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Ryan Blaney: ‘I would be nothing if it wasn’t for’ Brad Keselowski

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Ryan Blaney is interviewed by Brad Keselowski in victory lane of the 2017 Pocono 400 after securing his first Cup win.

The first person to talk to Ryan Blaney after winning his first NASCAR Cup Series race was Brad Keselowski, who conducted the Victory Lane Interview for Fox Sports 1.

Keselowksi was returning the favor after Blaney did the same on Saturday, interviewing Keselowski following his win the Xfinity Series race.

The moment had a deeper meaning for the two drivers.

While Keselowski and Blaney are teammates in the Xfinity Series with Team Penske, Keselowski is also Blaney’s former owner in the Camping World Truck Series.

Blaney made 58 starts for Brad Keselowski Racing from 2012-2015 and won four times.

“It was awesome to see him basically just take the microphone from Jaime Little,” Blaney said. “That was cool to see his support.

“I wouldn’t be here without Brad, to be honest with you. He’s the one that gave me my start in 2012. I started driving his trucks then and it led to the Penske deal, led to the Wood Brothers deal. I would be nothing if it wasn’t for him taking a chance on me. He’s been a huge person I’ve looked up to. For him to do that really, really makes me feel good. It’s really cool to see his support still. He’s a great person.”

Keselowski’s victory lane interaction with Blaney sparked a memory for the 2012 Cup champion. Keselowski posted on Twitter following the race a picture of him celebrating his first Cup win on April 26, 2009 at Talladega Superspeedway.

In the picture, Keselowski is being congratulated by Dale Earnhardt Jr. Keselowski competed for Earnhardt’s JR Motorsports in the Xfinity Series from 2007-09, winning five times before joining Team Penske in 2010.

Tagging Earnhardt in the tweet, Keselowski said “8 years later I finally know how you felt that day.”

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