Do we have a new rivalry heating up in NASCAR?
This one dates back to the final race of 2023, when Ryan Blaney was hoping to secure his first Cup Series championship. But Ross Chastain didn’t make it easy on him.
Chastain, who has a reputation for being an aggressive driver, didn’t cut Blaney any slack despite the fact that Ryan was running for a championship and Ross wasn’t.
And Blaney was none too happy with the way Chastain blocked him:
Chastain would go on to win the race, while Blaney won the championship, so in the end everybody walked away happy.
But NASCAR drivers have long memories, and the simmering tension between the two flared up again today just three races into the 2024 season.
Blaney once again expressed his frustration over the radio with how Ross was racing him.
And at the end of the race, with Blaney in 3rd and Chastain in 4th, Blaney was throwing blocks on Chastain to keep him behind him – something that wasn’t lost on Chastain after the race.
While speaking with the media, Chastain had some sarcastic comments for Blaney, who complained about Ross blocking him last season:
“It was pretty cool to see Blaney blocking me at the end. Pretty cool to see his evolution with the air blocking. I was proud of him.”
For his part, Blaney took the subtle jab in stride, responding with a meme on Twitter pointing out the irony:
Sounds like this might be a rivalry to keep an eye on this season…
