Ryan Blaney – #NASCAR Driver Summary
Penske Driver a Pillar of Youth Movement
At 28-years-old, Ryan Blaney (December 31, 1993) remains a key pillar of NASCAR’s youth movement and an important part of Team Penske’s championship-winning NASCAR program. Full of enthusiasm, passion and talent, Blaney is in his 10th season with Team Penske in 2021 and his fourth year racing full-time for the team in the NASCAR Cup Series (NCS).
Blaney earned a victory and raced his way into the NCS Playoffs in NASCAR’s premier series for the fourth consecutive season in 2020. He produced another thrilling victory at Talladega Superspeedway in June which made him the first driver since 2007 to win back-to-back races at the 2.66-mile superspeedway. Blaney tied a career-high in top-five finishes (11) and surpassed his most laps led in a season (668) during a productive 2020 campaign.
The native of High Point, N.C. and third-generation driver returns to the No. 12 team this season racing the Menards/Advance Auto Parts/DEX Imaging/BODYARMOR Ford Mustang. Blaney will begin his second season working with experienced series crew chief Todd Gordon and race engineer Miles Stanley, both of whom won the 2018 NCS championship in 2018 with Team Penske and driver Joey Logano.
Blaney first joined Team Penske as a talented but raw 18-year-old racer, competing in select NASCAR Xfinity Series races for the team in 2012. He earned his first victory for Team Penske with an NXS win at Kentucky in 2013 and Blaney has produced a combined nine wins and seven poles for the team over the last eight seasons.
In 2015, Blaney firmly established himself as one of NASCAR’s rising stars on the strength of 13 starts in the No. 22 Discount Tire Ford Mustang for Team Penske. He scored wins at Iowa and Kentucky and posted nine top-five finishes to help the No. 22 team win its third consecutive NXS owner title for Team Penske.
Blaney also earned an opportunity to compete in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2015. He made 16 NCS starts for Wood Brothers Racing, Team Penske’s technical alliance partner. Blaney competed in his first full NASCAR Cup Series season in 2016, as he recorded three top-five and nine top-10 finishes for Wood Brothers Racing to finish 20th in the final series point standings. He also posted four top-five and six top-10 results across eight NXS starts for Team Penske.
In 2017, Blaney delivered NASCAR’s longest-running team its best season finish since 1995, when he captured his first career NCS victory and the 99th all-time win for Wood Brothers Racing over their nearly 70 years of NASCAR competition with a memorable triumph at Pocono Raceway. Blaney and the No. 21 Ford team raced their way into the Playoffs with a strong regular season and advanced to the Round of 8 before eventually finishing ninth in the driver standings. Blaney competed in 13 NXS races for Team Penske in 2017 and he earned two wins to help secure the team’s fourth series owner championship.
For the first time in eight years, Team Penske expanded to a three-car NCS program in 2018 as Blaney transitioned back to the team to compete alongside Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano. Blaney returned to Victory Lane as the No. 12 Ford team won the inaugural Bank of America ROVAL 400 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The win allowed Blaney to advance to the Round of 12 in the NASCAR Playoffs and he eventually finished 10th in the final championship standings.
In 2019, Blaney earned a victory in NASCAR’s premier series for the third consecutive season and he also earned an NCS Playoffs berth for the third straight season. He produced a thrilling victory at Talladega Superspeedway in October that propelled him into the Round of 8 in the NASCAR Playoffs. As he finished a career-best seventh in the final championship standings, Blaney recorded career-highs in top-five (11) and top-10 (18) finishes.
Blaney has a wide variety of interests outside of the racetrack. His hobbies include anything related to Star Wars, basketball, Ohio State football, music and spending time with his dog Sturgill. He also co-hosts the popular The Glass Case of Emotion podcast on NASCAR.com.
Blaney Key Accomplishments
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Produced four NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) wins entering the 2021 season
• Qualified for the NCS Playoffs in each of the last four consecutive seasons (2017-2020)
• Earned second-consecutive win at Talladega Superspeedway in April 2020 to become the first driver since Jeff Gordon (2007) to post back-to-back victories at Talladega
• Won at Talladega Superspeedway in October 2019 in the sixth-closest finish-to-date in NCS history
• Won the 2018 Bank of America ROVAL 400 at Charlotte Motor Speedway – the inaugural Cup Series race in the track’s road course configuration
• Recorded first NCS win in 2017 at Pocono Raceway – the 99th all-time victory for Wood Brothers Racing
• Posted four wins in NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series competition in consecutive seasons from 2012-2015
• Named NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series Most Popular Driver in 2014
• Seven career NXS victories since 2012 – all while running a limited schedule
• Contributed to Team Penske’s four NXS owner championships since 2013
Recent Career Highlights
2020 - Posts a NASCAR Cup Series victory and earns a Playoff berth for the fourth-consecutive season. Won at Talladega Superspeedway in June to become the first driver to win back-to-back races at the track since 2007. Records 11 top-five and 17 top-10 finishes in the No. 12 Ford Mustang. Establishes a new career high with 668 laps led on the season. Closes the season ranked ninth in the NCS championship standings to finish inside the top 10 for the fourth consecutive year.
2019 - Extends streak of NASCAR Cup Series seasons with a win to three consecutive years following a thrilling victory at Talladega Superspeedway in October. The victory propels the No. 12 team into the Round of 8 in the NASCAR Playoffs. Finishes a career-best seventh in the final Cup Series championship standings after posting career-highs in top-five (11) and top-10 (18) finishes. Wins the pole at Phoenix in the fourth race of the season.
2018 - Transitions from Wood Brothers Racing to Team Penske, competing in team's third full-season entry in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS). Wins the inaugural Bank of America ROVAL 400 at Charlotte Motor Speedway while advancing to the Round of 12 in the NASCAR Playoffs. Finishes 10th in the final point standings while recording career-bests in top-five finoshes (eight), top-10 results (16), poles (three) and laps led (660). Posts a win and top-four finishes among four starts for Team Penske in the NASCAR XFINITY Series (NXS). Starts from the pole, leads 132 laps and wins at Texas for seventh career NXS victory.
2017 - Has a career year with Team Penske racing alliance partner Wood Brothers Racing, delivering NASCAR’s oldest running team its best season finish since 1995. Starts the season off strong finishing second in the Daytona 500. Captures first Cup Series career pole and Wood Brother Racing’s 117th pole after posting a speed of 189.6 mph to lead qualifying at Kansas Speedway. Earns first Cup Series victory with performance at Pocono Raceway, producing the 99th victory for Wood Brothers Racing. No. 21 team wins second pole of the season at Phoenix International Raceway with a speed of 137.942 mph. Qualifies for the NASCAR Playoffs and makes it through to the Round of 8. Finishes ninth in driver standing with four top-five and 14 top-10 finishes. Competes in 13 races for Team Penske in the XFINITY Series. Scores two wins on the year - at Charlotte Motor Speedway and at Dover International Speedway. Closes out the XFINITY Series season with 12 top-five results and an average finish of 4.2 to help secure Team Penske’s fourth NXS Owners Championship.
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