With most of the motorsports world on hiatus because of the coronavirus pandemic, we’ve decided to highlight some of the sport’s legends on a daily basis. We begin each story within the pages of National Speed Sport News.
Best known for a long career in the NASCAR Cup Series, and today as Ryan Blaney’s dad, Dave Blaney enjoyed a legendary career wheeling open-wheel cars long before he climbed into a NASCAR stock car.
Blaney started racing his family-owned No. 10 in 1981 and quickly branched out to race with the Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions, winning rookie-of-the-year honors in 1982. Blaney won seven All Star races in 1983 and captured the USAC Silver Crown Series championship in 1984 despite not winning a race.
Blaney began the transition to the World of Outlaws and won his first race in that series in 1985.
Blaney won the Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Nationals in 1993 and drove Casey Luna’s sprint car to 11 World of Outlaws victories, including the Kings Royal at Ohio’s Eldora Speedway.
Blaney won 12 features in 1995, including his second Kings Royal and captured the WoO championship.
Blaney teamed with co-owner Keith Hylton to field the Amoco/U.S. Print/Vivarin-sponsored entry in 1997 and won the Knoxville Nationals. At the end of the season, he made the move to full-time NASCAR racing.
Blaney made his first Cup Series start in 1992 and made 473 starts during his career in that series, with his last race coming in 2014.
Blaney started 121 Xfinity Series races with his lone NASCAR victory coming at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 2006.
Blaney and his brother, Dale, have been inducted into the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame.
