Benjamin Jon Rhodes[1] (born February 21, 1997) is an American professionalstock car racing driver. He competes full-time in theNASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, driving the No. 99Ford F-150 forThorSport Racing. He is the2021 and2023 Truck Series champion.[2] Before moving up to the Truck Series, Rhodes competed full-time in what is now theARCA Menards Series East, where he drove forTurner Scott Motorsports and won the2014 series championship. He also has previously competed part-time in theNASCAR Cup Series, theNASCAR Xfinity Series, and what is now theARCA Menards Series.
Rhodes began his career in 2004 when he was seven years old, starting inkart racing, winning several champion titles before moving toBandoleros in 2008, andLegends cars in 2010, then moving up to late model stock cars beginning in 2011.[3][4]
After earning several wins, in 2012 he signed with then-Sprint Cup Series driverMarcos Ambrose to begin racingLate Model cars in the UARA-STARS Series under the Marcos Ambrose Motorsports banner.[5][6] After the 2012 season, Rhodes signed a deal withTurner Scott Motorsports to begin racing part-time in theNASCARK&N Pro Series East in 2013.[7] Rhodes scored five top five finishes in seven starts.[5] In June of that year, Rhodes was named to theNASCAR Next roster, composed of up-and-coming drivers expected to become the next group of stars in NASCAR competition.[8]
Rhodes would move full-time in the K&N East Series for 2014, with former driverMark McFarland as his crew chief.[5] In mid-March 2014, it was announced Rhodes would make hisCamping World Truck Series debut at Martinsville in theKroger 250 for TSM, and drive in three additional Truck series races that season.[9] He earned three top tens, including an eighth-place finish in his debut, in four Truck Series races.[4] Rhodes would also make hisARCA Racing Series debut at his home trackKentucky Speedway, starting fifth but finishing 27th after a crash.[5] Rhodes would claim TSM's second consecutive K&N Pro Series East Championship through five wins, eleven top-five finishes, and six poles. Rhodes would also tie a series record set byRicky Craven in 1991 by winning four consecutive races (Iowa,Bowman Gray,Five Flags,Langley Speedway) between May and June.[5]
In December 2014, it was announced that Rhodes would move up to theXfinity Series (formerly the Nationwide Series) withJR Motorsports for 10 races in the 2015 season, sharing the No. 88Chevrolet Camaro withSprint Cup Series driversDale Earnhardt Jr.,Kevin Harvick, andKasey Kahne. Rhodes made his debut with the team atIowa Speedway on May 16, finishing seventh.[10][4][11] Rhodes had the fastest time in the first practice atRoad America in August 2015 and he was awarded the pole position after qualifying rained out. On October 20, Rhodes announced that he had left JRM, intending to run a full-time Xfinity schedule in 2016.[12]
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On December 15, 2015, Rhodes joinedThorSport Racing to run full-time in the Truck Series in 2016, driving the No. 41Toyota Tundra.[13] Rhodes started the season with a seventh-place finish at Daytona. Rhodes andJohnny Sauter were in contention for the win at Kansas but both crashed on the final lap, allowingWilliam Byron to secure the first win of his career.[14] Rhodes missed the inaugural Truck SeriesChase and finished 14th in series points.[15]
Rhodes returned to ThorSport for the 2017 season with new crew chiefEddie Troconis and renumbered No. 27 Tundra.[16] Rhodes came close to victory at Kansas when, after passingKyle Busch late in the race, his engine expired with ten laps to go. On September 15, Rhodes secured a spot in the 2017 Truck Series playoffs.[17] On September 30, Rhodes held off eventual championChristopher Bell to win his first Truck race at theLas Vegas 350.[18]
