Defending Cup Series champion Ryan Blaney does not hold his words back on the in-car radio during races. There have been plenty of instances where he has thrown unpleasant words at his competitors in the heat of the moment. The latest race in Darlington featured one of them. On the receiving end of his wrath, this time were Martin Truex Jr. and William Byron.
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During Lap 129, Byron attempted a three-wide move to pull up alongside Truex and Blaney in a corner. He tagged Truex in the process and forced him to push Blaney into the wall. The champion’s #12 Ford Mustang sustained irreparable damage and ended his race far too early. He shouted on the radio in frustration, “I’m gonna go kill both those mother f***ers is what I’m gonna do.”
Back from the Lady in Black, the entire sequence has been one of the most talked about by insiders and fans. Joe Gibbs Racing star Denny Hamlin analyzed it on his podcast “Actions Detrimental” and spoke about Blaney’s temper. “I think he needs therapy”, he said, “I have never seen anyone so quiet in person and so wild on the radio. Never.”
Before heading down the pit road, there was a fleeting moment when Blaney drove back to Byron and almost swerved into him but chose not to. He later clarified to the press that he never intended to hit Byron and that he’d just lost control of his car for a moment. Hamlin, being one of the drivers who had a good view of the incident, affirmed that he did almost get back at Byron.
Denny Hamlin reiterates that Byron is to be blamed for Ryan Blaney’s wreck
Continuing to break down Blaney’s misfortune, Hamlin said that Byron made a mistake by using up too much of the track when making his three-wide attempt. He said, “The lane he was running in. There’s a reason people don’t run down there folks. Is that it makes it impossible for you to exit the corner without washing up into the wall.”
Continuing, he mentioned that he’d made the same mistake when he tested in Darlington as a rookie. “William made an ambitious move to run to the bottom which is great,” he added. “It’s a clean racetrack down there. There’s lots of grip. But if you don’t clear the cars on top of you, you’re going to run into them. And if you don’t you’re at least going to cause a wreck and that’s exactly what happened.”
Despite all the aggression from Blaney, Hamlin doesn’t think he will want to exact revenge on Byron. However, he does believe that he will race the Hendrick driver harder and make his life a tad bit more difficult. The duo will meet for points on the race track next in the Southern 500 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway.
