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Ryan Ellis will continue his strong season with the addition of a new partner. He will join forces with Costa Oil, the home of the 10-minute oil change, for the trip to Dover Motor Speedway, which will mark his fifth start for Alpha Prime Racing.
The NASCAR Xfinity Series team dropped the news with a press release on March 24 and provided the first look at Ellis’ No. 45 Chevrolet Camaro. The stock car is black and gold with a massive Costa Oil logo on the hood. Ellis will showcase this new scheme on April 30, 2022, when he takes on the A-GAME 200 (1:30 p.m. ET, FS1).
“Costa [Kapothanasis] and I have gotten to know each other over the last couple of months or so and I have so much respect for the business that he’s built, much like many of my other partners,” Ellis said in a press release. “I always love learning about the hard work and grind that it takes for these types of entrepreneurs to succeed — I always try to find something that I can apply to my own career.
“I’m really proud that I’m able to represent Costa Oil in what is very much a home race for both of us. I grew up within two hours of Dover and grew up going to a lot of races there. It’s a track that requires hustle to find speed and really tests drivers and equipment. We’re off to a hot start at Alpha Prime Racing and I am so excited that Costa Oil has joined our team. We’ll do all we can to grow this partnership so we can keep representing Costa and his company within NASCAR for years to come.”
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Ellis Has Made 2 Starts for APR
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GettyRyan Ellis finished 16th overall at Phoenix Raceway.
The Virginia native agreed to join APR prior to the 2022 Xfinity Series season on a limited schedule. He has only made two starts in the No. 44 so far, but he has showcased strong performances.
Ellis made his season debut at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the second race of the west coast swing. He started 35th overall, but he raced his way to a 13th-place finish. This was a career-best performance, and Ellis followed it up with a 16th-place run at Phoenix Raceway after starting 35th overall.
“Ryan has done a great job for us to start the season,” said Tommy Joe Martins, GM of Alpha Prime Racing. “We’re really looking forward to having him back behind the wheel at a home track for him and obviously, we’re really excited to welcome Costa and his brand to the team. It has been really exciting to work with so many new companies this year and we appreciate their commitment to our program.”
Ellis Will Have a Busy April Schedule
While Ellis has only made two starts for APR in 2022, he will add even more during the month of April. The race at Dover Motor Speedway will cap off the month as he works as a teammate to ARCA Menards Series driver Rajah Caruth, but he will also take part in races at a short track and a superspeedway.
According to previous information provided by APR, Ellis will compete in the Xfinity Series race at Martinsville Speedway on April 8. He will drive one of the team’s entries while making only his second career start at the Virginia short track. His first start took place in 2021 when he finished 23rd overall for BJ McLeod Motorsports.
Ellis will follow up the trip to Martinsville with the April 23 trip to Talladega Superspeedway. He will drive the No. 45 with Heartbeat Hot Sauce as his primary partner. Like Martinsville, Ellis only has one start at Talladega. He drove for Obaika Racing, the first African-owned NASCAR team, during the spring trip to the Alabama superspeedway. However, he headed to the garage early after a mechanical issue.
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