For 2018, Rhodes returned to the No. 41 truck, now aFord F-Series, with Troconis returning as crew chief. After being plagued by engine troubles throughout the year, he won his second career race atKentucky Speedway after dominating the race and holding off a hard-chargingStewart Friesen.[19] He finished the season eighth in points.[20]
A repeat win in 2019 with ThorSport was not to be, however, as the lapped truck ofBrennan Poole made contact with Rhodes in the late stages of the race, causing tire problems and relegating Rhodes to a nineteenth-place finish. Rhodes, irate with Poole after the race, twice tried to physically confront Poole before being pulled away. Rhodes later said he was mad at Poole because he believed the lapped truck cost him a shot at a win and a berth in theNASCAR playoffs.[21] Later in the regular season atEldora Speedway,Tyler Dippel forced Rhodes into the wall in the late stages of the race, again knocking Rhodes from a top-ten finish, and then rammed his truck into Rhodes on the cooldown lap. On pit road after the race, Rhodes tried to drag Dippel from his truck before calling him a dirty driver. Dippel, in return, directed an expletive-laced tirade at Rhodes and called it "cool" that Rhodes would miss the playoffs, which Rhodes indeed did.[22]
Rhodes returned to ThorSport in 2020. He had a tumultuous race at theSpeedyCash.com 400 in October, when contact from Rhodes causedTodd Gilliland,Christian Eckes, andJosh Bilicki to retire from the race in three separate incidents. Rhodes blamed Eckes for driving him into the wall in retaliation against him, and blamedChandler Smith for the wreck with Bilicki; Rhodes later exchanged words and had a shoving match with Eckes after the race.[23]
The 2021 season began with Rhodes winning the first race atDaytona International Speedway after passing leaderCory Roper as they approached the finish.[24] Rhodes followed his Daytona oval win with a victory at the Daytona Road Course the next week in the BrakeBest Brake Pads 159, scoring back to back victories for the first time in his career. Rhodes won his first Truck Series championship on November 5 by finishing third in the race.[2] Overall, Rhodes had two wins, eight top-five finishes, sixteen top ten finishes, nnieteen lead lap finishes, an average finish of 9.3, and no DNFs.[25]
In2022, Rhodes finished second atDaytona. He DNF'd at 31st place atLas Vegas but made up for the loss with three consecutive top-five finishes before winning at theBristol dirt race.[26] Rhodes finished second atPhoenix and second in the standings.[27]
Rhodes started the2023 season with an eleventh-place finish atDaytona. He scored his first win of the season atCharlotte.[28] Rhodes finished second atHomestead to make the Championship 4.[29] He finished fifth atPhoenix; as the highest-finishing Championship 4 driver in the race, he clinched his second Truck Series championship.[30]
Rhodes'2024 season saw a significant decline in performance compared to last season. Rhodes only had six Top 10s during the regular season, but he was still able to qualify for the Playoffs. However, he would be eliminated after the first round, ultimately finishing ninth in the standings. It marked his first winless season since 2019.
Rhodes' decline continued in the2025 season, ultimately missing the Playoffs for the first time since 2016.
On May 31, 2021, it was revealed through the release of the entry list for the Cup Series race at Sonoma that Rhodes would make his debut in the series in the No. 77 forSpire Motorsports. The usual driver of that car,Justin Haley, a full-time Xfinity Series driver, was atMid-Ohio Sports Car Course for the race in that series that weekend. Rhodes was available due to the Truck Series having an off weekend that weekend. Rhodes started 31st and finished 30th.
