LOST CYLINDER SPOILS STRONG RUN FOR BLANEY IN POCONO

After starting 14th in Sunday's HighPoint.com 400 at Pocono Raceway, Ryan Blaney made his way into the top-10 of the running order within the first five laps as he began his charge to the front of the field. Blaney reported a tight-handling condition throughout the opening stage as the No. 12 team brought him to pit road under green with four laps remaining in Stage 1 for four tires, fuel, and a round of adjustments. The strategy call resulted in a 27th-place finish in the stage, but positioned Blaney to restart from fifth to begin Stage 2. Shortly after the restart on lap 46, the No. 5 went for a spin in the middle of turn one right in front of the Advance Auto Parts Ford Mustang, but Blaney was able to get the power down and avoid contact before the caution flag flew for the fourth time on the day. On the ensuing restart, Blaney worked his way to up to second in the running order and remained there for a majority of the stage before being called to pit road for a scheduled green flag stop on lap 78 for four tires, fuel, and a wedge adjustment. Blaney raced his way back into the top-10 with five laps remaining in Stage 2 and was running eighth when the caution flag flew on lap 92 as the stage ended under yellow. The green flag stop allowed Blaney to stay on the track during the stage break, setting him up to restart on the inside of row one to begin the final segment. Blaney benefited from a solid push into turn one and carried the momentum into the Long Pond straightaway to take the lead on lap 100 but, two laps later, Blaney experienced an engine issue while leading as he was nearing the end of the frontstretch that relegated him out of the top-20. The No. 12 team brought Blaney to pit road under caution on lap 106 to diagnose the issue but was subjected to run the remainder of the race down on engine power, resulting in a 30th-place finish.