Top Dog: Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Do you remember those slip n’ slides when you were a kid? Yes, they are still around, and they could give you thrills for hours … or send you to the hospital.
If you were like me, you probably added extra soap to add some extra flare and excitement. That’s kind of what it is like putting dirt on Bristol Motor Speedway.
The concrete is entertaining enough, and despite the controversy of it, dirt is a whole different animal. Once again, that was on display in the Food City Dirt Race on Easter Sunday (April 9).
When the dust settled, Ricky Stenhouse Jr.’s Easter egg cracked open with a top five inside. Stenhouse is no stranger to dirt, running several sprint car and quarter midget races — including the Chili Bowl Nationals — and that prowess was exhibited during the event.
Stenhouse actually opened the day by appearing at the Easter Celebration held outside the track early in the evening.
From there, the Olive Branch, Miss., native started the race from 22nd, working his way into the top 20 before the first of a multitude of cautions hit on lap 11.
Despite cars spinning around like turtle shells in Mario Kart, Stenhouse was able to dodge his way through the chaos to finish stage one in 17th.
The No. 47 was quietly toward the back end of the teens for most of stage two, but slowly crawled forward as the stage went along. By the time the green-and-white checkered flag flew, Stenhouse was in 12th.
The reigning Daytona 500 winner worked several grooves through the race, finding success as a bottom-feeder and momentum as a rim-rider. With 75 laps remaining, he cracked the top 10.
Several cautions in the late stages of the race kept the field bunched up, with three and even four-wide action taking the breath away of fans and teams. However, Stenhouse kept his nose clean and remained inside the top 10.
Following a restart on lap 243, the experienced dirt racer went from seventh to fourth, gaining one more spot a lap later. Austin Dillon got around Stenhouse for third, but the JTG Daugherty Racing driver held on for a stout fourth-place showing.
The Bristol dirt race has reaped rewards for Stenhouse, who finished runner-up in the inaugural event in 2021. He now has two top fives in three races on dirt at Bristol.
Stenhouse also has two top fives and three top 10s to open the season, his best start with JTG Daugherty Racing since joining the team in 2020. With a win…
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