What is a superspeedway race without a ton of wrecks? The 2025 Daytona 500 has witnessed a slew of crashes already, with the dramatic ending laps spelling utter chaos. Team Penske’s drivers were at the top of the field all day, leading laps and winning stages. However, a Cup Series rival seemingly got in their way and stole their dreams – Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – and accrued backlash from fans.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. makes a dent in Penske

Well, Roger Penske may have been beaming with joy a little earlier. All three of his drivers – Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney, and Austin Cindric – dominated the front row for most of the Daytona 500. Logano, the reigning Cup Series champion, led for 43 laps in total, snagging the Stage 1 victory. Ryan Blaney also led for 22 laps and clinched the Stage 2 checkered flag. This extraordinary pace seemed indomitable – until Ricky Stenhouse Jr. edged closer to them.

With 14 laps to go for the Great American Race, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Joey Logano made contact off of Turn 2. The No. 22 Ford tried to get around the No. 47 Hyak Motorsports Chevy. But the duo made it four-wide, leaving the No. 47 little room. As a result, a multi-car crash unfolded that engulfed Ryan Blaney, Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski, Noah Gragson, and Kyle Busch too. Journalist Bob Pockrass updated on X: “Stenhouse had contact with Logano to trigger that one.”

This is hardly the first time that Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has been at the center of controversy. When he won the 2023 Daytona 500, Stenhouse Jr. left behind a multi-car wreck behind him during the overtime start. Then in last year’s All-Star Race, he got into a brawl with Kyle Busch for on-track conflict. After Busch seemingly spun out Stenhouse Jr. barely two laps into the race, the latter waited with sleeves rolled up. Then after the race, chaos broke out on pit road as Stenhouse Jr. landed an uppercut to Busch’s face.

Although nothing as such has panned out between Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and the Penske team, fans are raising their eyebrows. They did not exactly regard him in the best light.

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NASCAR community fires shots at Stenhouse Jr.

Fans piled up all sorts of names for Ricky Stenhouse Jr. for being at the center of chaos. When Joey Logano tried to steer clear of the No. 47 Chevrolet, the latter stopped him. Stenhouse darted in front of Logano to block him, and then the Penske driver made contact, wiggled, and ultimately lost control. One fan came up with a meaningful name: “Wreck ’em Ricky” strikes again!” Another fan pulled up a catchy tag for him: “Ricky wreckhouse.”

Others pointed out how Kyle Busch again got pulled into a chaotic fest that involved Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Busch and Ricky’s fight from last year is clearly still fresh on people’s minds. This time it was the reverse situation, though, as Stenhouse Jr.’s antics led to Busch bowing out of his Daytona effort. “Ironic how often Stenhouse impacts Kyle Busch’s day.” Another fan demanded some extreme measures for the #47’s aggressive nature. That was visible off the track at the All-Star Race and is now on track as well. “Stenhouse outta be parked for that shit.”

Yet some fans pointed out that it was not entirely Ricky Stenhouse Jr.’s fault. Joey Logano, while trying to advance, used a push from John Hunter Nemechek to form a new lane and push into the lead. So he also may have tried to push too hard. Somebody wrote: “Joey tried to fill a hole that wasn’t there, Ricky wrecked into Joey after Joey was already halfway beside him.” Somebody else quipped: “W intentional wreck for Joey, Ricky blocking like an idiot all race.”

Evidently, not a bright day for Ricky Stenhouse Jr. or the Penske stars. Hopefully, their post-race interactions will not involve any uppercuts and will settle this dispute peacefully.