When Ricky Stenhouse Jr. wrecked then-girlfriend Danica Patrick during a NASCAR race

During the NASCAR Cup race at Sonoma in 2017, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. found himself in an unprecedented situation. His then-girlfriend, Danica Patrick, who was behind the wheel of the #10 car, turned around and found herself in front of an incoming Stenhouse.

On lap 31, entering a turn, Danica Patrick went three-wide with Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kyle Larson as Larson made contact with Earnhardt, who made contact with Patrick, who got turned around and hit by her then-boyfriend, Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

Because of this, both Danica Patrick and Stenhouse Jr. sustained damage to their racecars. However, it was the #17 driver who the incident in which he wasn't even involved at first, paid for the most.

Stenhouse was out of the race as his racecar suffered too much damage for him to be able to continue.

After his race ended early, Stenhouse remarked as per FOX Sports how the three cars in front of him were dive-bombing each other as he eventually ran into Patrick's #10 despite trying his best to avoid it.

"It is a bummer for our day. We felt like we had probably a decent Sonoma car for us. Really just wanted to get out there and make laps. I thought we were decent on the long run, just trying to get there," he said.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Danica Patrick broke up after 5 years and went different ways in life

In an exclusive interview with Associated Press in 2013, Danica Patrick revealed that she was dating Ricky Stenhouse Jr. She said,

"I have a boyfriend, his name is Richard. I think I am just finally excited to tell someone about this."

Ricky Stenhouse Jr., confirming that he and Patrick were dating, mentioned how he prefers to not talk "too much" about his private life. He said that he tries to keep his focus on the racetrack.

"That's what it's all about for me," Stenhouse Jr. said.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Danica Patrick dated for 5 years and were one of the most talked about couples in NASCAR during that time. But in 2017, they decided to break up, with a spokeswoman from Patrick's end confirming that Danica and Stenhouse Jr. were "no longer in a relationship."

Currently, Stenhouse Jr. is married to Madyson Joye Goodfleisch, with whom he tied the knot back in October 2022. As for Danica Patrick, she had been in a few relationships after Stenhouse Jr., most notably with NFL's Aaron Rodgers.

From a career standpoint, their lives have turned out very differently from each other since their split, as Danica Patrick decided to bring the curtain down on her racing career in 2017, whereas Stenhouse Jr. is still going strong at the highest level in NASCAR.

The JTG Daugherty Racing driver is recently in the headlines after he punched Kyle Busch after the All-Star race at North Wilkesboro Speedway.