed into sepsis last week, leaving the entire sport to grieve. He was honored throughout the weekend at Charlotte, and Busch’s family was even there on race day for a pre-race tribute to the man we loved to call Rowdy.
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At Nashville, Stenhouse’s No. 47 NOS Energy Chevrolet for Hyak Motorsports will use the same paint Busch brought to Victory Lane in numerous NASCAR O’Reilly races over the years.
Between just 2016 and 2017, he won 15 races with NOS Energy, and 22 of his record 102 O’Reilly wins came with the energy drink sponsor. This exact scheme last went to Victory Lane with Busch at Bristol 2017, as part of his second weekend sweep — the only driver to ever win all three national divisions on the same weekend.
Crew chief Mike Kelley said of the special No. 47 scheme: “For a long time we chased him, the bar has always genuinely been him. Thank you Nos Energy Drink, Hyak Motorsports, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., and all those involved, we get to honor him. It’s been an emotional week, a challenging time in our sport. KFB Thank you for making a generation of people better by challenging us!”
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Here’s a look at the car Stenhouse will run this weekend:
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