A third-generation racecar driver, Ellis began driving Quarter Midgets at age 4 and nearly won the first QMA Dirt National Championship race he ever entered.

He then went on to a stellar 7-year career in Quarter Midgets, becoming Virginia's all-time QMA leader and one of the most successful open-wheel racers in the state.

Quickly, Ellis was the NASCAR Late Model Stock Car (LMSC) Rookie pacesetter at his home track, Manassas’ fabled Old Dominion Speedway.

Ellis competed sparingly that spring in both Virginia and North Carolina in NASCAR’s highest Weekly Racing Series division.

In only his second Oval track race of the season with the Legends Car, Ryan qualified in the top ten and was running fifth in the prestigious nationally televised event.

At the end of the 2009 season, Ellis entered the Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup twin finale(s) at Virginia International Raceway.

There he surprised the series regulars by running in the lead pack both days and posting solid top-ten finishes in his first time in an MX-5 Cup car.

The 2009 season closed with a coveted invite to the Mazdaspeed Motorsports Development MX-5 Cup Shootout, where Ryan (the youngest of the 5 finalists) finished as the runner-up in the closest competition ever.

Ellis signed with Insight Racing in 2012 and won the 2012 Kia 200 with co-driver Martin Jensen before the team folded due to lack of funding.

During the season, Ellis made his Sprint Cup Series debut in the Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500, driving the No.

When DiBenedetto left BK Racing after the 2016 season, Ellis was one of the leading candidates to replace him in the seat before drivers with personal funding took over the ride.

[5] In addition to his PR roles with GFR, Ellis continued competing part-time in the Xfinity Series with B. J. McLeod Motorsports.

In his first race with Alpha Prime, Ellis scored a career-best 13th place finish at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

On September 15, it was announced that Ellis would return to Alpha Prime Racing for the 2023 season on an expanded, but still part-time schedule.

[16] Ellis still plays hockey in Charlotte on a team with other NASCAR notables like Emmy-Winning Producer Christian Audesirk and JGR's Scott Simmons.