NASCAR Sam Hornish Jr.

1 nascar

1.1 2006−2007: busch series
1.2 2008−2010: penske racing
1.3 2011−2014: return nationwide competition
1.4 2015: richard petty motorsports
1.5 2016–present: part-time xfinity series schedule

nascar
2006−2007: busch series

hornish spinning out @ 2007 o reilly challenge @ texas motor speedway

hornish began competing in nascar busch series in no. 39 dodge charger late in 2006 season penske racing. drove last 2 events of season, struggling in both races. @ phoenix, hornish started 27th , finished 36th after crash on lap 187. in season-ending race @ homestead-miami, involved crash after 5 laps , finished last.

hornish returned series in 2007, driving 9 races penske in no. 12. had best start , finish of season in nicorette 300 @ atlanta motor speedway, starting fifth , finishing fifteenth. hornish earned top-ten start (sixth place) @ season-ending race @ homestead-miami. despite qualifying run, finished 38th after crash todd bodine on lap 114.

in pit lane during practice 2007 ford 400 @ homestead-miami speedway

in mid-2007, hornish drove penske s no. 27 dodge charger in arca re/max series race @ michigan international speedway. starting in pole position, led first 29 laps of race before being passed eventual winner erik darnell , finishing second. after race, called transition stock cars challenge : m student @ this, still trying learn as can. lot of people have asked me toughest transition is, coming on here indycars , doing these stock car races, , s fact don t practice time.

at end of season hornish drove in nextel cup series penske racing south in no. 06 dodge charger, failing qualify first 6 races. qualified checker auto parts 500 @ phoenix, starting in 26th place , finishing 30th (two laps behind). hornish qualified following race @ homestead-miami, starting in 29th place. after crashing in turn 3 of lap 194 finished 37th, thirteen laps behind.

2008−2010: penske racing

practicing 2008 daytona 500

in 2008, hornish drove full-time penske in renumbered no. 77 car. before season, penske swapped cars , owners points kurt busch; hornish guaranteed starting position in first 5 races , busch, won series championship in 2004, guaranteed starting position recent series champion driving car outside top 35 in owners points. @ season-opening daytona 500, hornish qualified in 19th place; finished 15th teammates ryan newman , busch first , second, respectively. in season s second race, auto club 500 @ auto club speedway, hornish sustained collateral damage when casey mears crashed dale earnhardt jr. on lap 22. mears car flipped 270 degrees, , hornish s car caught fire. hornish finished in 43rd place. although struggled during rookie season, drove in may @ lowe s motor speedway. in exhibition sprint showdown @ lowe s, hornish started eighth , finished second. finishing in top two, qualified exhibition 2008 nascar sprint all-star race, starting 23rd out of 24 cars , finishing seventh. hornish had best finish (13th place) of season @ coca-cola 600, @ lowe s. late in season penske team dropped out of top 35 in owners points, , hornish failed qualify amp energy 500 @ talladega superspeedway , season-ending ford 400 @ homestead-miami speedway. finished 35th in drivers standings, 2,523 points. hornish second in rookie of year standings, after season-long battle regan smith.

racing remote-controlled car before 2008 season

he drove penske in renamed nationwide series, failing qualify first 2 races of season. hornish s best finish of season eleventh place in diamond hill plywood 200 @ darlington raceway, started twelfth. in carquest auto parts 300 @ lowe s motor speedway led first laps of series (eight), mid-race accident relegated him 39th place. late in season, hornish drove 1 race in craftsman truck series (the kroger 200 @ martinsville speedway) bobby hamilton racing in no. 4 dodge ram, starting 16th , finishing ninth.

in 2009 sprint cup season hornish returned penske, known penske championship racing. second straight year, team changed owners points (purchasing them dave blaney , bill davis racing time) guarantee him starting spot in first 5 races. @ season-opening daytona 500, hornish started 29th , finished 32nd (one lap behind). had first top-ten finish of season (ninth place) @ phoenix, followed 6 more throughout year. hornish s victory in sprint showdown @ lowe s motor speedway qualified him 2009 nascar sprint all-star race, started 19th , finished 16th. later season, had 2 top-five finishes: career-best fourth @ pocono , fifth @ michigan. hornish finished 28th in final standings, 3,203 points.

hornish joined penske again in 2010. @ season-opening daytona 500, hornish started 26th , involved in accident on race s ninth lap; finished 37th, completing 160 of 208 laps. qualifying results improved during rest of season, 3 top-fives. hornish s top-ten finish of season tenth place @ sylvania 300 @ new hampshire motor speedway. finished 29th in standings, 3,214 points. after season hornish s longtime sponsor, mobil 1, left him , penske tony stewart , stewart-haas racing. in 2010 nationwide series drove season-ending race @ homestead-miami brian keselowski motorsports (in conjunction penske) in no. 26 dodge avenger, starting twelfth , finishing 21st.

