Team Penske has been on a roll since the Gateway race a month ago. Austin Cindric spun off the celebrations as Ryan Blaney followed, and soon Joey Logano hopped aboard as well. Blaney’s win was significant, as he consoled himself after running out of gas in Gateway. Yet as the No. 12 driver faces the defense of the playoffs, racing is not the only thing on his mind.

Blaney’s love for Star Wars is a well-known phenomenon. The Penske driver has rare collectibles at home to the point of irking even his girlfriend. So when the Force manifested before him alive, Ryan Blaney’s Cup worries may have shut off instantly. That is especially because he could finally rub it in Bubba Wallace‘s face.

Ryan Blaney finally becomes satisfied!

Last year during the Championship playoff, Ryan Blaney was jealous of his buddy Bubba Wallace. Because Blaney felt he deserved Wallace’s snazzy livery. The No. 23 car of 23XI Racing received splashes of vibrant Star Wars colors. Even the fire suit and helmet Wallace donned possessed a starry theme. So this scenario inevitably drew the envious eyes of his Team Penske rival, Ryan Blaney. He took a dig at Wallace’s worthiness for the honor: “He has never seen Star Wars in his life.”

Finally, Ryan Blaney can proudly claim his fanboy sentiments. Recently, he met with Daisy Ridley, playing ‘Rey’ in the sequel trilogy. And Blaney was overjoyed, posting the much-coveted interaction of the meetup on X – a gleeful Blaney is standing beside the famous actress.

He captioned, “I met a Jedi again.”

Indeed, this was not the first time Ryan Blaney met with his idol. In 2017, he was attending a NASCAR-sponsored Lakers game with Bubba Wallace. Before the Fontana race, they were doing some promo stuff. But all the racing thoughts went out the window when Blaney noticed Ridley passing by in the stadium. His heart started throbbing approaching her for a picture. After they parted ways, Blaney cherished the photo and thought it was the last time he met with the Jedi. But apparently not, as recent events show us.

Blaney confessed he was so nervous he did not do a formal introduction of himself. “I was nervous, I was sweating. I don’t ever get star-struck, but she made me just completely seize up.”

He added, “I don’t name-drop. I don’t like when people use what they do to benefit them. And, honestly, I don’t think she would have been interested. Looking back, I was nervous and didn’t want to be like, “Well, I’m a race car driver.” But I got my picture and I’ll have that on my phone forever.”

Now that he has another picture to cherish, NASCAR fans are excited about this fated encounter.

NASCAR community feels for Blaney’s fanboy feelings

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Meeting your television idol is indeed the story of a lifetime. Last year, not only did Bubba Wallace sport Star Wars livery, but he also met with Luke Skywalker- the legendary Mark Hamill. That stung Ryan Blaney even more. Now, his encounter with Daisy Ridley has eased that envy a bit, but one fan is eager to see this fight continue. “Gotta love the Ryan/Bubba side quest run to see who can meet the most stars wars actors.”

One fan was dubious that Ridley’s interaction made up for Ryan Blaney’s envy. After all, Luke Skywalker is one of the foremost characters of the franchise. “Does this makeup for the sheer level of jealousy and mild rage he must have felt at the 23XI SW collab last year where Bubba got to meet Hamill?”

Another fan believes Ryan Blaney’s determined to secure a Star Wars role while spilling their own affinity for Star Wars. “Blaney REALLY wants to get a cameo in a Star Wars show and I do not blame him for a millisecond.”

Some fans recalled Ryan Blaney’s profuse nervousness when he first met with Ridley. “From what I heard, the last time these two met Blaney had such a fan moment that he was a babbling, incoherent mess around her.” Somebody else justified his excitement, even suggesting that he forgot his championship ambitions. “Lead of the recent Disney Star Wars Trilogy. I’m sure Ryan enjoyed this more than winning the title last year 😂”

Evidently, fans understand why Ryan Blaney was dewy-eyed to meet with a Star Wars icon. Maybe this satisfaction will lend him some fuel to defend his championship title.