There are plenty of ways to be reminded that a driver has won a championship but there is one reminder that will be with a driver forever — the Champion patch under the NASCAR Cup Series Logo on a driver's fire suit.
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The 2023 NASCAR champion, Ryan Blaney, isn't taking it for granted. He is very proud to have it, according to Kelly Crandall of Racer.com.
"That meant a lot; it did mean a ton," Blaney said after getting his new fire suit that features the Champion patch. "It was one of those things that was like a month removed from all those celebrations, and it's in the new year — you get the trophy, you get the Goodyear car, you get the ring, and then once the banquet is done that stuff is over. You've got all of that stuff, but then it's a nice little refresher for the new year when you pull out the fire suit from the bag and you see the 'champion' logo beneath the NASCAR logo. That part was nice."
According to Blaney, it's something he's always going to be happy to look at every morning on race day.
"You look at that every morning, at least I will on race day," Blaney said. "You look at it, and it's one of those little things you notice. It's kind of a nice little reminder."
It is a nice way to showcase the drivers who are fortunate enough to win a NASCAR title, and it's a detail the sport first started doing for the champions during the early 2010s. Once it's there, it never leaves, and every time a driver wins another championship, the patch is updated.
For example, Joey Logano and Kyle Busch have 2x champions on their fire suits, and Jimmie Johnson's reads "7x."
Blaney will have a shot to repeat in 2024, but it's so hard to do and isn't fully likely, but you never know. Regardless, Blaney will forever have the Champion patch on his NASCAR firesuit.
It's also a big confidence booster for Blaney, whose next goal is to win the Daytona 500. He has to be one of the favorites for "The Great American Race."
