History of Ryan Blaney in Timeline

Ryan Blaney is an American professional stock car racing driver who competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series. He drives the No. 12 Ford Mustang Dark Horse for Team Penske, marking him as a prominent figure in contemporary stock car racing. His career is centered around NASCAR, where he actively participates and competes for championships.

Sections (3)

Full Timeline Career & Achievements Success & Recognition

December 31, 1993: Ryan Blaney Born

On December 31, 1993, Ryan Michael Blaney was born. He is an American professional stock car racing driver.

Others born on this day/year

2009: Pro All Stars Series Debut

In 2009, at the age of fifteen, Ryan Blaney began competing in the Pro All Stars Series (PASS)-sanctioned South Super Late Model Series, finishing second in points and winning the series' Rookie of the Year award.

2009: Pro All Star Series Late Model Division

In 2009, at the age of fifteen, Ryan Blaney competed in the Pro All Star Series late model division, finishing second in the final points standings and winning the series' Rookie of the Year award.

2010: First Career Win and Championship

In 2010, Ryan Blaney scored his first career win in the PASS South Super Late Model Series at Dillon Motor Speedway and won the Champion Racing Association (CRA)-sanctioned Southern Six Pack series championship.

2011: NASCAR Career Begins

In 2011, Ryan Blaney began his NASCAR career, driving in select races in both the NASCAR Nationwide Series and the Camping World Truck Series for Tommy Baldwin Racing and Penske Racing.

2011: NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Winner

In 2011, Ryan Blaney made his debuts in the ARCA Racing Series and the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West and East, winning his first career NASCAR race in the K&N Pro Series West season finale at Phoenix International Raceway.

2011: PASS South Super Late Model Series Championship

In 2011, Ryan Blaney won the PASS South Super Late Model Series championship.

July 2012: Signs with Team Penske

In July 2012, Ryan Blaney signed a contract to drive for Team Penske in a minimum of three races in the 2012 Nationwide Series season, starting at Iowa Speedway in August.

September 15, 2012: First Career Truck Series Win

On September 15, 2012, Ryan Blaney won his first career Truck Series race at Iowa Speedway, becoming the youngest winner in Truck Series history at the time.

2012: Select Races

In 2012, Ryan Blaney continued to drive in select races in both the NASCAR Nationwide Series and the Camping World Truck Series for Tommy Baldwin Racing and Penske Racing.

2012: K&N Pro Series East

In 2012, Ryan Blaney returned to the K&N Pro Series East, running six races for family-owned DB Racing, driving the No. 10 car.

2012: PASS Super Late Model Series

In 2012, Ryan Blaney returned to the PASS Super Late Model Series in the Carswell Motorsports No. 98 car.

2012: Switch to Truck Series Points

In August 2012, Ryan Blaney switched from Nationwide to Truck Series points at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

2013: Full Truck Series Schedule and Nationwide Series Win

In 2013, Ryan Blaney competed in the Camping World Truck Series full-time and won his first career Nationwide Series race at Kentucky Speedway, leading 96 laps.

2013: First Full-Time NASCAR Season

In 2013, Ryan Blaney had his first full-time NASCAR season in the Truck Series, driving for Brad Keselowski Racing, finishing 6th in points and winning the Rookie of the Year Award.

January 2014: Full Truck Series and Nationwide/Sprint Cup Series Schedule

In January 2014, Ryan Blaney announced that, in addition to a full Camping World Truck Series schedule with BKR, he would be running fifteen Nationwide Series and two Sprint Cup Series races for Team Penske during the year.

January 2014: Team Penske Announcement

In January 2014, Team Penske announced Ryan Blaney would make two starts in the No. 12 car during the 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup season.

May 2014: Near Win at Dover

In late May 2014 at Dover, Ryan Blaney finished second to Kyle Busch in a Truck Series race by a close margin and voiced concerns about Cup Series drivers competing in lower series.

August 2014: Victories at Bristol and Canadian Tire

In August 2014, Ryan Blaney won his second career Nationwide race at Bristol Motor Speedway and his first Truck race of 2014 at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park.

August 2014: Wood Brothers Announcement

In August 2014, it was announced that Ryan Blaney would run twenty Sprint Cup Series races for Wood Brothers Racing in the No. 21 Ford during the 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season.

2014: Truck Series Runner-Up and Cup Series Debut

In 2014, Ryan Blaney finished second in the final point standings in the Truck Series. 2014 also marked Blaney's Cup Series debut, driving a few select races for Penske.

2015: Xfinity Series Victories

In 2015, Ryan Blaney had several strong runs in the Xfinity Series, with wins at Iowa and Kentucky.

2015: Sprint Cup Series Season

In 2015, Ryan Blaney ran twenty Sprint Cup Series races for Wood Brothers Racing in the No. 21 Ford, picking up his first Top 10 at Talladega.

2015: Signs with Wood Brothers Racing

In 2015, Ryan Blaney signed with Wood Brothers Racing, driving a limited schedule in the No. 21 car.

2016: Full-Time Cup Series Schedule

From 2016, Ryan Blaney remained with the Wood Brothers for an additional two years, driving his first full-time Cup Series schedule.

2016: Full-Time Cup Series with Wood Brothers

In 2016, Ryan Blaney began competing full-time in the Cup Series with the Wood Brothers. He got his third top-ten of his career at Las Vegas, finishing sixth.

June 2017: Fox NASCAR Cup Driver-Only Broadcast Debut

In June 2017, Ryan Blaney joined Fox NASCAR's Cup driver-only broadcast team for the Xfinity Series race at Pocono Raceway as a pit reporter. He also interviewed race-winner Brad Keselowski. The next day, he won his first Cup race with Keselowski interviewing him.

