- Ryan Preece is a professional stock car racing driver.
- He is currently competing full time full-time in the NASCAR cup series.
- He survived an intense car crash that flipped his car over almost 12 times on Saturday.
Ryan Preece, 32, has amazingly survived a NASCAR car crash that flipped his car over nearly a dozen times, during a race in Florida on Saturday, TMZ reported. The professional driver, who drives the No. 41 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing, was racing around the track in the Coke Zero Sugar 400 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs stock car race at Daytona International Speedway when the car suddenly cut across the track and went airborne, tumbling over 10 times before coming to a stop. The vehicle then appeared to catch fire as a medical team helped Ryan out of the car and put him on a stretcher to go to a nearby hospital for treatment.
Although a cause of the crash in the 16-car race, which was won by Chris Buescher, has yet to be publicly announced, Ryan’s rep reportedly revealed that he’s luckily okay and recovering. The statement said he was “awake and alert and obviously shaken,” and was still undergoing standard tests. Ryan’s latest Twitter message also got attention after the crash. As a result of the loss, Ryan was eliminated from the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.
Ryan Preece FLIPPED down the backstretch. 😳 #NASCAR | @NBC and @Peacock pic.twitter.com/Qztmvjd0NA
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) August 27, 2023
Find out more about Ryan and his impressive race car driving career below.
Ryan’s from Connecticut
The skilled driver was born in Berlin, CT in Oct. 1990 and is the youngest of three sons. He grew up in the area and attended Xavier High School, which is an all-boys college preparatory Catholic high school in Middletown, CT. He then went on to start race car driving.
He started car racing as a teenager
Ryan’s race car driving career started in 2007, the same year he turned 17, and he became 32nd in the championship in the Northeastern Midget Association with the Bertrand team. A year later, he made it to the podium for the first time ever, when the finished third at Monadnock in his only Northeastern Midget race of the year.
He’s gained quite a track record in his race car driving career
Since 2007, Ryan, who is currently competing full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series while driving the No. 41 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing, has competed in the ARCA Menards Series East and the ARCA Menards Series West. He has also been part of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour and was a runner-up in the series championship in 2009 and 2012, before winning in 2013. He also made multiple starts in the defunct NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour.
Ryan likes to promote his career on social media
Ryan’s Instagram account is full of car racing photos and videos. Shortly before his crash on Aug, 26, 2023, he shared a video that promoted the race, which can be seen above. “Dropping the hammer tonight at @daytona 7pm,” the caption for it read. After his crash made headlines, his fans took to the comments section of the post to share well wishes and relief over his recovery.
“Happy to see you walk out! 🙌 You’re tough as nails bro 🔥,” one fan wrote, while another wrote, “That was a truly terrifying crash… but good to see you got out of that car.” A third shared that they were “praying” for him, and a fourth added, “Glad you’re okay, bro.”
He is married with a child
Ryan married his longtime girlfriend, Heather DesRochers, a racing driver and a participant in NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity combine in 2009 and 2010, in 2017. Their daughter, Rebecca Marie, who can be seen above, was born on Aug. 7, 2023. The new parents first met at Stafford Motor Speedway in 2009 and competed against each other at in the SK Modified Series in 2011. Ryan won the championship and Heather was the Rookie of the Year.