Despite the fact many people aren’t big fans of illegal racing, while others just don’t believe that what happens in the show is real, there’s no denying the success achieved by “Street Outlaws”. Though it started as a single TV show, it ended up becoming a whole franchise, which has now released several video games and spin-offs.
In the latter category, “Street Outlaws: Memphis” has been one of the most successful ones. Set in Tennessee and Arkansas, JJ Da Boss, his family and friends, are those who set the rules in the Southern states’ street racing scene.
Now with over a hundred episodes shown, “Street Outlaws: Memphis” has gained a loyal fan base of its own. As such, it’s normal that many viewers wonder what happened to Doughboy, who hasn’t been seen during the series’ fifth season.
So what is he doing today? Is he okay, or has something bad has happened to him? Stay with us to find our!
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What Happened To Doughboy?
A lot has been commented about Doughboy during the last year. As one of the main cast of “Street Outlaws: Memphis”, his disappearance from the show in the latest season took everyone by surprise. Though at first the audience assumed that he’d be back soon, the hopes of seeing him again on the small screen went downhill as the season progressed.
While Doughboy hasn’t bothered to update his public Instagram and Facebook fan page for a long time, his personal account on the latter platform shows that he was still pretty much active in May 2021. Although there’s no information about his whereabouts on his profile, comments from his friends showing him their support during the ‘difficult times’ he was supposedly going through, could be read under every post.
So what happened? Strong rumors about him being convicted have been circulating on the internet during the last year.
This speculation only strengthened when fans noticed that he was no longer listed as part of his father’s JJ Da Boss racing team, added to the fact that his family haven’t featured him on their social media posts for months.
Unfortunately, there’s no way of knowing if those rumors are true. Yet we can only hope Doughboy is doing well and eventually returns.
Was He Injured?
In 2020 Doughboy went through a difficult time when he had to undergo back disc surgery. The news was announced by JJ Da Boss on his social media, but unfortunately he didn’t explain what caused his son’s back problems.
As expected, fans of “Street Outlaws: Memphis” have been speculating on Doughboy’s health problems resulted from a car crash.
Though this theory isn’t far-fetched, considering what Doughboy does for a living, there haven’t been any reports of his involvement in an accident, leaving us to assume his back issues are caused by something else.
So if his health hasn’t been the best lately, could this be the reason he disappeared from the show? Though it would make sense for him to take time off TV due to his surgery and the physical therapy he surely had to go through afterwards, Doughboy’s break has evidently been too long for him to still be in recovery. This was also noted by fans, who have been passionately commenting under JJ’s Instagram posts that Doughboy’s absence has been suspiciously just too long.
Unfortunately, there haven’t been any clues about his current life, and his close ones’ reticence from commenting or updating their followers on his health, are only making the whole thing more confusing.
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Who Is Doughboy?
Although he’s better known as Doughboy, his actual name is Joshua Day. A native of Joiner in Mississippi, he was obviously deeply influenced from an early age by his father’s love of racing.
However, Josh’s path to becoming a renowned street car racer didn’t come easily. As affirmed, in his early years he crashed a couple of autos, including his first, a 1964 Chevy Nova. Years later he would finally join the Memphis Team with Debo, a 1962 Chevrolet Impala which the “Street Outlaws: Memphis” audience saw debuting during the show’s first season. Nonetheless, it’s known the 1973 Chevy viewers usually saw him driving in the show is not his, but Lee Roberts’, who’s his fellow team member and quite the expert driver.
Still new street racing but with a lot of potential, Doughboy’s on-road attitude and kind personality earned him the approval of the show’s audience in no time, a fact easily ascertainable just by looking at the over 15,000 followers he amassed on Facebook.
Considering his popularity, it’s not surprising his fans are so worried about him, and loyally expect his eventual return to “Street Outlaws: Memphis”.
His Father JJ Dad Boss
As the main star of “Street Outlaws: Memphis”, there’s a lot to say about Doughboy’s father JJ Da Boss.
Born in Tennessee but raised in Arkansas, Jonathan Day grew up used to the way things worked in the streets. Doing whatever to earn money, JJ had a fondness for gambling, but also taking small jobs. It was this same self-reliant personality that allowed him to afford his passion for muscle cars and speed from an early age.
Unsurprisingly, JJ owns too many cars to be counted. However, the Chevy 1966 he drove during his first years on the streets is unforgettable for him. As he admits, street racing wasn’t only a hobby or an entertainment for him back then, but became an alternative way to make some money.
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While it’s unknown what crimes he was exactly guilty of, it’s known JJ spent eight years in prison during his twenties. Though jail-time was of course hard, JJ admits the experience taught him valuable life lessons, resulting in him appreciating life for what it was and respecting ‘everyone in it’, as he affirms.
Now with a renewed life’s goal, JJ went on to found his business by buying, fixing and selling old cars. His little entrepreneurship eventually became a car shop, one which allowed him to pursue his passion for speed as well.
The Memphis Team
“Street Outlaws: Memphis”’s main focus is the well-known Memphis Team, commanded by JJ Dad Boss.
Though many people know what the team is nowadays, few are aware of how it originated. As it happens, by the time JJ founded his car shop, he already had over a decade of experience in the racing field.
