How Did Ryan Blaney Start Racing? NASCAR Champion’s Path to Racing Explored

NASCAR Cup Series stars often tell the world that they knew they wanted to be race car drivers from the moment their hands held a steering wheel. Defending Cup Series champion Ryan Blaney takes a pleasant break from this PR-inspired routine. He opened up about his racing roots in a recent interview with The Athletic and admitted that he didn’t want to become a racing driver until he was well into his teens.

Blaney’s family has a strong foundation in racing. His great-grandfather George kicked things off in the middle of the 20th century by creating a three-car race team. His son, Lou, joined the operation and raced in sprint cars. The subsequent half-century career that Lou had paved the way for future Blaneys in the world of racing. Following his sons, Dave and Dale, his grandson is a speedster now too.

Ryan said in his interview, “I started racing at nine. It was just fun for a few years and then I went into Legend cars. I was still pretty young. And then I started running Late Models, and that’s a big step, a big investment, a lot of time. I was starting high school and trying to figure out what you want to do.” Continuing to race in late models gave him some much-needed clarity.

“I ran a couple years in Late Models, and was like, “OK, I want to try to make a career out of this.” I was probably 15 at the time,” he added. The decision led him to race K&N and ARCA cars. He hoped that someone from the big leagues would spot and they did. He began racing in NASCAR in 2012 with some sporadic appearances in Xfinity and Truck. Soon enough, the Ohio native secured a full-time ride with Brad Keselowski Racing (2013) in the latter series.

The impact that family had on Blaney’s career choices

The NASCAR champion said in an interview with CBS last year that the spirit of racing came to him from the hands of his predecessors. He quipped, “It came from my grandfather to my dad and my uncle. As a kid, I was lucky to see it at a young age. I was fortunate enough to have a shot at racing. As a kid, I wanted to do what dad did. I was with him almost every weekend.”

His sisters, Erin and Emma, play crucial roles in his career as well. He told NBC that they were his biggest fans and a huge support system behind his actions in stock car racing. Interestingly, they used to race in quarter-midgets as well, until it was time to level up. Erin is currently in a relationship with Hendrick Motorsports driver William Byron and helps run the Ryan Blaney Family Foundation.

As NASCAR heads to Richmond Raceway after the 2-week Olympic break, it remains to be seen if Ryan Blaney can challenge for the regular season championship this year. The Team Penske driver is already slated to challenge during the postseason playoffs with 2 wins to his name so far.