Ricky Stenhouse Jr. to honor Bryan Clauson with special paint scheme at Bristol

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. will honor good friend Bryan Clauson by running a special paint scheme during Saturday night’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway.

The design on Stenhouse’s No. 17 Roush Fenway Racing Ford is the same livery Clauson raced during the 2008 Xfinity Series season, the last time he competed in a NASCAR event. Stenhouse’s current sponsor, Fastenal, was Clauson’s primary sponsor when he drove for Chip Ganassi Racing in the Xfinity Series in 2008, and Stenhouse asked the company for permission to bring back the old scheme.

Clauson died Aug. 7 from injuries sustained in a Midget car race the previous night at a dirt track in Kansas. The 27-year-old was leading when he lost control and flipped between Turns 3 and 4, and when his car came to a rest it was then struck by a trailing car. Clauson was regarded as one of the nation’s premier dirt track racers.

Bristol will mark the second time Stenhouse has paid tribute to his late friend. On Thursday, he drove an honorary lap at the Knoxville (Iowa) Nationals in the car Clauson was slated to race at the event. Stenhouse then “parked it” in victory lane -- vernacular Clauson frequently used on social media after winning a race.

“This past week has been difficult for many but it has been great to see the racing community join together to support Bryan’s family, friends and (fiancé) Lauren,” Stenhouse said in a statement. “Bryan was one of my best friends and hopefully we can ‘parked it’ in victory lane on Saturday for Bryan.”