DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – In a backup car, Ryan Blaney put on a brilliant performance in Sunday’s Daytona 500, but came up one position short.
In what can only be described as a strange running of the “Great American Race”, Blaney overcame challenge after challenge, including a nearly dry fuel tank to earn his career-best Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series finish in his 55th career race.
With leaders Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson running out of fuel on the last lap, Blaney found himself on the bottom lane with a head of steam and a quick decision to make.
Knowing eventual winner Kurt Busch was in defense mode, Blaney hoped to lay back and receive a push from A.J. Allmendinger but as the cars roared into Turn 3, Blaney’s car began to sputter but carried enough momentum to cross the start / finish line 0.228 seconds behind Busch.
“Well, it took longer to get going than I thought,” said Blaney. “I tried to make a move with 10 to go and I didn’t go anywhere. I thought we were kind of stuck. Luckily, we had the 22 with us. I kind of helped him and he kind of helped me.
“Late there we got a big run into (Turn) 1 and we kind of all separated and I got a big pull. I got to second behind the 41 somehow and that kept us going the whole way. I laid back to the 47 thinking I’d get a good run and I was sputtering and running out of gas on the backstretch.”
After showing the speed and finesse of his No. 21 Motorcraft / Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center Ford during this past Thursday night’s qualifying races at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway, Blaney lost his primary car in an accident.
On Sunday, the 23-year-old proved that his backup car was just as strong as his primary earning his Wood Bros. Racing team their best effort in the 500 since winning it in 2011 with Trevor Bayne.
“It was a solid race. It was such a fast Ford,” added Blaney. “For (it) to be a backup car, that really means a lot for Ford and Motorcraft. Not what we wanted but a pretty good run and start to the season.”
With momentum and confidence on his side, Blaney, the son of former NASCAR competitor Dave Blaney heads to Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway next weekend second in series’ points after scoring regular season “bonus” points in all three stages in the Daytona 500.
Any time you get a good finish anywhere, no matter what track, it always propels you into the next week,” added Blaney.
“Maybe it feels a little better it’s the Daytona 500. Like he says, it doesn’t mean your car is going to be great when you go to Atlanta, doesn’t mean your car is going to be great when you go out west. Until you get 9 or 10 in, then you can kind of get a good judge of how your cars are and where your team stacks up.
“No matter where it is, if you get a good finish, it definitely helps your team confidence wise for the next week and maybe a couple weeks after that.”
Follow Chris Knight on Twitter @Knighter01.
