Ryan Ellis (racing driver)

Ryan James Ellis (born November 29, 1989) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He currently serves as the public relations representative for Go Fas Racing and Corey LaJoie. He also last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the Nos. 78 and 99 Toyota Supras for B. J. McLeod Motorsports.

Ryan Ellis
Ellis at Road America in 2018
Born	Ryan James Ellis (1989-11-29) November 29, 1989 Torrance, California
Achievements	2005 Virginia State Legends Pro Champion 2009 Teen Mazda West Coast Champion 2011 NASA SU National Champion
Awards	2011 Grand-Am ST Rookie of the Year
NASCAR Cup Series career
5 races run over 2 years
2016 position	58th
Best finish	58th (2016)
First race	2015 Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500 (Phoenix)
Last race	2016 AAA Texas 500 (Texas)
Wins Top tens Poles 0 0 0
NASCAR Xfinity Series career
50 races run over 7 years
2019 position	59th
Best finish	30th (2016)
First race	2012 Sargento 200 (Road America)
Last race	2019 CTECH Manufacturing 180 (Road America)
Wins Top tens Poles 0 0 0
NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series career
24 races run over 3 years
2016 position	100th
Best finish	29th (2015)
First race	2014 NextEra Energy Resources 250 (Daytona)
Last race	2016 Careers for Veterans 200 (Michigan)
Wins Top tens Poles 0 0 0
Statistics current as of November 18, 2019.

Racing career

Early career (1994–2005)

A third-generation racecar driver, Ellis began driving Quarter Midgets at age 4 and nearly won the first QMA Dirt National Championship race he ever entered. He then went on to a stellar 7-year career in Quarter Midgets, becoming Virginia's all-time QMA leader and one of the most successful open-wheel racers in the state. A threat in QMA National competition since his debut, Ellis was soon on the lookout for his next conquest. Entering the Legends scene at the age of 12, Ellis achieved national success campaigning the open wheel INEX Legends Cars. Winning Young Lion and Semi-Pro titles in 2002, 2003 and 2004, Ellis toured the nation in 2005 as a member of INEX’s elite Legends Pro division, capturing the 2005 Virginia State Pro Championship and finishing 4th in the National Pro Series. Ellis won dozens of Legends features on the Bullrings of Virginia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Ohio. Still today, Ellis returns to the ovals with his Legends Car several times each year.

NASCAR to road racing

Ellis had a short-lived entry into full-bodied world of NASCAR during 2006. Quickly, Ellis was the NASCAR Late Model Stock Car (LMSC) Rookie pacesetter at his home track, Manassas’ fabled Old Dominion Speedway. Ellis competed sparingly that spring in both Virginia and North Carolina in NASCAR’s highest Weekly Racing Series division.

In 2006, when he wasn’t running Late Models, he raced his Legends Car, going Road Racing with the National Auto Sport Association, (NASA) where he won the majority of the events he entered. Ryan won the 2006 NASA Hyperfest/Summit Point event, captured the 2006 NASA Mid Atlantic Legends Road Racing Championship, and lost the inaugural 2006 NASA National Championships at Mid Ohio by a mere 2 feet. At the end of the 2006 season Ryan was invited, (for the second year in a row) to the 2nd annual Performance Racing Industry National Invitational race at the Orlando Speedworld bullring. In only his second Oval track race of the season with the Legends Car, Ryan qualified in the top ten and was running fifth in the prestigious nationally televised event.

In 2007 Ryan Ellis Racing re-established its own internally managed race programs featuring a Pro Legends Car oval racing entry, and in mid-year they also began contesting a Mazda Spec Miata race car in a partial season of both NASA and SCCA Road Racing. That program led to a full-on 2008 NASA National and Regional Championship chase in the Spec Miata class. In 2008, Ellis finished as runner-up by two points in the NASA Mid Atlantic Spec Miata championship. He also was the highest-finishing driver from his region at the 2008 NASA Spec Miata Nationals, finished 2nd in the inaugural Mazda Teen Challenge program, and was voted “Driver of the Year” by NASA Mid Atlantic.

Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup career (2008–2010)

In February 2009, Ellis was selected in a nationwide search by Volkswagen of America as one of only 15 new drivers from North America invited to enter their 2009 Jetta TDI Cup series. When he wasn’t racing somewhere in the TDI Cup, Ellis spent the 2009 season racing his beloved Mazda Spec Miatas with NASA out on the West Coast – where he dominated the 2009 Teen Mazda Challenge and won the season Championship. Ryan also raced at Old Dominion Speedway’s 3/8 oval in 2009, winning another Legends race and driving a NASCAR Late Model once again. At the end of the 2009 season Ellis entered the Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup twin finale(s) at Virginia International Raceway. There he surprised the series regulars by running in the lead pack both days, and posting solid top ten finishes in his first time ever in a MX-5 Cup car. The 2009 season closed with a coveted invite to the Mazdaspeed Motorsports Development MX-5 Cup Shootout, where Ryan (the youngest of the 5 finalists) finished as the runner-up in the closest competition ever.

TDI Cup career and CTSCC ST Rookie of the Year (2010–2011)

In 2010, Ellis won the first two races of the Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup season before finishing the season sixth in points. Two wins and two poles, both at Virginia International Raceway, fastest lap at two races (Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and VIR), three podiums (VIRx2 and Puebla), led three races VIRginia International Raceway twice and Road America), and set a new track record at VIR. At the end of the season, he tested with many Grand-Am Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge teams before signing with APR Motorsport for the 2011 season.

At the 2011 season opener for the Continental series at Daytona International Speedway, Ellis broke the track record in qualifying by nearly two seconds, qualified 1st, and won the first race of his rookie season with teammate Ian Baas. He then won at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Round 2 and finished 3rd at the Continental Tire event at Road America resulting in a 3rd-place finish in the overall points standings and winning the ST Rookie of the Year.

Ellis signed with Insight Racing in 2012 and won the 2012 Kia 200 with co-driver Martin Jensen before the team folded due to lack of funding. Ellis was quickly signed to i-MOTO Racing and completed much of the 2012 season with them.

In 2013, Ellis was signed to drive with co-driver Mathew Pombo with i-MOTO Racing again. He qualified on pole at Daytona and led much of the race before retiring due to mechanical failure. Ellis qualified in the top-3 for many races with i-MOTO before being hired by Team SkullCandy Nissan for the balance of the 2013 season.

NASCAR (2012–present)

Ellis at Bristol Motor Speedway in 2015

For 2014, Ellis moved to the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, driving a partial schedule in the No. 28 fielded by FDNY Racing.[1] In 2014 and 2015, Ellis drove for various of teams in the Xfinity Series and the Truck Series. During the season, Ellis made his Sprint Cup Series debut in the Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500, driving the No. 33 for Circle Sport.[2] After qualifying 42nd, he finished 40th in the rain-shortened event, eight laps behind race winner Dale Earnhardt Jr..[3] In 2016, Ellis began running multiple races for BK Racing, driving the No. 93 car in the Cup Series with sponsorship from ScienceLogic, starting at Richmond in April.

With a lack of sponsorship available, Ellis became the public relations representative for Go Fas Racing and Matt DiBenedetto. When DiBenedetto left BK Racing after the 2016 season, Ellis was one of the leading candidates to replace him in the seat before drivers with personal funding took over the ride.[4] In addition to his PR roles with GFR, Ellis continued competing part-time in the Xfinity Series with B. J. McLeod Motorsports.[5]

Personal life

Ellis currently resides in Huntersville, NC with his wife Allison Ellis. Ellis' parents are Jane Ellis and Jim Ellis of Ashburn, Virginia. He has a younger sister named Kara. Ellis attended George Mason University (GMU), Ellis is a member of the Kappa Sigma fraternity. He serves as resident Pro Racing Instructor at Allsports Grand Prix in Sterling, Virginia, and is a host on CBS/WJFK's weekly “In the Pits” radio talk show. Outside of racing, Ellis is an avid hockey player and has played professionally with the Potomac Mavericks of the PIHA and for the GMU college hockey team. Ellis also plays hockey recreationally with several adult hockey ice and inline leagues.[6][7] A dedicated fan of the NHL's Washington Capitals, Ellis added an anti-Pittsburgh Penguins logo to the back of some of his helmets, before designing a Capitals-themed helmet in 2018 that eventually commemorated the team's first Stanley Cup victory.[8]