Retweet if y'all ready to see some Memphis outlaw action!!!! @MSO_JJdaboss https://t.co/2cdlB4VDcH
— StreetOutlawsMemphis (@MemphisOutlaws) February 19, 2018
As well, his knowledge of mechanics also came in handy while in fixing and improving his own cars.
However, being well known in the Memphis’ street racing scene wasn’t always positive at times. His huge popularity meant he was just too much of a difficult rival for everyone, something which limited his chances of making money from it.
Nonetheless, JJ managed to find other ways. He took it upon himself to teach his wife Tricia and her friend Precious all of his knowledge and tricks behind the wheel. Then he would irk guys on the streets by telling them a girl could beat them, ensuing many races which resulted with either Tricia or Precious as the winners, and fair money for everyone. Later on, Doughboy’s wife Chelsea, who also happened to be Tricia’s sister, ended up joining the team.
Other members of the team such as Jeff James and Carp have been JJ’s long-time friends, while others have joined the crew over the years.
Who Is Doughboy’s Wife Chelsea?
If you have been carefully watching “Street Outlaws: Memphis” from the start, you probably noticed Chelsea in it more than a couple of times. However, it was only during the fifth season that she took a more notable role in the series, by joining the Memphis Team.
While these changes might have come as a surprise to many, especially considering Doughboy’s disappearance from it, Chelsea has actually been in street racing as a career for years, despite her young age.
Being Tricia’s younger sister, Chelsea’s love for speed doesn’t come as a surprise. As well as his older sister, Chelsea’s enjoyment for races started only as mere entertainment, but quickly developed into a passion. Following her own path on the Memphis’ race scene, Chelsea’s Instagram account shows us that as early as 2013 she was racing her TomKat car, later taking a Camaro 1973 as well.
Knowing all of this, it’s not hard to imagine she most-likely met her husband-to-be Doughboy during a race event. The pair eventually tied the knot in 2015, and even have matching tattoos with each other’s names as a memento of it.
Chelsea and Doughboy have welcomed two children together. Although rumors of their separation have been on the rise since his absence from public life have become more noticeable, the fact she’s just too involved with his family’s business tells us otherwise.
Does Chelsea Have Another Show?
As is already obvious, there are no limits to the “Street Outlaws” franchise. While we already know what the original series is about and how popular it has remained throughout the years, its most recent spin-off – “Gone Girl” -takes for a route somewhat different from previous productions.
With the premise of showing the fastest female street racers out there, “Gone Girl” premiered on Discovery+ in late 2021.
Besides having Chelsea as part of its main cast, the show also includes other six well-known women in the race scene, such as Lizzy Musi and Armani Johnson.
Chelsea’s sister Tricia and their friend Precious are also part of this series, which gives the usual format of “Street Outlaws” a different and daring approach, focusing on actual legal races. While this concept might not sound as exciting for those who watched the original show for the whole street-racing factor, “Gone Girl” has proven to be good alternative scenery for those motorheads who were looking for a change.
It’s unknown if “Gone Girl” will repeat the success of the previous “Street Outlaws” series, but for now it has proven to be a good source of entertainment.
What Is “Street Outlaws: Memphis”?
If you’re already used to what the original “Street Outlaws” series is about, you would surely expect the same from the Memphis-based series.
While almost everything works the same, including the rules behind the wheel and the potential rivalries between the city’s drivers, what makes the Memphis’ series so interesting and different from the Oklahoman one, is how the relationships between the cast are more family-like. It’s not only the close father-son relationship between JJ Dad Boss and Doughboy that can be described as such, but the long-time friendships and how loyally the Memphis Team members support each that makes the show stand out.
Lawsuit
If there’s something any reality series can’t escape from, that’s surely problems with the law.
Although not getting along with the forces of law should be normal for the cast of a show centered on a supposedly illegal activity, the lawsuit against “Street Outlaws: Memphis” main star JJ Da Boss, is not so simple.
As it happens, in 2018 the also Memphis-based car racer, Chad Larkin, accused Jonathan Day of assault.
The incident actually occurred in September 2017, when Larkin accepted Day’s team’s race challenge for a $30,000 prize. As court papers state, he assisted the event, trusting his own abilities and believing it was a ‘legitimate’ race. Allegedly, the race was organized by the show’s staff members, who also asked him to bring $1,000 for gambling in addition to a guest list.
Everything went downhill when Day apparently told his team to let out their ‘dirty tricks’ for being disqualified during the first race, even insulting and declaring ‘war’ on the rival crew members as a result. Then Day’s team apparently took it upon themselves to physically attack Larkin and his wife, noting that the show’s production didn’t intervene during the fight. The incident ended with a severely-harmed Larkin and a juicy video which featured in the show.
Unfortunately, there’s no information about the lawsuit’s outcome.
Was The Show Cancelled?
Fortunately for those who can’t seem to get enough of “Street Outlaws: Memphis”, the show hasn’t been cancelled. In fact, its most recent season renewal in late 2021 hints that there will be more of the show for a long while.
Considering that, it’s not far-fetched to think the possibility of Doughboy ever returning is open, regardless of the mystery surrounding his absence.
Does that sound good enough? Though surely, any fan of Josh ‘Doughboy’ would be happy to see him back on their TV screens, for now we should settle for being patient about it.
