Joseph Riddick Hendrick IV was born on 2 April 1980, in Charlotte, North Carolina USA, and was a stock car driver and businessman, both part of NASCAR, as he was a partial owner of Hendrick Motorsports which was founded by his father Rick Sr. He was active from 1998 until his death in 2004, and all of his efforts helped put his net worth to where it was prior to his passing.
So how rich was Ricky Hendrick? As of mid-2017, sources estimate a net worth that is at $15 million, mostly earned through a successful career in stock car racing. His growth of wealth was cut short due to a tragic accident in 2004. Despite that, all of his achievements ensured the position his wealth.
Ricky Hendrick Net Worth $15 million
Ricky started his auto racing career aged 15, when he joined the Legends Series Summer Shootout. In 1998 he got his first win, and then his first pole position. After a year, he decided to join the NASCAR Busch Xfinity Series, finishing 20th in his first race. He continued to race as a part of the series and then joined the NASCAR Craftsman Camping World Truck Series as well. He was a part of two accidents during the Busch series which led to a mild concussion. Despite that, his net worth started to increase significantly thanks to his success.
In 2001, Hendrick actively competed in truck races and got his first NASCAR win in the same year, becoming the youngest rookie to win a race; he subsequently had 19 top 10 finishes which was the most by a rookie, however, he only finished second in the Rookie of the Year standings, losing to Travis Kvapil. The following year he returned to the Busch Series and had an accident while racing at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway which sidelined him for two months due to a shoulder injury. He then decided to retire from driving, but continued to be a partial owner of two teams. He supported Kyle Busch in the Busch series as well as Brian Vickers in the Nextel Cup Series, plus he also bought into a motorcycle dealership in Pineville, North Carolina. These other business opportunities continued to help build his net worth.
For his personal life, it is known that prior to his death, Ricky was engaged to Emily Maynard. He passed away in 2004, after he was involved in a plane crash while on his way to Martinsville Speedway for the Subway 500,which killed him and nine others, including John Hendrick who was at the time the president of Hendrick Motorsports.. The plane crashed on Bull Mountain apparently due to pilot error and heavy fog. Emily later found out she was pregnant and named her daughter after her father. She later competed in the 15th season of “The Bachelor” and the eighth season of “The Bachelorette”.
