Know Your Driver: Sam Hornish Jr.

Sam Hornish Jr.

Name: Sam Hornish Jr.

            Nickname: N/A

Date of Birth: July 2, 1979 (age 35)

Hometown: Defiance, Ohio

Family: Crystal, wife; Addison, daughter; Eliza, daughter; Samuel, son

First Career Start: November 11, 2007 (Phoenix)

Car Number and Make: #9 Ford Fusion

Primary Sponsors:

• Twisted Tea
• Medallion Bank

Team: Richard Petty Motorsports

           

Teammates: Aric Almirola

Best Career Points Finish: 28th (2009)

Career Victories: 0

           

Notable Wins: N/A

Description: Sam Hornish Jr. received a rare second chance at a Sprint Cup career when Richard Petty offered him to join his team, replacing Marcos Ambrose who went back to his native Australia.

Hornish's first foray into the Sprint Cup series back in 2008 didn't quite go as planned. Hornish is one of a few drivers who have began their career in the IndyCar Series before switching to NASCAR, and often that transition proves extremely difficult. That rang true for Hornish, as he was only able to two top 5's and eight top 10's while spending a few seasons with Team Penske.

He was demoted to an XFinity (formerly Nationwide) ride after 2010, but made the most of his time in the series. He scored a couple of wins for Penske's team between 2011 and 2013, finishing second to Austin Dillon for the championship in 2013. He also filled in for injured or suspended Sprint Cup drivers on a couple of occasions, running 20 races for Penske after A.J. Allmendinger was suspended and subbing for an injured Denny Hamlin for one race as well. Hornish would suffer a further setback in 2014 when he lost his full-time XFinity ride due to sponsorship issues. He elected to race part time for Joe Gibbs Racing, sharing the #54 car with Kyle Busch. Hornish was able to score one win in his limited amount of races with the team and that was enough to propel him back into the Sprint Cup Series.

Hornish will have to provide more consistent results if he wants to stay in the Sprint Cup Series longer than his first term. Perhaps his increased experience driving stock cars will aid him much better this time around. 

Fun Facts: It should be noted that Hornish was a hell of an IndyCar driver. He won three championships in the series and also scored an electrifying last lap win at the 2006 Indianapolis 500.