Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – Charlotte Advance

Stenhouse Jr. at Charlotte Motor Speedway

Stenhouse Jr. has eight NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) starts at Charlotte Motor Speedway with an average starting position of 23.6 and average finishing position of 21.6.

The two-time XFINITY series champion made his first NSCS start at Charlotte in 2011 in the famed No. 21 finishing an impressive 11th; his best Sprint Cup career finish at the 1.5-mile track.

Last year’s Coca-Cola 600
After battling back from being one lap down and maneuvering his Fastenal Ford up inside the top-20, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was running in the 16th position before a mechanical issue sent him to the garage for repair. Thanks to the hasty work by the No. 17 team to repair the issue, Stenhouse Jr. was able to return to the track and pick up two positions in the final laps, salvaging a 37th-place finish.

“600 Miles of Remembrance”
Stenhouse and the No. 17 Fastenal Ford will participate in “600 Miles of Remembrance” on Memorial Day Weekend to honor military service members and their families.

James (Jim) H. Woolard will replace ‘Stenhouse Jr’ on the windshield of the No. 17 Ford.

Jim was a childhood friend of Jack Roush who lived two doors apart.

During his short time in Vietnam, Woolard, together with his Army buddies, had constructed 12 artillery firebases. On the night of Thursday, Oct. 30, Woolard was hit in the neck by mortar fragments by a hostile force. He was evacuated from the fire base to the 71st Evacuation Hospital in Vietnam, where he clung to life until sometime Monday, Nov. 3.

On the Car

Fastenal is currently in its fifth season as a primary partner in the NSCS for Roush Fenway. They spent three years on the No. 99 before jumping over to the No. 17 entry, and were the primary partner on the No. 60 XFINITY team that captured the owner’s championship in 2011.

Stenhouse Jr. on racing in the Coca-Cola 600:

“I’m looking forward to the race this weekend. We learned some things along with our teammates during the Sprint Showdown and All-Star race that should help us this weekend. It’s a long race which starts during the day and runs into the night so we will keep adjusting on our Fastenal Ford and hopefully can leave Charlotte with another solid finish.”

Sandler on racing in the Coca-Cola 600:

“We learned some things last weekend during the Showdown and our teammates got some extra track time in the All-Star race that should help us this weekend. The Coke 600 is a long, grueling race. It starts when it’s daylight and ends at night so you don’t want to over adjust too early in the race as the track will continue to change. Our intermediate program has definitely improved this year so hopefully we will have a strong showing in front of our friends and family.”