Event Guide

Dave Blaney

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Dave Blaney, the 1995 World of Outlaws champion, began his tenure with Richard Childress Racing in June, 2004 at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway, taking over the reigns of the No. 30 Chevrolet. He was instrumental in advancing the program to a new plateau and was immediately on Childress' short list to be the team's full-time pilot in 2005.

In December, 2004 it was announced that Blaney will drive the No. 07 Jack Daniel Distillery NASCAR Cup Series Chevrolet in 2005.

Blaney had the best season of his Cup career in 2002, finishing in the top 10 five times and completing 96.3 percent of all laps run in the 2002 campaign.

He also cracked the top 20 in points for the first time, finishing 19th. His best finish of the year came in Phoenix, where he finished seventh after qualifying fifth.

Blaney made the move to Cup racing after two successful seasons in the Busch Series, including a seventh place finish in the championship in 1999, with five top-fives, 12 top-10s and four Bud Poles in 31 races. That was a marked improvement from his first season on the circuit, 1998, when he finished sixth on three occasions.

After three years of schooling in regional Sprint Car competition, Blaney moved to the USAC Coors Light Silver Bullet Series and became the first rookie and the youngest driver to win the championship.

Between his World of Outlaws title bids; dual victories in the King's Royal event at Eldora, Ohio; and his victory in 1997 in the prestigious Amoco Knoxville Nationals, Blaney also found time for a 1992 Winston Cup Series start at Rockingham and six ARCA starts, his only experience in fendered cars prior to the 1998 season.

In 2001, Blaney struggled against bad luck while having some flashes of brilliance. He scored six top-10 finishes, including a career best sixth at Texas, but unfortunately six DNFs outweighed them.

Blaney, a native of Sharon, Pa., competed for Raybestos Rookie of the Year in 2000 driving No. 93 Amoco Pontiacs for Bill Davis Racing. According to the team owner, only a double-edged sword of constructing a new team while also preparing for a manufacturer switch kept Blaney from making more of an impact. The team switched to Dodges for 2001.

He also owns a World of Outlaws team for which younger brother Dale drives.