“I felt obligated to be in this leadership role” - Ryan Blaney talks about filling Brad Keselowski’s void at Team Penske

In a recent interview with BroBible, 2023 Cup Series champion Ryan Blaney reflected on stepping into a leadership role at Team Penske when RFK Racing co-owner Brad Keselowski bid farewell to the team.

Brad Keselowski was a crucial cog at Team Penske for over a decade. The 39-year-old joined the team in 2010 and won the 2012 NASCAR Cup Series Championship.

However, once the veteran driver decided to call it quits from Team Penske as he ventured into co-ownership with RFK Racing, the spotlight fell on Blaney.

Now a Cup Series champion, Ryan Blaney reflected on Keselowski's departure, acknowledging the sense of obligation he felt to assume a leadership position alongside fellow veteran Joey Logano. He said:

“When Brad left to go to his own team I felt like I was obligated to be in this leadership role with Joey, being the two veteran guys."

He added:

“Once you win a championship, I feel like you’re really established with your team, and I think that’s just gonna be better for our whole team as we get more and more successful."

Keselowski's veteran absence left a void at Penske, one that Blaney seamlessly stepped into. Although it was the other Team Penske driver, Joey Logano, who won the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series Championship, Blaney took the world by storm in 2023.

Ryan Blaney on "proving people wrong"

Blaney was often claimed to be a driver with extreme potential among the NASCAR enthusiasts. However, at 29-years-old, Blaney was failing to live up to the hype.

Over time, there were many in the NASCAR community who began to scrutinize Blaney. More notably, driver turned commentator Kyle Petty had earlier criticized Blaney's consistency the very season he won the championship.

However, the former Wood Brothers Racing driver turned the tide around. He won crucial races in Talladega and Martinsville before clinching the coveted title in the final race of the season in Phoenix.

Ryan Blaney enjoyed the opportunity to prove his critics wrong, as he said:

“It’s nice to prove people wrong. You see that stuff and it’s something that you work on."

Looking forward, Blaney sees the championship as a catalyst for further success. He said:

"You’re always trying to get better as an athlete and as a driver and it’s nice when you go prove people wrong who have those opinions about you. So yeah, it’s definitely something that I’ve thought of a little."