AVONDALE, Ariz. – Championship contenders Ryan Blaney and William Byron aren’t related (yet), but they’ve formed familial-type bonds to ensure there’ll be no hard feelings after Sunday’s title finale at Phoenix Raceway.
“William and I have a great relationship,” Blaney said Thursday during Championship 4 Media Day. “Earlier this week, people asked me … ‘If William wins are you going to Thanksgiving?’ Yeah, it’s not that big a deal. We’re competitors on the racetrack, but we’re going to have our same deal off the racetrack.”
The “deal” is that Byron has been dating Erin Blaney, Ryan’s younger sister, for four years, which is why the Cup stars from rival teams have spent many family holidays together.
After struggling to a 13th at Martinsville Speedway and barely advancing to the title round for the first time, Byron jokingly congratulated Blaney as his “brother in law” for winning on the 0.526-mile oval to earn his first berth in the Championship 4.
RACING ROMANCE: When William Byron and Erin Blaney began their relationship
GUTTING IT OUT: How Byron overcame major adversity at Martinsville to advance
Though they have grown close off the track, they remain fierce but fair rivals on the track.
“I would say we race really hard,” Byron, 25, said. “We’ve had our battles and had our kind of small run-ins. We race hard. We’re competitors. At Homestead we were battling a lot for the lead. When we get on track, we’re pretty comfortable, really comfortable around each other racing.”
Mar 12, 2023; Avondale, Arizona, USA; NASCAR Cup Series driver William Byron (24) celebrates his victory of the United Rentals Work United 500 with girlfriend Erin Blaney at Phoenix Raceway. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
William Byron celebrates his March 12 victory at Phoenix Raceway with girlfriend, Erin Blaney (Gary A. Vasquez/USA TODAY Sports Images Network).
Said Blaney, 29: “William and I have always raced really well together personally. He and I are buddies. He’s a good guy. I’ve gotten the pleasure of getting to know him, kind of more in-depth with him, the relationship side of that piece. He comes from a great family. He’s a good kid. Awesome race car driver. Him and I have a lot of respect for each other.”
The only bump in their relationship might have been at the beginning of Byron’s courtship of Erin Blaney.
Ryan Blaney learned of his sister’s new paramour when he was walking to the driver’s meeting of the Oct. 27, 2019 race at Martinsville Speedway. During an interview with NBC Sports a few months later, he admitted to being a little miffed that he had gotten no heads up from his sister or Byron, who also regretted that Blaney learned secondhand. (“Oh gosh,” Byron told NBC Sports in 2020 after learning how Blaney found out. “Man. No wonder he raced me so hard that day. I should have handled that better.”)
But that’s all in the past now for Blaney, who said he would be happy if his (future?) “brother in law” won the championship Sunday at his expense.
“Overall I would be (happy),” Blaney said. “I probably would be upset for a little bit, right? You just lost. But I would be happy for them, him as well, that he did win. I would show him a bunch of respect.”
In what he referred to as “a funny dynamic,” Blaney said he told Erin that she has “the best percentage of anybody of someone you care about winning this thing.
“I told Erin, ‘You have a 50% shot to be happy.’ We’ll see. It will be fun.”