2017: Guaranteed Spot and Daytona 500

In 2017, Go Fas Racing loaned their charter to the No. 21 Wood Brothers team, guaranteeing Ryan Blaney a spot in every race of the 2017 season. During the Daytona 500, Ryan Blaney placed second.

2017: First Cup Series Win

In 2017, Ryan Blaney captured his first career Cup Series win at Pocono Raceway and finished ninth in the final point standings.

2017: Start of Glass Case of Emotion Podcast

In 2017, Ryan Blaney started the NASCAR-supported podcast called the Glass Case of Emotion, featuring Kim Coon and Chuck Bush.

2017: Voice Role in Cars 3 and Cameo in Logan Lucky

In 2017, Ryan Blaney voiced Ryan "Inside" Laney in the Pixar film Cars 3 and had a cameo in the film Logan Lucky.

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April 20, 2018: Guest Star in Taken

On April 20, 2018, Ryan Blaney guest-starred in the TV show Taken as Special Agent Nathan Wood.

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2018: Moves to Team Penske

In 2018, Ryan Blaney announced he would move to Team Penske's new No. 12 car for the 2018 season.

2018: Joins Team Penske Full-Time

In 2018, Ryan Blaney joined Team Penske full-time, driving the No. 12 Ford Mustang Dark Horse.

2018: Return to Fox NASCAR Driver-Only Broadcast

In 2018, Ryan Blaney returned to his pit duties for the driver-only broadcast at the Xfinity race at Talladega Superspeedway.

2019: Top-ten points consistency, Watkins Glen incident, Talladega win, Phoenix elimination

In 2019, Ryan Blaney consistently remained within the top ten in points. At Watkins Glen, he spun Jimmie Johnson out of contention, leading to a post-race argument. Later in the 2019 season, Blaney won the Talladega fall race by 0.007 seconds over Ryan Newman, advancing to the Round of 8, but despite finishing third at Phoenix in 2019, he was eliminated.

2019: Cameo in The Crew

In 2019, Ryan Blaney had a cameo appearance as himself in the Netflix television series The Crew.

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2020: Daytona 500 Incident, Bristol Wreck, and GEICO 500 Win

In 2020, Ryan Blaney's push to Ryan Newman during the Daytona 500 led to a violent crash. Blaney then wrecked at Bristol, but rebounded to win the GEICO 500 at Talladega, defeating Ricky Stenhouse Jr. by 0.007 seconds. These events of 2020 marked both difficult and triumphant moments in his season.

2021: Wins at Atlanta, Michigan, and Daytona

In 2021, Ryan Blaney secured wins at Atlanta and Michigan, marking his fifth and sixth career wins. He then won at Daytona International Speedway, resulting in three wins in the Cup Series regular season in 2021. Blaney entered the 2021 Cup playoffs as the second-seeded driver before being eliminated after Martinsville.

2021: Cover Star for NASCAR 21: Ignition

In 2021, Ryan Blaney was a cover star for the NASCAR 21: Ignition video game. He also appeared on the NASCAR 25 cover and helped curate the soundtrack.

2021: Commentator Role in Driver-Only Broadcasts

Since 2021, Ryan Blaney has served as a commentator in the booth for the driver-only broadcast, and as a driver analyst for Xfinity and ARCA Menard Series broadcasts.

2022: Fourth at Daytona 500, All-Star Race win, Playoff Berth, and Round of 8 Elimination

In 2022, Ryan Blaney started the season with a fourth-place finish at the Daytona 500 and later won the NASCAR All-Star Race. Despite a crash at Daytona, Blaney clinched a playoff spot. However, in 2022, he was eliminated following the Round of 8 after finishing third at Martinsville.

2022: Featured in Race for the Championship

In 2022, Ryan Blaney was a featured driver in the USA Network series Race for the Championship, which followed the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season.

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2022: NASCAR All-Star Race Winner

In 2022, Ryan Blaney won the NASCAR All-Star Race.

2023: NASCAR Cup Series Championship

In 2023, Ryan Blaney finished second at Phoenix, clinching the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Championship.

2023: Eighth at Daytona 500, Spotting for Logano, and Coca-Cola 600 Win

In 2023, Ryan Blaney started the season with an eighth place finish at the Daytona 500. He spotted for Joey Logano at Bristol, and then won the Coca-Cola 600, leading the most laps and winning a stage. These achievements in 2023 marked a significant upturn in his season.

2023: Followed in NASCAR: Full Speed

In 2023, Ryan Blaney was followed during the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs for the 2024 Netflix documentary series NASCAR: Full Speed.

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2023: End of Glass Case of Emotion Podcast

In 2023, the Glass Case of Emotion podcast, which Ryan Blaney was a part of, ended.

2024: Second at Atlanta and Win at Iowa and Pocono

In 2024, Ryan Blaney finished second at Atlanta. Later in the 2024 season, he scored his first win at the inaugural Iowa race and won at Pocono, and made the Championship 4 for a second year in a row.

2024: Runner-Up in Cup Series Championship

In 2024, Ryan Blaney finished second in the final point standings to his Penske racing teammate Joey Logano, nearly winning back-to-back titles.

2024: Featured in NASCAR: Full Speed

In 2024, Ryan Blaney was featured in the Netflix documentary series NASCAR: Full Speed, which followed the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.

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2025: Seventh at Daytona 500, Wins at Nashville, Daytona, and New Hampshire, and Season Finale Win at Phoenix

In 2025, Ryan Blaney started the season with a seventh-place finish at the Daytona 500. He scored wins at Nashville, Daytona, and New Hampshire. Despite being eliminated at the conclusion of the Round of 8, Blaney finished the season with a win at Phoenix in 2025.