BRISTOL, Tenn: The countless sleepless nights for Ryan Ellis have paid off.
Ellis along with Alpha Prime Racing announced Thursday that the popular NASCAR Xfinity Series driver will return to the organization next season with an increased schedule that launches early into the 2023 season.
The announcement arrives as Ellis is prepared to make his final Xfinity Series start of the season in Friday night’s Food City 300 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway.
Ellis’ No. 44 Keen Parts | CorvetteParts.net Chevrolet will sport a special paint scheme as part of an effort to raise money for the Laughlin Family Foundation – which raises money for the fight against rare cancers.
“As soon as we got this year underway, I knew I wanted to be nowhere other than back at Alpha Prime Racing,” said Ellis. “We’ve had some really good runs this year and there are definitely some races where our results do not reflect what the team deserved due to bad luck.”
Now, Ellis is hopeful to run at least half of the 2023 NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule with the intent of adding more races to his plate – as additional sponsorship develops.
Ellis along with a small personal team has been working vigorously to reconnect with old partners while branching out to new companies all with a vested interest in keeping Ellis present in the NASCAR circle and keeping his dream alive.
“I’m really excited and feel very fortunate to get the opportunity to run more races with everyone who is a part of this team,” added Ellis. “It’s a dream to be able to work with every single person here and I want to thank every single one of my sponsors, Tommy Joe, Caesar, everyone at Alpha Prime, everyone who helps me with marketing and day-to-day work, and especially family – my wife and daughter who put up with me, because I wouldn’t be here without every single one of them.”
A third-generation racecar driver, Ellis began racing at the age of four in quarter midgets. His father Jim Ellis raced in SCCA, and his grandfather Vic raced sprint cars in the 1950s before losing his life in a racing accident.
He progressed through Legends Cars, NASCAR Late Models, Spec Miatas, the Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Series, Grand-Am and other series before beginning his journey in NASCAR.
He made his NASCAR debut in 2012 for Jimmy Means Racing and has raced for numerous underfunded – smaller teams in the NASCAR Cup, Truck and Xfinity Series respectively.
In 2016, Ellis briefly stepped away from driving as a career to become the director of marketing and public relations for Go Fas Racing. When the team closed its doors following the 2020 season, Ellis decided to revive his driver’s career and start piecing together part-time efforts which led him to Alpha Prime at the beginning of the 2022 season.
With 10 races under his belt, this season and a season-high and career-best finish of 13th earned twice at Las Vegas (Nev.) Motor Speedway in March and Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway in May, the 32-year-old is hunting his first career top-10 Xfinity Series finish and believes the Mooresville, N.C.-based team can help him achieve that goal.
“We’re grinding away to continue to grow our program year after year and I’m doing my best to enjoy every minute of this ride and continue pursuing my lifelong dream,” sounded Ellis. “I believe in myself and others believe in me too and as a driver that is a huge confidence booster.
“We’ve had some good results this season, but there are better finishes on the horizon for us. Hopefully, we can end our season at Bristol Motor Speedway on a high note and carry that momentum over to the 2023 season.”
Ellis’s first race in 2023 will be significant as it boasts his 100th NASCAR National Series start.
“Ryan was one of the first people to believe in what we were putting together here at Alpha Prime Racing,” offered Tommy Joe Martins, general manager of Alpha Prime Racing. “We’re very happy to have him and his partners secured for 2023 and proud to have him be the first driver announced in our lineup.”
Sponsorship for Ellis’ efforts as well as a detailed schedule will be announced at a later date.
Follow Chris Knight on Twitter @Knighter01.