2011−2014: return nationwide competition

in 2012 sargento 200 @ road america

before 2011 season penske sold owners points of no. 77 car rusty wallace racing, driven owner rusty wallace s son (and team driver) steve @ season-opening daytona 500, financial reasons. result, penske moved hornish nationwide series drive team s no. 12 dodge charger. drove 5-hour energy 500 @ pocono raceway in front row motorsports no. 38 ford fusion, filling in travis kvapil (who driving in truck series event @ texas). hornish started in 26th place , finished 35th, 60 laps behind. drove twelve races no. 12 team, moving penske s no. 22 13th race @ iowa speedway. @ iowa hornish started in third place , led laps 13 through 51, later dropping 5 laps behind finish 24th. in wypall* 200 powered kimberly-clark professional @ phoenix international raceway, started in fifth place , led race s final 61 laps after passing ricky stenhouse jr. (who led race-high 73 laps) first career victory in series.

hornish returned series penske full-time season in 2012. winless, had second-place finishes @ indianapolis, montréal , kentucky. after race @ talladega superspeedway, danica patrick intentionally spun hornish s car main straightaway wall after made contact during race. finished fourth @ season-ending ford ecoboost 300 @ homestead-miami speedway, , fourth in points 1,146.

in pit lane @ 2012 geico 400 @ chicagoland speedway

hornish returned sprint cup series 1 race in penske s no. 12: stp 400 @ kansas speedway. starting in 10th place, led 7 laps , finished 19th (one lap behind). midway through season, hornish replaced a. j. allmendinger in penske s no. 22 car after allmendinger suspended nascar failing drug test. allmendinger qualified in eighth place, due driver change hornish had move rear of field. finished 33rd, after mid-race crash required ten laps of repair time. hornish drove car in remaining races, season-best fifth place @ watkins glen. aside race, best finishes trio of eleventh places @ atlanta, richmond , chicagoland. hornish s best start of season fourth @ dover, finished 25th (seven laps behind).

one of hornish s 2013 cars @ team penske facilities

he returned nationwide series full-time penske in 2013 drive no. 12, ford mustang after penske changed manufacturers. hornish s 2013 season best date, 16 top-five , 25 top-ten finishes. @ season-opening drive4copd 300 @ daytona international speedway, hornish started , finished second despite involvement in serious crash on final lap. since race winner tony stewart eligible score points sprint cup series, hornish series points leader after daytona race. @ sam s town 300 @ las vegas motor speedway, led 114 laps in second nationwide victory. before season-ending ford ecoboost 300 @ homestead-miami speedway hornish second in points, 8 behind austin dillon. hornish qualified in pole position , led 37 laps, finishing eighth; dillon, finished twelfth, won series championship. hornish second in final point standings, 1,177. during season, car owner roger penske said hornish (who had driven team since 2004) released due lack of sponsorship. hornish planned drive penske s no. 12 in sprint cup series @ kansas , talladega. @ kansas started in fourth place, running high third before crashing on lap 183 due winds. qualifier rained out @ talladega, , hornish failed qualify because had 1 other cup start season.

in 2014 gardner denver 200 fired johnsonville @ road america

in 2014, drove joe gibbs racing in no. 54 toyota camry part-time season. hornish drove 7 races in no. 54, driving no. 20 camry @ michigan (where finished second). in no. 54, started on pole @ talladega , mid-ohio. highlight of hornish s season victory in know newton 250 @ iowa speedway, started in second place , led 167 laps. despite limited schedule finished 27th 242 points, highest-ranked driver less ten starts. gibbs tapped hornish drive auto club 400 @ auto club speedway in no. 11 camry when regular driver denny hamlin sidelined severe sinus infection, , finished 17th.

2015: richard petty motorsports


richard petty, announcing team s signing of hornish

racing @ new hampshire motor speedway in 2015

in 2015 hornish returned full-time sprint cup series, driving no. 9 ford fusion richard petty motorsports (rpm). replaced marcos ambrose, returned racing v8 supercars djr team penske. hornish began season twelfth-place finish @ daytona 500, after starting 38th. struggled after season opener, finishing 30th or worse in 4 of next 8 races. in geico 500 @ talladega superspeedway, hornish had season-best sixth-place finish; after race, kevin manion replaced drew blickensderfer crew chief. later finished in top ten @ both road-course races (tenth , ninth @ sonoma raceway , watkins glen international, respectively). in coke 0 400 @ daytona involved in single-car accident on lap 155, driving infield @ full speed. hornish s splitter pushed under front of car; flipped when front of car dug grass, , flipped again when crossed track access road. retired race, finishing 30th. on november 14, 2015, rpm announced did not expect hornish return team 2016 season.

hornish drove biagi-denbeste racing s no. 98 ford mustang part-time in former nationwide series, renamed xfinity series. in 3 races team had 1 lead-lap finish, 14th place @ texas.

2016–present: part-time xfinity series schedule

on may 11, 2016, article posted online sports illustrated appeared acknowledge hornish had retired racing after being released richard petty motorsports, saying unharnessed himself 1 last time , hung helmet @ end of last season. 5 days later, however, article crescent-news (based in hornish s birthplace of defiance, ohio) quoted hornish saying, m still working on race in equipment. possibilities still exist year, there couple of different opportunities didn t pan out because else brought money table.

on june 8, 2016, richard childress racing announced plans add hornish xfinity series driver lineup, hiring him drive no. 2 chevrolet camaro @ july iowa race , kentucky. ran no. 2 @ mid-ohio. additionally, hornish returned joe gibbs racing drive no. 18 toyota camry in place of injured matt tifft june iowa race, race went on win.

in june 2017, hornish returned xfinity series penske, driving no. 22 mustang @ both iowa races , mid-ohio event. @ mid-ohio, hornish won pole, , proceeded lead 61 of 75 laps en route victory in home state.