High hopes of an improved finish for Ryan Blaney turned into disappointment at the recent Talladega race as he met his fourth season DNF due to an incident involving Brad Keselowski and Kyle Busch. Sadly, this outcome fell short of expectation in contrast to his previous year’s placements — P20 and P39, at the spring and fall races, respectively.
Whilst the race held promise with glimpses of Blaney’s speed, the overall results proved insufficient in the Jack Link’s 500 race at Talladega. Everything unraveled on lap 43 during Stage 1, when busch, running behind Keselowski, caused a slight contact with the latter’s #6 Ford. This slight lapse led to a catastrophic chain reaction that ended both their races.
Caught up in the turmoil, Blaney tried to steer clear of the mess, but Keselowski’s Ford clipped Blaney’s car on the right side, leading to a disastrous spin for the #12 car and an eventual full stop at the infield grass. Also swept up in the chaos was Alex Bowman, although he miraculously escaped with negligible damage compared to the others embroiled in the melee.
This caused significant harm to Blaney’s car leading to tow link and brake problems. High expectations were soon crushed as Blaney, strapped in with fleeting hope of repair, was ultimately forced to retire for the day with a P39 finish. Keselowski faced a similar fate, with too much damage causing him to back out with a P38 result.
Speaking with FOX during the broadcast, Blaney tersely expressed his frustration, “Another DNF is no fun. Oh man, we’ve just been riddled with those this year. Hopefully, we can get it sorted out.”
When Dale Earnhardt Jr., a longtime supporter of Blaney, requested a mid-flight update on his X handle — “I’m on a plane and I cannot see the race. Care to reply with a description of the event so far?”, Blaney’s reply was disappointingly brief: “I didn’t have fun,” summarizing the gloomy afternoon in merely four words.
Despite the series of unfortunate events, Blaney still clutching at four top-10s and three top-fives this season, conveying a clear message that the No. 12 team is not devoid of resilience and is all set to bounce back.
