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Blaney son is youngest winner for trucks
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Ryan Blaney
SEE ALSO: Riding with Dave Blaney
By John Bassetti
LEXINGTON, KY.
To Ryan Blaney, the trophy meant more than the money.
Winning his first NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Iowa Speedway on Saturday brought the 18-year-old Blaney his biggest single payday, but the trophy meant the world to him.
“I don’t care about the money,” the son of NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Dave Blaney said following the American Ethanol 200 Presented by Hy-Vee. “The trophy is pretty much good enough for me.”
If they had $37,600 more in their pocket, some teen-agers would disagree, but Ryan Blaney knows that there’s no price tag for being the youngest winner in series history at 18 years, 8 months and 15 days. He broke the previous best set by Kyle Busch in 2005 at Charlotte (20 years, 18 days).
“Money’s never been a priority for me,” Ryan said from Kentucky Speedway where he’s scheduled for tonight’s Kentucky 201. “I’ve never raced for money, just to win and all that. Money is a bonus but it’s not the biggest thing I care about.”
Blaney’s euphoria was shared by his mother and father.
“It was cool having my family and whole team there,” he said of his appearance in the winner’s circle.
Blaney led the final 50 laps of the 200-lapper, finishing 0.168 seconds ahead of Ty Dillon.
“We knew we had a shot the whole race,” he said of the advantage of starting in the No. 2 position behind pole-sitter Parker Klingerman. “But when we got the lead we knew it would be tough for others to pass us. We had the better car [truck].”
His main competition was Todd Bodine, who finished third.
“We rode close the last 10 laps but not before that except on restarts.”
In keeping with Blaney family tenets, the race was clean.
“There was no bumping,” Ryan said. “We won fair and square.”
Dillon, current Truck Series leader, said: “I wanted it bad at the end. We were coming, but Ryan Blaney, he’s an amazing driver. I’m glad we didn’t have to race against him all this year. He’s a great guy and he really deserved it.”
Dillon is a grandson of the Richard Childress Racing owner, for whom Dave Blaney raced in the No. 66 Jack Daniels car for a few years.
Ryan Blaney’s achievement in the Brad Keselowski Racing-owned No. 29 Cooper Standard Dodge Ram was also outstanding because it was only his third Truck Series race.
“Being at that track helped,” Blaney said of Iowa Speedway, where he had a 10th-place finish in a Nationwide Series race on Aug. 4. “It was good being in a place I was familiar with.”
Blaney has alternated between the two series as well as racing in some K & N Series events.
“It doesn’t matter much, because it keeps me racing more,” Ryan said of vehicle-flopping from week to week.
Like he did at Bristol earlier this year, Blaney will do double-duty this weekend by running in both the Truck and Nationwide series [Saturday].
“It’s boosted my confidence and boosted my team’s confidence,” Ryan said of the effect of the win at Iowa. “They’re all fired up for this weekend and the rest of the year.”
“I think everybody was happy to have him get that first one under his belt,” Dave Blaney said in his low-key style.
“With only three Truck races and seven Nationwide races under his belt, he’s done a good job with all,” his father said approvingly. “He’s gotten better the whole time so it all came together.”
Ten years of experience coupled with the body, eyes and reflexes of an 18-year-old are Ryan Blaney’s biggest assets.
“He’s 18 but has 10 years of racing experience already,” Dave Blaney said. “Add all that and he can become pretty successful. It all comes into play behind the wheel.”
Not only does Ryan Blaney race against Ty Dillon and his brother, Austin, in the Nationwide Series, but he’s been doing so since they were 12-years-old.
“They’ve known each other a long time, so it’s no big rivalry,” Dave Blaney said.
His son’s victory wasn’t a first, but it was special.
“Ryan’s won a lot of races throughout his career and they’ve been good ones, so we’re used to it. But winning a Truck race, especially so soon, we were loving it.”
The elder Blaney explained that good fortune is part of the game, but that opportunity doesn’t wait, either.
“It’s hard for young guys to get to run in any NASCAR races because sponsors are few and far between and not many team owners are willing to put a young kid in there.
“He’s been lucky to have help getting involved,” Blaney said of Seal Wrap as a Nationwide sponsor, “and that turned into the Penske opportunity. But when he got that first chance, Ryan took advantage of it.”