To each his own: some drivers want to know where they are in the point standings during the course of a race, while others do not. And it’s easy to understand the whys for both scenarios.
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Those who are keeping count of every point while racing are likely fighting for a place to advance, much like Joey Logano and Ross Chastain kept in contact with their respective teams late in last Sunday’s race at the Charlotte Roval. The difference between them was as razor thin as it gets, with Logano ultimately advancing to the Round of Eight by one mere point over Chastain.
And then there are drivers like Ryan Blaney, who would rather wait until the checkered flag falls before learning what their points situation is. Unless they are in serious jeopardy of failing to advance to the next round, drivers like Blaney don’t want to be distracted by constant updates about where they stand in the points.
“I look at (the point standings) through the week like once or twice, see where everyone’s at and so I kind of know start of the race,” Blaney said. “I’m paying attention to where guys finish in the stages kind of compared to me.”
While Blaney tries to keep track of his closest rivals in his mind, sometimes he just has to cast his fate to the wind, so to speak. His job, after all, is to finish as high as he can in every race, and if he does his job to the best of his ability, the points will take care of themselves.
“I don’t think about it all the time,” the driver of the No. 12 Team Penske Ford added. “It’s like, okay, this guy’s here or there. So I usually don’t want to know a ton of information about it. Maybe updates like started the third stage kind of here’s what the points order is and then I don’t really hear anything about it ever again. I’ve just got too much stuff going on in there. I got to worry about my own deals.”
Blaney rarely asks for updates on himself or his main rivals in the opening race of each playoff round. For example, in Sunday’s race in Las Vegas, which kicks off the Round of Eight semifinals, Blaney will likely not be asking much about points or where he or his rivals stand in the standings as the race progresses.
“If I do ask, hey, give me an update on this stuff just to see who’s desperate,” Blaney said. “That’s not going to change the way I race like on the offensive, but it might give me an idea of if this guy might be willing to do something over the top because he’s in this mode.
“So, yeah, it’s not something I really like to worry about. My attention span isn’t that large. I need to focus on one thing.”
And that’s on Blaney, himself.
