In October 2024, Ryan Blaney succumbed to a 23XI Racing driver. Tyler Reddick passed him on the final lap to win in Homestead-Miami. Yet instead of being frustrated, Blaney chose to crack a risky joke with Reddick’s team owner. Referring to Michael Jordan’s ‘The Last Dance’ documentary, Blaney told the NBA legend, “Congrats, you b—-, f— you.” And Jordan burst out laughing. The seeds of that friendly exchange bore fruit recently.

The Team Penske racer was the star of the past weekend, winning the Mobil 1 301 race in New Hampshire. Ryan Blaney led for 116 laps and won the first stage en route to his victory. While people are drooling over his newest trophy, Blaney divulged a secret ingredient, which he got from Jordan.

Ryan Blaney got some sweet kicks

Michael Jordan’s magnetic appeal ranges far beyond just 23XI Racing. The six-time NBA champion has a magnificent fan following in NASCAR, as people crave a few moments of interaction. What is more, his brand of shoes is also popular – in May 2024, Denny Hamlin flaunted the over 300 pairs of Jordans that he owns. But Hamlin is also 23XI’s co-owner. So Ryan Blaney, hailing from a different team and a different OEM, had to work hard for his first pair. And Blaney finally fulfilled his wish prior to his New Hampshire victory. “Yeah. I had my first pair of Jordans this weekend,” Blaney told Kevin Harvick.

Apparently, Michael Jordan had not seen the end of Ryan Blaney after their funny Homestead interaction. The 2023 Cup Series champion was after the NBA legend, as Blaney continued on Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour Podcast: “I had been bugging Michael Jordan for a pair for about six months. And finally got him to send me, wore them for the first time this weekend.” He added, “Those things are one for one.”

As we all witnessed, Ryan Blaney delivered a thumping victory at Magic Mile while wearing those shoes. While his crew chief, Jonathan Hassler, credited Joey Logano’s tire test in July, Blaney also credited Michael Jordan’s friendship for his win. He continued, “Good track record. Pretty cool to do that, pretty amazing…I’ve been really lucky to create a friendship with MJ. Just an amazing human being. Someone I admired growing up and still do to this very day. Pretty nice gesture that he got me a pair of shoes to do that stuff. So yeah, those things…got a good track record so far. We’ll see what else they can do.”

However, Ryan Blaney also added that adjusting his footwork to new shoes was not easy. He said, “In practice, the soles were a little different, so I had to spend about 10-15 minutes in practice to try and get used to the soles on.” And this topic got Blaney thinking about NASCAR’s much-debated policy recently.

Calling for more wheel time

Before 2020, a NASCAR race weekend looked vastly different than what it does now. Drivers could undertake an hour-long practice session on Friday, then qualifying, followed by two more practice sessions on Saturday before Sunday’s race. But the restrictions and dangers associated with the COVID-19 pandemic curtailed this wheeling freedom. Presently, teams are allowed just 15-20 minutes of practice on the track before being hurled into the arena to fend for themselves. Ryan Blaney said that this harsh scenario amounts to “pennies on the dollar.” NASCAR has made small concessions, like expanding the Daytona 500 practice time, but demands for more practice keep rising.

Ryan Blaney said that practice helped him perfect his New Hampshire strategy. So more of that would do wonders for not just him, but his competitors as well. Blaney said, “If I’m gonna pick, I like the extended practice, the 50 minutes. You get a couple of sets of tires. You’re able to go to the garage and try a few different things. They do that Champ Weekend, and then if they have a new track, that’s what they have. That’s what I like, personally. I think it just gives people a better chance to understand where their cars are and play with some more stuff than they normally could with a 20-minute practice. That would be my vote. I don’t know where it’s gonna go, but that is my favorite form of practice.”

With new shoes and a fresh outlook, Ryan Blaney is magnificently tackling the playoffs. Let’s wait and see what magic the Team Penske star conjures next.