In March 2019, Rhodes participated in theMichelin Pilot Challenge sports car race atSebring International Raceway, driving a Ford forMultimatic Motorsports alongside ThorSport Racing teammatesMatt Crafton,Grant Enfinger, andMyatt Snider.[31]
Rhodes is the son of Lori and Joe Rhodes. His father is the president of a Kentucky-based mechanical service contractor, Alpha Energy Solutions, which has sponsored Ben's racing efforts.[32]
Rhodes graduated fromHoly Cross High School inLouisville, Kentucky in 2015, finishing with a 3.98 GPA despite missing classes due to his racing career. He missed the school's graduation ceremony on May 15 because he was in Iowa to prepare for his Xfinity Series debut the next day; the school's president traveled to the race to present Rhodes with his diploma during driver introductions.[10]
(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time.Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
| NASCAR Cup Series results | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | NCSC | Pts | Ref |
| 2021 | Spire Motorsports | 77 | Chevy | DAY | DRC | HOM | LVS | PHO | ATL | BRD | MAR | RCH | TAL | KAN | DAR | DOV | COA | CLT | SON 30 | NSH | POC | POC | ROA | ATL | NHA | GLN | IRC | MCH | DAY | DAR | RCH | BRI | LVS | TAL | ROV | TEX | KAN | MAR | PHO | 63rd | 01 | [33] |
| 2022 | Kaulig Racing | 16 | Chevy | DAY | CAL | LVS | PHO | ATL | COA | RCH | MAR | BRD | TAL | DOV | DAR | KAN | CLT | GTW QL† | SON | NSH | ROA | ATL | NHA | POC | IRC | MCH | RCH | GLN | DAY | DAR | KAN | BRI | TEX | TAL | ROV | LVS | HOM | MAR | PHO | N/A | — | [34] |
| † – Qualified forA. J. Allmendinger | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| NASCAR Xfinity Series results | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | NXSC | Pts | Ref |
| 2015 | JR Motorsports | 88 | Chevy | DAY | ATL | LVS | PHO | CAL | TEX | BRI | RCH | TAL | IOW 7 | CLT | DOV | MCH | CHI 21 | DAY | KEN | NHA 12 | IND | IOW 30 | GLN 35 | MOH 10 | BRI | ROA 32 | DAR | RCH | CHI | KEN 30 | DOV 13 | CLT | KAN | TEX | PHO | HOM 20 | 28th | 230 | [35] |
| NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series results | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | NCTC | Pts | Ref |
| 2014 | Turner Scott Motorsports | 32 | Chevy | DAY | MAR 7 | KAN | CLT | DOV 22 | TEX | GTW | KEN | IOW | ELD | POC | MCH | BRI 9 | MSP | CHI | NHA | LVS | TAL | MAR | TEX | PHO 5 | HOM | 35th | 132 | [36] | |||
| 2016 | ThorSport Racing | 41 | Toyota | DAY 7 | ATL 6 | MAR 16 | KAN 18 | DOV 28 | CLT 17 | TEX 11 | IOW 4 | GTW 2 | KEN 13 | ELD 23 | POC 11 | BRI 30 | MCH 6 | MSP 30 | CHI 25 | NHA 15 | LVS 12 | TAL 24 | MAR 19 | TEX 15 | PHO 14 | HOM 20 | 14th | 387 | [15] | ||
| 2017 | 27 | DAY 12 | ATL 4 | MAR 20 | KAN 23 | CLT 8 | DOV 4* | TEX 5 | GTW 8 | IOW 14 | KEN 27 | ELD 30 | POC 2 | MCH 11 | BRI 5 | MSP 10 | CHI 6 | NHA 7 | LVS 1 | TAL 23 | MAR 9 | TEX 18 | PHO 20 | HOM 19 | 5th | 2263 | [37] | ||||
| 2018 | 41 | Ford | DAY 4 | ATL 4 | LVS 7 | MAR 12* | DOV 8 | KAN 18 | CLT 5 | TEX 16 | IOW 17 | GTW 19 | CHI 2 | KEN 1 | ELD 29 | POC 11 | MCH 6 | BRI 7 | MSP 14 | LVS 4 | TAL 16 | MAR 4 | TEX 2 | PHO 12 | HOM 10 | 8th | 2254 | [20] | |||
