Michael Paul Stefanik (May 20, 1958 – September 15, 2019) was an American professional

stock car racing Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses measuring approximately . It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It ori ...

driver. He competed mainly in the

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...

Whelen Modified Tour The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour (NWMT) (previously the NASCAR Winston Modified Tour and NASCAR Featherlite Modified Series from 1985 until 2005) is a modified stock car racing series owned and operated by NASCAR in the Modified Division. The Mod ...

, but also made appearances in the

Busch Grand National The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...

series and the

Craftsman Truck Series The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck based stock cars. The series is one of th ...

. A seven-time champion in the Modified series, Stefanik was named the second greatest NASCAR Modified driver of all-time in 2003. His nine total championships (two in the

Busch North The ARCA Menards Series East (formerly Busch East Series, Busch North Series, Camping World East Series, and NASCAR K&N Pro Series East) is a regional stock car racing series owned and operated by the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) and ...

Series) tie him with

Richie Evans Richard Ernest Evans (July 23, 1941Bourcier, Bones, "61 at 61", ''Speedway Illustrated'' (ISSN 1528-4182), Volume 3, Number 8, August 2002. – October 24, 1985), was an American racing driver who won nine NASCAR National Modified Championships, ...

for the most in NASCAR history. Stefanik is a member of the 2021 NASCAR Hall of Fame class.

Racing career

Whelen Modified Series

Stefanik ran his first full

season in 1987. He recorded his first championship in 1989, winning in seven of his 26 starts. He continued to be a major player in the 1990s, winning the 1991 series championship, finishing out of the top ten just once that season. After not running a complete schedule for a few years, Stefanik finished fifth in 1995 and won the 1997 and 1998 titles while simultaneously racing full-time and winning the championship those same years in the

Busch North Series The ARCA Menards Series East (formerly Busch East Series, Busch North Series, Camping World East Series, and NASCAR K&N Pro Series East) is a regional stock car racing series owned and operated by the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) and ...

. Taking the 2000 season off to run full-time in the

Camping World Truck Series The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck based stock cars. The series is one of th ...

, Stefanik won the championship his first two years back, not winning too many races but consistently placing in the top ten. Again pursuing other interests (this time K&N series), Stefanik did not contend in 2003, 2004, or 2005 but won the 2006 season opener, completed every lap that season and only was out of first place for one week, winning the championship. Steadily trending downward from there, Stefanik's first full winless season came in 2010. He won his last race at

Bristol Motor Speedway Bristol Motor Speedway, formerly known as Bristol International Raceway and Bristol Raceway, is a NASCAR short track venue located in Bristol, Tennessee. Constructed in 1960, it held its first NASCAR race on July 30, 1961. Bristol is among the m ...

in 2013, and started his last race in 2014. In 2013, Stefanik competed in the inaugural

UNOH Battle at the Beach The University of Northwestern Ohio Battle at the Beach was a nonpoints, all-star race that brought together the top drivers in NASCAR's lower-level series and club racing. A successor to the Toyota All-Star Showdown, held from 2003 to 2011 at ...

at Daytona International Speedway. On the final lap, he was leading until contact with Steve Park sent him spinning; he finished 13th in the race. Afterwards, when Speed reporter Ray Dunlap arrived to interview him, Stefanik angrily stated he is "that freaking pissed. This is just bullshit." The interview was subsequently aired on ''

The Jay Leno Show ''The Jay Leno Show'' is a talk show created and hosted by Jay Leno. Premiering on NBC on September 14, 2009, the program aired on weeknights at 10:00 p.m. ET/ PT through February 9, 2010. The program was modeled upon the format of a late ...

''.

K&N Pro Series East

Stefanik won in only his third start, which came in 1991. He ran his first full season in 1993 while racing Modifieds and won the 1997 and 1998 championships, pocketing over $100,000 for each season. In doing so, he became the first driver to win two NASCAR championships in consecutive years;

Lee Petty Lee Arnold Petty (March 14, 1914 – April 5, 2000) was an American stock car racing driver who competed during the 1950s and 1960s. He was one of the pioneers of NASCAR and one of its first superstars. He was NASCAR's first three-time Cup ch ...

is the only other person to have won two championships in one year. Stefanik raced full seasons in 2003, 2004 and 2005 while stepping away from Modifieds, but did not have the same amount of success.

Craftsman Truck Series

Stefanik moved up to the

, racing for Phelon Motorsports and finishing in the top ten nine times during

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...

, achieving Rookie of the Year honors.

Halls of Fame

Stefanik was elected to the New England Auto Racers Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. He was inducted Nov. 11, 2018 by writer Mark "Bones" Bourcier. In 2013, Michael accepted his late brother Bob's induction. Bob and Michael are the fifth pair of brothers enshrined in the NEAR Hall. Stefanik was first nominated to the

NASCAR Hall of Fame The NASCAR Hall of Fame, located in Charlotte, North Carolina, honors drivers who have shown expert skill at NASCAR driving, all-time great crew chiefs and owners, broadcasters and other major contributors to competition within the sanctioning ...

in 2015, and was elected to the Hall in 2022.

Death

According to

Connecticut State Police The Connecticut State Police (CSP) is a division of the Connecticut Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection responsible for traffic regulation and law enforcement across the state of Connecticut, especially in areas not served by ...

, on the afternoon of September 15, 2019, Stefanik took off in a friend's

Aero-Works Aerolite 103 The Aero-Works Aerolite 103 is an American single seat, high-wing, pusher configuration ultralight aircraft, designed by Terry Raber and introduced by Aero-Works, Inc, of Millersburg, Ohio, in 1997. The aircraft's model number indicates that ...

from Riconn Airport (

Greene, Rhode Island Greene is an unincorporated village and census-designated place in the western part of the town of Coventry, Rhode Island, United States. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 888. It is east of the Connecticut border and the same dist ...

), and was headed back when it experienced mechanical problems causing it to lose power and crash in a wooded area in

Sterling, Connecticut Sterling is a New England town, town in Windham County, Connecticut, Windham County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 3,578 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. History The town was named after John Sterling, an early sett ...

. He was airlifted to

Rhode Island Hospital Rhode Island Hospital is a private, not-for-profit hospital located in the Upper South Providence neighborhood in Providence, Rhode Island. It is the largest academic medical center in the region, affiliated with Brown University since 1959. As a ...

, where he died from his injuries.

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

(

key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...

) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led. ** – All laps led.)

Busch Series

Competed only in companion events with

as BNS driver and ineligible for Busch Series points

Craftsman Truck Series

Busch North Series

Whelen Modified Tour

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Stefanik, Mike 1958 births 2019 deaths Accidental deaths in Connecticut Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in the United States NASCAR drivers People from Wilbraham, Massachusetts Racing drivers from Massachusetts Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 2019 NASCAR Hall of Fame inductees