History of Ryan Blaney in Timeline

Ryan Blaney is an American professional stock car racing driver currently competing full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series for Team Penske. Driving the No. 12 Ford Mustang Dark Horse, Blaney achieved significant success by winning the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series championship. His racing lineage is notable, as he is the son of former NASCAR driver Dave Blaney and the grandson of modified dirt track racer Lou Blaney. This heritage contributes to his established presence and accomplishments within the sport.

Sections (3)

Full Timeline Career & Achievements Success & Recognition

December 31, 1993: Ryan Blaney's Birth

On December 31, 1993, Ryan Michael Blaney was born. He is an American professional stock car racing driver, the son of former NASCAR driver Dave Blaney, and the grandson of modified dirt track racer Lou Blaney.

Others born on this day/year

1994: Highest Finish for Wood Brothers Since 1994

In 1994, Morgan Shepherd finished sixth in the final Cup standings, the highest for a driver for the Wood Brothers until Ryan Blaney finished ninth in the final Cup Series standings in 2018.

2005: Kyle Busch's Previous Youngest Winner Record

In 2005, Kyle Busch set the previous record for the youngest winner in Truck Series history at 20 years and 18 days, a record that was broken by Ryan Blaney in 2012.

2009: Competed in Pro All Stars Series

In 2009, at age 15, 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. He also finished third in the PASS national points. Additionally, in 2009, he won the Eastern Grand Nationals in Huntsville, Alabama, and the Gasoline Alley National Championship quarter midget event in Indianapolis, Indiana.

2010: First Career Win in PASS South Super Late Model Series

In 2010, Ryan Blaney scored his first career win in the PASS South Super Late Model Series at Dillon Motor Speedway, adding wins at Greenville-Pickens Speedway and Newport Speedway. He finished second in the PASS South championship standings for the second consecutive year. In 2010, Blaney also won the Champion Racing Association (CRA)-sanctioned Southern Six Pack series championship.

2011: ARCA Racing Series and NASCAR K&N Pro Series Debuts

In 2011, Ryan Blaney made his debuts in the ARCA Racing Series and the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West and East, scoring top ten finishes in every start. He won his first career NASCAR race in the K&N Pro Series West season finale at Phoenix International Raceway, winning by over two seconds.

2011: PASS South Super Late Model Series Championship

In 2011, Ryan Blaney won two races in the PASS South Super Late Model Series, at Dillon Motor Speedway and Ace Speedway, and also winning the series championship that year.

July 2012: Signed with Team Penske

In July 2012, Ryan Blaney announced that he had signed a contract to drive for Team Penske for a minimum of three races in the 2012 Nationwide Series season, starting at Iowa Speedway in August. He would also run selected races in the Camping World Truck Series for Brad Keselowski Racing.

September 15, 2012: First Career Truck Series Win

On September 15, 2012, Ryan Blaney won his first career Truck Series race at Iowa Speedway. At the time, he was the youngest winner in Truck Series history at 18 years, eight months, and 15 days.

2012: Return to 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: Return to PASS Super Late Model Series

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

2013: Full-Time with Brad Keselowski Racing and Nationwide Series Win

In 2013, Ryan Blaney drove the full schedule for Brad Keselowski Racing in the Camping World Truck Series and competed for the series' Rookie of the Year award. He won his first career pole at Kentucky Speedway in June and his second Truck Series race at Pocono Raceway in August. In the Nationwide Series, Blaney substituted for Joey Logano at Iowa Speedway in June, finishing ninth, and won at Kentucky Speedway on September 21, leading 96 laps.

January 2014: Full Truck Series Schedule and Sprint Cup Races

In January 2014, Ryan Blaney announced that he would be running a full Camping World Truck Series schedule with BKR, as well as 15 Nationwide Series and two Sprint Cup Series races for Team Penske during the year.

January 2014: Two Sprint Cup Starts with Team Penske

In January 2014, Team Penske announced that Ryan Blaney would make two starts in the NASCAR Sprint Cup season, driving the No. 12 car. He debuted at Kansas Speedway, finishing 27th, and made his second start at Talladega, finishing 22nd.

May 2014: Runner-Up Finish at Dover and Comments on Cup Series Drivers in Truck Series

In late May 2014, Ryan Blaney finished second to Kyle Busch at Dover by a small margin. After the race, Blaney voiced his opinion that Cup Series drivers should not compete in other divisions, due to Kyle Busch's frequent wins in the truck series.

August 2014: Wood Brothers Racing Announcement

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

August 2014: Nationwide and Truck Series Victories

In August 2014, Ryan Blaney won his second career Nationwide race at Bristol Motor Speedway, defeating Kyle Busch. The following week, he won his first Truck race of 2014 at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, edging German Quiroga in a photo-finish.

2015: 2015 Xfinity and Sprint Cup Series

In 2015, Ryan Blaney competed in the Xfinity Series, securing a second-place finish at Las Vegas and nearly winning at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, ultimately finishing second. He won at Iowa and Kentucky. He also achieved his second top 10 in the Sprint Cup at Kansas, finishing seventh.

2015: 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Season

In 2015, Ryan Blaney performed well in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, picking up his first Top 10 at Talladega, finishing fourth. He also got a seventh-place finish in the fall at Kansas. He ended the year with 15 starts in total.