| 2019 | 99 | DAY 14 | ATL 5 | LVS 25 | MAR 2 | TEX 10 | DOV 6 | KAN 2 | CLT 4 | TEX 21 | IOW 2 | GTW 8 | CHI 32 | KEN 19 | POC 9 | ELD 14 | MCH 23 | BRI 8 | MSP 3 | LVS 8 | TAL 12 | MAR 16 | PHO 4* | HOM 12 | 9th | 773 | [38] | ||||
| 2020 | DAY 25 | LVS 5 | CLT 10 | ATL 9 | HOM 18 | POC 5 | KEN 2 | TEX 9 | KAN 7 | KAN 5 | MCH 11 | DRC 14 | DOV 5 | GTW 11 | DAR 1 | RCH 3* | BRI 13 | LVS 23 | TAL 4 | KAN 20 | TEX 20 | MAR 2 | PHO 7 | 7th | 2240 | [39] | |||||
| 2021 | Toyota | DAY 1 | DRC 1 | LVS 10 | ATL 16 | BRD 2 | RCH 7 | KAN 10 | DAR 2 | COA 10 | CLT 3 | TEX 26 | NSH 7 | POC 17 | KNX 7 | GLN 15 | GTW 3 | DAR 34 | BRI 9 | LVS 2 | TAL 13 | MAR 7 | PHO 3 | 1st | 4034 | [25] | |||||
| 2022 | DAY 2 | LVS 31 | ATL 2 | COA 4 | MAR 5 | BRD 1* | DAR 25 | KAN 10 | TEX 27 | CLT 10 | GTW 8* | SON 18 | KNX 10 | NSH 12 | MOH 23 | POC 19 | IRP 2 | RCH 18 | KAN 13 | BRI 18 | TAL 2 | HOM 6 | PHO 2 | 2nd | 4035 | [40] | |||||
| 2023 | Ford | DAY 11 | LVS 3 | ATL 5 | COA 10 | TEX 10 | BRD 19 | MAR 6 | KAN 16 | DAR 18 | NWS 33 | CLT 1 | GTW 7 | NSH 9 | MOH 5 | POC 9 | RCH 12 | IRP 16 | MLW 16 | KAN 25 | BRI 7 | TAL 2 | HOM 2 | PHO 5 | 1st | 4032 | [41] | ||||
| 2024 | DAY 30 | ATL 28 | LVS 13 | BRI 16 | COA 7 | MAR 14 | TEX 24 | KAN 16 | DAR 3 | NWS 22 | CLT 5 | GTW 7 | NSH 7 | POC 18 | IRP 21 | RCH 7 | MLW 9 | BRI 27 | KAN 22 | TAL 35 | HOM 12 | MAR 2 | PHO 9 | 9th | 2150 | [42] | |||||
| 2025 | DAY 20 | ATL 7 | LVS 14 | HOM 33 | MAR 5 | BRI 5 | CAR 32 | TEX 6 | KAN 11 | NWS 23 | CLT 17 | NSH 14 | MCH 4 | POC 18 | LRP 4 | IRP 11 | GLN 26 | RCH 8 | DAR 11 | BRI 2 | NHA 24 | ROV 36 | TAL 16 | MAR 14 | PHO 29 | 12th | 632 | [43] | |||
| 2026 | DAY 12 | ATL | STP | DAR | CAR | BRI | TEX | GLN | DOV | CLT | NSH | MCH | COR | LRP | NWS | IRP | RCH | NHA | BRI | KAN | CLT | PHO | TAL | MAR | HOM | -* | -* | [44] | |||
* Season still in progress
1 Ineligible for series points
(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time.Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
| ARCA Racing Series results | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | ARSC | Pts | Ref |
| 2014 | Venturini Motorsports | 55 | Toyota | DAY | MOB | SLM | TAL | TOL | NJE | POC | MCH | ELK | WIN | CHI | IRP | POC | BLN | ISF | MAD 11 | DSF | SLM | 61st | 275 | [45] | ||
| Turner Scott Motorsports | 41 | Chevy | KEN 27 | KAN | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| NASCAR K&N Pro Series East results | ||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | NKNPSEC | Pts | Ref |
| 2013 | Turner Scott Motorsports | 41 | Chevy | BRI 9 | GRE | FIF | RCH 35 | BGS | IOW 3 | LGY | COL | IOW 8 | VIR | GRE 6 | NHA 4 | DOV 26 | RAL | 19th | 217 | [46] | ||
| 2014 | NSM 4 | DAY 15 | BRI 3* | GRE 1* | RCH 2 | IOW 1* | BGS 1* | FIF 1 | LGY 1* | NHA 22 | COL 3 | IOW 7 | GLN 3 | VIR 10 | GRE 4 | DOV 15 | 1st | 640 | [47] | |||
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | NASCARK&N Pro Series East Champion 2014 | Succeeded by |
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