Are Ryan Blaney’s “Dumb Decisions” Mounting the Pressure on Team Penske Driver Amid Recent Teammate Victories?

NASCAR Cup Series driver Ryan Blaney (12) during driver introductions for the NASCAR Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Ryan Blaney’s troubling run continued at Texas Motor Speedway on Sunday, where the Team Penske driver came frustratingly close but couldn’t seal the win. He had to settle for third place after a few strategy calls he’d later regret in the final laps of the race. And no one was more critical of it than Blaney himself.

He found himself in second position with 23 laps remaining and opted for the inside lane for the restart, slotting in behind Kyle Larson. This move placed Michael McDowell on the outside at the front and the Spire Motorsports driver took full advantage by overtaking Larson for the lead.

Another caution soon followed and Blaney maintained second again. Only this time, he lined up on the outside. Despite two more restart opportunities, he was unable to take the lead — first from McDowell, then from eventual race winner Joey Logano.

He said, “The one time I didn’t pick the outside, the No. 71 gets the lead, and then I couldn’t get it back. Just the driver making dumb decisions and not doing his job.

“I appreciate the No. 12 car — it was a fast car. I can’t do nothing right currently, so hopefully it’ll work itself out.”

By winning the last two races, Logano and Austin Cindric have left Blaney as the only Team Penske driver to remain without a victory yet this season. The 2023 Cup Series champion’s results this season reflect neither the pace he’s shown nor the performance of his car.

His average finish is a disappointing 17.27. This cannot be entirely blamed on the driver alone. He has faced multiple mishaps, such as engine failures and pit crew errors, throughout the first eleven races. All of it has left him in a deep rut that won’t be easy to climb out of.

Are brighter days ahead for Blaney?

In the second race of the season at Atlanta, Blaney was holding onto P4 with 32 laps to go when a nudge from Carson Hocevar sent him into a spin. What was remarkable was that Blaney still fought back to finish fourth.

At Phoenix, an engine failure while in eighth place with 23 laps remaining cut his race short. Las Vegas brought even more frustration, as a communication breakdown with his spotter resulted in a wreck when 72 laps were still left.

In Homestead-Miami, he led 124 laps and looked poised for the win. But his engine blew again with 60 laps left on the clock. He said at the time, “It was an incredibly, incredibly fast race car today. We’ll keep our heads up. It’s just one of those things where it’s not really going our way right now, but the good news is we’re bringing fast cars and that’s all you can ask for.”

The No. 12 Team Penske team is still bringing fast cars. But they simply can’t seem to find that elusive P1. Moreover, the frustration is apparent from Ryan Blaney‘s words about dumb decisions. Hopefully, this Sunday at Kansas will provide him the break he is desperately looking for.

Post Edited By: Abhishek Ramesh
Ryan Blaney

About the author

Avatar photo

Gowtham Ramalingam

Gowtham is a NASCAR journalist at The SportsRush. Though his affinity for racing stems from Formula 1, he found himself drawn to NASCAR's unparalleled excitement over the years. As a result he has shared his insights and observations by authoring over 3000 articles on the sport. An avid fiction writer, you can find him lost in imaginary worlds when he is not immersed in racing. He hopes to continue savoring the thrill of every lap and race together with his readers for as long as he can.

Don’t miss these