BLANEY COLLECTED IN MULTI-CAR INCIDENT AT AUTO CLUB
February 27, 2023
RUNNER UP IN PHOENIX – BLANEY FINISHES ON A POSITIVE NOTE
March 13, 2023LUCK DOESN’T GO BLANEY’S WAY IN VEGAS
RACE RUNDOWN
Ryan Blaney | No. 12 Menards/BlueDef/Peak Ford Mustang
Start: 3rd
Stage 1: 21st
Stage 2: 15th
Finish: 13th
Ryan Blaney fought a tight-handling No. 12 Ford Mustang from the onset of Sunday's Pennzoil 400 and was the first to make a scheduled green flag stop on lap 33 for four tires, fuel, and an air pressure adjustment. Blaney continued to battle rear security issues on corner entry to the end of Stage 1, resulting in a 21st-place finish. The No. 12 team was able to hit on its adjustments as the race wore on, allowing Blaney to drive back up into the top-15 as his Ford Mustang began to settle in to pick up a 15th-place finish in Stage 2. After starting the final stage 14th, Blaney made his way back into the top-10 in the closing laps of the race - running as high as eighth - before a late caution brought the field back together for an overtime attempt. Blaney battled three-wide traffic on the final restart before ultimately crossing the line 13th.
Blaney's Thoughts
"We didn't start off very good. We struggled really bad the first two stages. Thought we got a little better there the last couple runs. I think we were about eighth before the last caution, started back racing and just went backwards. It's unfortunate. We worked hard all day to get faster. The last restart pit-stops didn't go our way."
