"I bet he didn't say five words" - $90M Tony Stewart reflects on first encounter with Ryan Blaney's grandfather

Tony Stewart sat down with the Blaney family and brought up Lou, Ryan Blaney’s late grandfather. Stewart shared that Lou Blaney didn’t say a lot to him when they were introduced to each other at Sharon Speedway, guessing less than five words were said.

Stewart, who is worth $90 million (as per Celebrity Net Worth), is a three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion who currently competes in the NHRA (National Hot Rod Association). He is set to leave the world of stock car racing as Stewart-Haas Racing will close at the end of the 2024 season.

In an interview by MAVTV, Tony Stewart was in a roundtable with Dave, Dale, and Ryan Blaney when they talked about how Lou was a man of few words.

“I remember going to Sharon and you taking me down and introducing him to me for the first time and I’m like, ‘If I walked through this pit area and I hadn’t talked to you about it, he would have been the last guy I would have thought that was going to put on a helmet that night,’” Stewart shared. [1:29]

He continued:

“Exactly to your point. I mean you introduced me to him, I bet he didn’t say five words. But nice as could be, those five words were nice.” [1:43]

Lou Blaney was a sprint car racer who was the part-owner of Sharon Speedway in Ohio. His two sons, Dave and Dale, were also professional racecar drivers. Dave was a World of Outlaw champion and NASCAR driver, while Dale was a six-time All-Star Circuit of Champions title holder.

Dave is the father of Ryan Blaney, the driver of the No. 12 Ford Mustang for Team Penske. Ryan is the defending NASCAR Cup Series Champion, though he is on the brink of elimination heading to the final Round of 8 race at Martinsville.

The 30-year-old driver is seventh on the playoff standings and -38 below the bubble.

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Ryan Blaney reflected on the last-lap disappointment at Homestead-Miami

Ryan Blaney expressed his disappointment following losing to Tyler Reddick at the Homestead-Miami Speedway race. The driver admitted feeling gutted to lose on the last lap after the No. 45 car took advantage of his clean air to steal the win from him.

In a post-race interview, the Ohio-born driver said (via Frontstretch):

"I just didn't really have a good last lap. I didn't really get to the bottom like I wanted to, and then wanted to, and I kind of gave the 45 a little clean air, and then he just got a big shot by the 11 down the back. And I didn't know which way he was going to go. I want to see. I mean, it was like, time down, perfect for him. I'm like, getting to my bumper as soon as we got to the corner. And I thought, well, if I go in fast, like, kind of a couple ways off the wall, and kind of just slide up and be good." [0:20]

Blaney added:

"I saw that, I sent it in there, and he sent it in there miles further than me, which I cannot believe it stuck, but it was gonna be that really good all day. Just entry speed was crazy fast and benefited in there. But yeah, staying some up and down day, and just, shame to lose one on last lap like that." [00:47]

Ryan Blaney will look to score good points at Martinville Speedway this Sunday to earn a shot to defend his championship title at the Championship 4 race in Phoenix.