Talk of a comeback! Ryan Blaney made the impossible happen with his final push in the playoffs. While many wrote him off even after the Talladega win, he stayed on with determination and has now emerged as the 2023 NASCAR champion. The Team Penske driver’s case is the perfect example of not giving up. He was already having the best season of his career by entering the Championship 4. Topping it off with the championship after spending 6 seasons in the #12 car certainly must mean a lot to him.

Talking to the press after his win, he had one regret, despite all the jubilation that the victory demanded. Involving Brad Keselowski, it fortunately wasn’t something that couldn’t be set right.

Ryan Blaney expresses regret over not giving Brad Keselowski credit

Just like many on the grid alongside him, Ryan Blaney’s rise to the top tier of NASCAR was a strenuous climb through multiple ladders. Though he hails from a well-known racing family, he had to work his way through the ARCA, Truck, and Xfinity series before getting a seat in the highest order. One key person who facilitated much of his transition from the Truck Series to Cup Series was Brad Keselowski.

Starting in 2012 and continuing through 2015, Ryan Blaney drove the truck of Brad Keselowski Racing. It was courtesy of the two-year full-time stint that he first got a taste of what it would be like to race for Team Penske in the Xfinity and Cup Series. Talking to the press at Phoenix about how he’d never paid ode to Keselowski for helping him ascend, he voiced his regret.

He said, “Honestly, I haven’t said it, I’m ashamed of not saying it. Brad Keselowski was a huge piece of me getting in there. Was a massive piece of driving their Xfinity program. I drove his trucks for a couple of years. Brad was a huge connecting piece with me being a part of the Penske group. I can’t thank him enough.”

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With his P2 finish at Phoenix, Blaney has secured for Team Penske their consecutive Cup Series championship. Last year, Joey Logano had delivered and this time around, Blaney made sure that the trophy stayed with his team.

Eight full-time Cup Seasons later, Blaney is grateful to every team he has been a part of

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Ryan Blaney’s electric surge that came about in the dying moments of the season took him to the very top of the mountain. He is only the third driver to win a Cup Series championship for Roger Penske’s racing outfit. Coincidentally, the one who did it before his teammate Joey Logano was Brad Keselowski. Currently driving for his own team, RFK Racing, the icon won the championship with Team Penske back in 2012.

Continuing to thank Keselowski for his efforts in building his career, Blaney said, “It was a lot of fun seeing him after the race. He came up to the stage. That meant a lot to me because, like I said, he is a huge part of my career. Yeah, you want to drive for amazing people. I have been lucky to do that from Brad to Wood Brothers to Penske. It’s been a dream come true.”

While Ryan Blaney took the glory in the historic 75th season of NASCAR, Brad Keselowski ended the day at P15. Though he would have liked to give his ex-driver a run for his money behind the wheel, his bigger battle is as a team owner currently. Renovating and building RFK into a feared outfit once again, he has been making big strides towards that goal. Just perhaps, we might see the current NASCAR champion once again behind the wheel of a Brad Keselowski car in the future.

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