2016: Full-Time Cup Series with Wood Brothers Racing

In 2016, Ryan Blaney began competing full-time in the Cup Series with the Wood Brothers. He earned a 6th place finish at Las Vegas, his third Top 10 of his career. He also drove with Bubba Wallace from Phoenix to Fontana and took over NASCAR's Snapchat account and mimicked drivers. Blaney picked up more top tens at Phoenix, Talladega, Dover, and Pocono with his best finish being a fifth at Kansas. At Chicagoland, Blaney finished 4th. He put up a fight for the Sunoco Rookie of the Year award, but lost to Chase Elliott.

June 2017: Fox NASCAR Broadcast Team Member

In June 2017, Ryan Blaney became a member of Fox NASCAR's Cup driver-only broadcast team for the Xfinity Series race at Pocono Raceway. He also interviewed race-winner Brad Keselowski; the next day, the roles were reversed as he won his first Cup race with Keselowski interviewing him.

2017: Guaranteed Spot in Every Race of the 2017 Season

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. He placed second in the Daytona 500. He qualified second at Texas Motor Speedway, led 148 laps and won the first two stages but finished 12th due to a pit stop error. At Kansas, Blaney won his first career Cup Series pole and finished fourth in the race.

2017: Start of the Glass Case of Emotion Podcast

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

2017: Film Appearances in 2017

In 2017, Ryan Blaney voiced Ryan "Inside" Laney in the Pixar film "Cars 3". He also had a cameo appearance as a delivery boy in the film "Logan Lucky".

Loading Video...

April 20, 2018: Guest Starred in Taken

On April 20, 2018, Ryan Blaney guest-starred in the TV show "Taken" in season 2 episode 12 "Imperium", as Special Agent Nathan Wood.

2018: Return to Pit Duties

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

2018: Move to Team Penske's No. 12 Car

On July 26, Ryan Blaney announced he would move to Team Penske's new No. 12 car for the 2018 season. In June, he won his first career Cup race at the Axalta presents the Pocono 400 at Pocono Raceway. At the end of the regular season, Blaney entered the playoffs ninth in points.

2019: Cup Series Champion

In 2019, Ky. Busch won the Cup Series.

2019: Cameo Appearance in The Crew

In 2019, Ryan Blaney made a cameo appearance as himself in the Netflix television series "The Crew" alongside Austin Dillon and Cole Custer.

2019: 2019 Season Highlights

In 2019, Ryan Blaney remained consistent within the top 10 in points. He spun Jimmie Johnson at Watkins Glen and they argued. Blaney won the Talladega fall race in a photo finish over Ryan Newman and advanced into the Round of 8. Despite finishing third at Phoenix, he was eliminated in the Round of 8.

2020: 2020 Season

During the 2020 Daytona 500, Ryan Blaney's push to Ryan Newman led to a violent crash, and Blaney lost the race to Denny Hamlin. He had a wreck at Bristol with Ty Dillon and recorded three straight top-fives, followed by a win at the GEICO 500, defeating Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

2020: Cup Series Champion

In 2020, C. Elliott won the Cup Series.

2021: 2021 Season Wins and Playoff Run

During the 2021 season, Ryan Blaney won at Atlanta and Michigan. He won at Daytona International Speedway the following week, capturing three wins in the Cup Series regular season. Blaney went into the 2021 Cup playoffs as the second-seeded driver and made it to the Round of 8 before being eliminated after Martinsville. He finished the season seventh in the points standings.

2021: Cup Series Champion

In 2021, K. Larson won the Cup Series.

2021: Cover Star for NASCAR 21: Ignition

In 2021, Ryan Blaney was one of three drivers featured as cover stars for the "NASCAR 21: Ignition" video game.

2021: Commentator for NASCAR Broadcasts

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

2022: Cup Series Champion

In 2022, J. Logano won the Cup Series.

2022: 2022 Season Performance

In 2022, Ryan Blaney secured a fourth-place finish at the Daytona 500. Although he didn't win any of the first 13 races, he maintained consistency with four top-five and six top-10 finishes. He led the most laps at Talladega but was caught in a wreck. He also won the 2022 NASCAR All-Star Race. Despite a crash at Daytona, he clinched the final Playoff spot and was later eliminated after finishing third at Martinsville, ending the season eighth in points.

2022: Featured in Race for the Championship

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

2023: Cup Series Champion

In 2023, R. Blaney won the Cup Series.

2023: 2023 Season Performance

In 2023, Ryan Blaney started the season with an eighth-place finish at the Daytona 500. He finished second at Phoenix and spotted for Joey Logano at Bristol. He led the most laps at the GEICO 500, finishing second, and won the 2023 Coca-Cola 600. A sixth-place finish at Gateway put Blaney on top of the points standings.

2023: Featured in NASCAR: Full Speed

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

2023: 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Championship

In 2023, at the season finale in Phoenix, Ryan Blaney ran in the top ten for most of the race. He battled with Kyle Larson, ultimately passing him for second place with 20 laps to go, securing the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Championship.

2023: End of the Glass Case of Emotion Podcast

In 2023, the NASCAR-supported podcast featuring Ryan Blaney, Kim Coon, and Chuck Bush, called the Glass Case of Emotion, ended at the conclusion of the season.

2024: Cup Series Champion

In 2024, J. Logano won the Cup Series.

2024: 2024 Season Performance

In 2024, Ryan Blaney began the season with a DNF at the Daytona 500. He finished second at Atlanta and ran out of fuel at Gateway. On June 16, He won the inaugural Iowa race and later won at Pocono. Blaney advanced to the Championship 4 after winning at Martinsville. He finished behind Joey Logano in the season finale race at Phoenix, who won the 2024 Cup Series Championship.