Images

• 
  2012 Nationwide car at Road America
• 
  2014 Nationwide car at Road America
• 
  2017 Xfinity car
• 
  2019 Xfinity car

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Sprint Cup Series

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	NSCC	Pts
2015	Circle Sport	33	Chevy	DAY	ATL	LVS	PHO	CAL	MAR	TEX	BRI	RCH	TAL	KAN	CLT	DOV	POC	MCH	SON	DAY	KEN	NHA	IND	POC	GLN	MCH	BRI	DAR	RCH	CHI	NHA	DOV	CLT	KAN	TAL	MAR	TEX	PHO 40	HOM	75th	0^1
2016	BK Racing	93	Toyota	DAY	ATL	LVS	PHO	CAL	MAR	TEX	BRI	RCH 37	TAL	KAN	DOV	CLT	POC	MCH	SON	DAY	KEN		IND 32	POC	GLN	BRI	MCH	DAR	RCH	CHI	NHA	DOV	CLT	KAN	TAL	MAR	TEX 38	PHO	HOM	58th	0^1
	Premium Motorsports	98	Chevy																			NHA 37

Xfinity Series

NASCAR Xfinity Series results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	NXSC	Pts
2012	Hamilton Means Racing	52	Chevy	DAY	PHO	LVS	BRI	CAL	TEX	RCH	TAL	DAR	IOW	CLT	DOV	MCH	ROA 39	KEN	DAY	NHA	CHI	IND	IOW	GLN DNQ	CGV DNQ	BRI	ATL	RCH	CHI	KEN	DOV	CLT	KAN	TEX	PHO	HOM	99th	5
2013				DAY	PHO	LVS	BRI	CAL	TEX	RCH	TAL	DAR	CLT	DOV	IOW	MCH	ROA	KEN	DAY	NHA	CHI	IND	IOW	GLN	MOH 38	BRI	ATL										55th	57
	SR² Motorsports	24	Toyota																									RCH 31	CHI	KEN 35	DOV 32	KAN	CLT	TEX 35	PHO	HOM 36
2014				DAY	PHO	LVS 28	BRI	CAL	TEX	DAR	RCH	TAL																									37th	104
	The Motorsports Group	46	Chevy										IOW 40	CLT			ROA 34	KEN	DAY		CHI 37	IND	IOW	GLN					CHI 39	KEN 39	DOV 40	KAN DNQ	CLT DNQ	TEX 40	PHO DNQ	HOM DNQ
	Rick Ware Racing	15	Chevy												DOV 38
		23														MCH 29
	JGL Racing	93	Dodge																	NHA 36								RCH 24
	JD Motorsports	01	Chevy																						MOH QL^†
	Vision Racing	37	Dodge																							BRI DNQ	ATL
2015	JGL Racing	26	Toyota	DAY	ATL	LVS	PHO	CAL	TEX	BRI	RCH	TAL	IOW 35	CLT	DOV	MCH	CHI	DAY																			102nd	0^1
	Jimmy Means Racing	79	Chevy																KEN 39	NHA	IND	IOW
	Rick Ware Racing	15	Chevy																				GLN 22		BRI 28	ROA		RCH 35	CHI	KEN 37
	JD Motorsports	01	Chevy																					MOH QL^†
	Rick Ware Racing	17	Ford																								DAR 40
	Obaika Racing	97	Chevy																												DOV 26	CLT 23
	Rick Ware Racing	17	Chevy																														KAN 34	TEX	PHO	HOM
2016		15	Ford	DAY	ATL	LVS QL^‡	PHO QL^±	CAL																													30th	191
	Obaika Racing	97	Chevy						TEX 30	BRI 35	RCH 29	TAL 35									IND 30	IOW	GLN 30							KEN 22				TEX 33
	Rick Ware Racing	25	Chevy										DOV 31	CLT	POC 25	MCH	IOW							MOH 18	BRI	ROA	DAR 33	RCH	CHI 27		DOV 36
		15																DAY 15	KEN	NHA
	Obaika Racing	77	Chevy																													CLT DNQ	KAN 36		PHO DNQ	HOM DNQ
2017	SS-Green Light Racing	07	Chevy	DAY	ATL	LVS	PHO	CAL	TEX	BRI	RCH	TAL	CLT	DOV	POC	MCH	IOW	DAY	KEN	NHA	IND	IOW	GLN	MOH	BRI	ROA 21	DAR	RCH	CHI	KEN	DOV	CLT	KAN	TEX	PHO	HOM	63rd	16
2018	B. J. McLeod Motorsports	78	Toyota	DAY 30	ATL	LVS	PHO	CAL	TEX	BRI	RCH	TAL	DOV	CLT	POC	MCH	IOW	CHI	DAY	KEN	NHA	IOW	GLN	MOH	BRI												57th	27
			Chevy																							ROA 17	DAR	IND	LVS	RCH	CLT	DOV	KAN	TEX	PHO	HOM
2019		99	Toyota	DAY	ATL	LVS	PHO	CAL	TEX	BRI	RCH	TAL	DOV	CLT	POC	MCH	IOW 23	CHI	DAY	KEN	NHA	IOW	GLN	MOH	BRI												59th	30
		78																								ROA 21	DAR	IND	LVS	RCH	CLT	DOV	KAN	TEX	PHO	HOM
^† - Qualified for Landon Cassill · ^‡ - Qualified for Stanton Barrett ^± - Qualified but replaced by Todd Peck

