Ryan Blaney candidly admits he is JEALOUS of Bubba Wallace as the 23XI Racing driver got to meet Star Wars’ Luke Skywalker actor Mark Hamill

Bubba Wallace will drive the Star Wars-themed Camry at Phoenix.

Ryan Blaney candidly admits he is JEALOUS of Bubba Wallace as the 23XI Racing driver got to meet Star Wars’ Luke Skywalker actor Mark Hamill

Bubba Wallace, Mark Hamill and Ryan Blaney (Via IMAGO)

Team Penske Racing’s Ryan Blaney and 23XI Racing’s Bubba Wallace are one of the closest friends in the NASCAR garage. They share a unique chemistry on and off the track and have often produced hilarious content for the racing fans. The latest to the list is Blaney admitting he is jealous of his friend’s Star Wars cross-over.

23XI Racing is fielding Star Wars-themed cars for the 2023 Cup season finale at Phoenix. Wallace’s No:23 Toyota Camry uses a pint scheme inspired by the X-Wings of the Rebels of Star Wars, while his teammate Tyler Reddick’s No:45 Toyota will feature the Dark Side X-Wing-inspired paint scheme. The Star Wars-NASCAR crossover was made possible by 23XI sponsor Columbia.

YouTube video

As part of the unveiling, Wallace and Mark Hamill, who plays the iconic character of Luke Skywalker, came together for a short video. It showed Hamill giving Wallace the keys to his Camry. Blaney, when asked about it, admitted that he is jealous of his friend over the cross-over. Blaney being a Star Wars nerd is the major reason for it.

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I was stung. ... It's awesome for the sport, right? That's so cool. I'm jealous he got to meet him. Yeah, I was a little hurt when I saw that. But happy for him. Super happy. Even though he never has seen Star Wars in his life.
Blaney said, as reported by The Athletic’s Jeff Gluck on X.  

Ryan Blaney has a big task in his hands at Phoenix

While he doesn’t have the fancy car for the race week at Phoenix, Blaney has a big task ahead of him at the Cup season finale. He has a lot of pressure on his shoulders to emulate his teammate Joey Logano’s 2022 Cup triumph for Roger Penske as the race marks his maiden Championship-4 appearance.

Ryan Blaney
Ryan Blaney (Credits: NASCAR.com)

Blaney is the only Ford driver in the final four, and he is the driver who has the best momentum coming to the race. He had been solid at the track in the Next-Gen era, but this week, when the title is only on the line, he needs to have perfect execution starting from qualifying.

His three rivals for the title are Joe Gibbs Racing’s Christopher Bell and the Hendrick Motorsports duo of Kyle Larson and William Byron. All three have been solid this season; the 2021 Cup champion Larson will be his biggest challenger in the race, without a doubt, if he gets himself upfront in a position for the win.

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