Ricky Stenhouse Jr. declares "everything is the same except" one crucial aspect in light of JTG Daugherty's takeover

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. recently shared his thoughts on the rebranding of his Cup Series team. JTG Daugherty Racing, once co-owned by Tad and Jodi Geschickter and NBA legend Brad Daugherty, has transitioned to Hyak Motorsports.

Stenhouse Jr. competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the #47 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Hyak Motorsports (formerly JTG Daugherty Racing). The Tennessee native has earned 14 victories across NASCAR’s top three divisions, including eight in the Xfinity Series, where he claimed back-to-back championships in 2011 and 2012.

In a recent interview with FOX Sports' Bob Pockrass, the 37-year-old was asked if things felt different than last year. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. responded:

"We've got the same team, same guys working in the shop. We've added some extra personnel that I think will help elevate, hopefully, our performances. We've been working behind the scenes on trying to get our cars faster. So you'll still see Mike (Kelley) on top of the pit box. Obviously, me driving and tab up their spot. And so we've got some people in the background that are, hopefully, going to help our performance. So yeah, I mean, everything's the same, except for, hopefully, our performance is a little better than it was last year."

On being asked how the #47 driver felt about the shuffle in terms of sponsorship, he added:

"I feel really good about where we're at as a company. Gordon has been in this sport for a long time now, whether people know that or not. So he's committed to racing. He is in it for the long haul. So we got some partners and things that we're going to continue to announce as we get going here"

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. missed the playoffs in the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season but secured a standout victory in the YellaWood 500, a playoff race. Despite the win, the 37-year-old finished 25th in the standings with 590 points, capping off a challenging campaign.

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"I'm going to have to get with Ricky Stenhouse Jr.": Burt Myers reflects on race-ending incident following LCQ

Ricky Stenhouse Jr.'s night at Winston-Salem in the preseason Clash at Bowman Gray ended in controversy after a collision with local favorite Burt Myers. Starting P11 in the LCQ race, he made contact with the 11-time Bowman Gray Modified champion with 13 laps to go, sending Myers spinning into the Turn 1 wall. Frustrated fans took to social media to criticize Stenhouse’s move.

Following the end of the race, Burt Myers shared his thoughts on his race-ending incident.

"I ended up in the infield. You pick up speed when you end up in the infield. I'm going to have to get with Ricky Stenhouse and see exactly what happened from his perspective,' Myers told TSJ Sports' Peter Stratta.

"I shoved him out, but I was getting shoved from behind just like everybody else was and ended up getting turned around, so like I said, I don't want to put any blame on too much until I see exactly what happened." he added

Meanwhile, the Daytona 500 is scheduled for Sunday, 16h February at 2:30 PM ET, Can Ricky Stenhouse Jr. begin his 2025 season with a win in the crown jewel event? Let us know in the comments.