Camping World Truck Series

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	NCWTC	Pts
2014	Rosenblum Racing	28	Chevy	DAY 18	MAR		CLT 27							POC 19	MCH	BRI	MSP	CHI	NHA	LVS	TAL 23	MAR					100th	0^1
	JJC Racing	0	Chevy			KAN 28		DOV 34	TEX 27	GTW	KEN 32	IOW	ELD
	Win-Tron Racing	35	Toyota																				TEX 31	PHO	HOM
2015	FDNY Racing	28	Chevy	DAY 16	ATL	MAR		CLT DNQ							POC 20	MCH											29th	192
	MAKE Motorsports	1	Chevy				KAN 20		DOV 24	TEX 20	GTW 17	IOW 29					BRI 28
		50											KEN 30	ELD				MSP 31	CHI 29	NHA	LVS	TAL DNQ	MAR	TEX	PHO	HOM
2016	FDNY Racing	28	Chevy	DAY DNQ											POC 20	BRI											100th	0^1
	MAKE Motorsports	50	Chevy		ATL DNQ	MAR
		1					KAN 30	DOV	CLT	TEX 30	IOW	GTW	KEN	ELD
	Norm Benning Racing	6	Chevy														MCH 31	MSP	CHI	NHA	LVS
	MB Motorsports	63	Chevy																			TAL DNQ	MAR
	JJC Racing	10	Chevy																					TEX DNQ	PHO	HOM

^* Season still in progress
¹ Ineligible for series points

References

1. "Ryan Ellis: Signs Truck Series Contract". RotoWire. January 17, 2014. Retrieved 2014-01-25.
2. "Ellis to Make Cup Debut at Phoenix". Motor Racing Network. October 19, 2015. Retrieved April 19, 2016.
3. "2015 Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500". Racing-Reference. Retrieved April 19, 2016.
4. Mullan, Dillon (February 24, 2017). "Without sponsors, Ryan Ellis's NASCAR dream stalls after career-best season". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 24, 2017.
5. Knight, Chris (April 8, 2019). "Patriotism fuels Ryan Ellis to two NASCAR Xfinity Series races in 2019". Catchfence. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
6. Volkswagen Announces the 2010 Jetta TDI Cup Driver Lineup, retrieved 2010-04-05
7. http://dulles-sportsplex.ezleagues.ezfacility.com/teams/1252319/The-Fighting-Dragos.aspx
8. Oland, Ian (29 July 2018). "NASCAR driver debuts Washington Capitals Stanley Cup champions helmet and it's incredible". Russian Machine Never Breaks. Retrieved 30 July 2018.

External links

• Official website
• Ryan Ellis driver statistics at Racing-Reference