Millionaire Ricky Stenhouse Jr. absolutely clear about his Throwback Weekend goal after sluggish past with the former team

Four-time NCS race winner Ricky Stenhouse Jr. recently shared his expectations for this year's spring race at Darlington Raceway, scheduled for Sunday, April 6. Stenhouse Jr., worth $30 million (as per Celebrity Networth), faced disappointing results in both races at Darlington last year with his former team, JTG Daugherty Racing. Now, with the team's new avatar as Hyak Motorsports, the 37-year-old driver is looking to change his fortune at the 1.366-mile oval.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who has a career-best finish of eighth place at Darlington in his 18 previous Cup Series starts, failed to get inside the top 20 in both his attempts in 2024. He finished P23 in the Spring race and P22 in the fall race. While Stenhouse Jr. acknowledged that his car always had decent speed at the track, he made it clear that limiting mistakes will be a crucial factor for getting a good result on Sunday.

Speaking ahead of NASCAR's throwback weekend for the Goodyear 400 on Sunday, Stenhouse Jr. shared his goals for the race (via SpeedwayDigest):

"I feel like over the last couple of years, we've had a lot of good speed at Darlington. We've been good, had that speed, but we beat ourselves... We're hoping to have a lot more speed than we had last year."

"So, it's just about limiting our mistakes, keeping the car underneath the limit without going too far, and a smooth pit road. If we do all of that, we can probably have a really strong top-15 run," he added. "Who knows; if you hit the balance right, Darlington is a track where you can really shine. It's going to be hot and slick this weekend, too. We're finally going to get a race in the 90s, which will make that racetrack even tougher. I'm looking forward to the challenge though."

The 37-year-old driver sits in P20 in the drivers' standings with 146 points.

---

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. shares his approach at a difficult track like Darlington

NASCAR: Ricky Stenhouse Jr. at the DAYTONA 500 - Source: Imagn

Darlington Raceway has historically been a challenging track for NASCAR drivers, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. acknowledged that he has made a few costly mistakes there. The 1.366-mile oval has been termed 'Too Tough to Tame' for various reasons. A narrow, asymmetrical shape makes it hard for drivers to find a rhythm over the course of a full race distance.

What makes it even more difficult is the abrasive track surface and the ideal racing line being closer to the outside wall, much like the Homestead-Miami Speedway, making the drivers uncomfortable. When asked to share his approach on a racetrack like Darlington, Stenhouse Jr. shared that while it is extremely difficult, it is also enjoyable.

"You gotta approach Darlington the same way every time. It's been the same since forever. This is a place where you have to race the racetrack and keep your car clean, specifically keep it out of the fence. There's a lot of areas where you can make mistakes at this racetrack," he told NASCAR.

"It's about just keeping your car under the limit and figuring out what is too far. That's the way you have to race Darlington. It's been the same ever since they built it. This track is a battle, and it's tough, but it's also a lot of fun," the Hyak Motorsports driver added.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. will make his 19th career start at Darlington on Sunday at 3:00 pm ET.