Ryan Blaney delivered an impressive performance at Phoenix Raceway, overcoming multiple challenges throughout the day to secure a hard-fought victory in the latest NASCAR Cup race. The Ryan Blaney Phoenix Cup win saw strategic decisions, intense competition, and dramatic moments shape a memorable day for drivers, crews, and fans at the desert track.
Blaney’s Grit and Team Penske’s Triumph
Ryan Blaney, driving for Team Penske, demonstrated resilience after facing several setbacks, including working his way forward from the back of the field on more than one occasion. Blaney credited his crew chief Jonathan Hassler for making a decisive two-tire call late in the race that put him out in front, allowing him to fend off advances from rivals, notably Christopher Bell. The win also marked a weekend sweep for Team Penske, with Josef Newgarden taking victory in an earlier race and Blaney following up on Sunday.
“Perseverance. Everybody on the 12 group persevered all day. We had a couple of mistakes that we learned from and got better. I had to come from the back a couple of times. Honestly, (Christopher Bell had) the best car. (Crew chief) Jonathan (Hassler) made a great call to take two (tires). We were able to get the lead and just hold them off. I don’t know how many more laps to hold them off. We were able to do that. Really proud of everybody at Team Penske. So cool we swept the weekend. (Josef) Newgarden winning yesterday, us winning today. Can’t wait to see Roger (Penske). It’s cool to win here again, especially after a day like that.”
— Ryan Blaney, winner
Christopher Bell Narrowly Misses Out
Christopher Bell emerged as Blaney’s fiercest competitor during the closing laps, persistently chasing the lead and believing he might have had a shot at victory with more green flag racing. Bell praised the work of his No. 20 crew, highlighting both their exceptional pit performance and the strength of the car built for this race. Despite falling just short, the strong finish gave Bell’s team a valuable points boost and motivation for future races.
“If we had more green flag laps, I think we could have made a run (at Blaney). But I don’t know. You win some, you lose some. This one stings, but on a postiive side, I’m really proud of our entire team. The pit crew did amazing. (Crew chief) Adam (Stevens) brought an amazing car. Our engineers, our mechanics did really good. It’s something to build on. It was a day we needed. We got a lot of stage points. Finished second. Just bummed whenever they get away like that.”
— Christopher Bell, second place
Kyle Larson Fights to Another Phoenix Podium
Kyle Larson continued his streak of strong results at Phoenix, securing a third-place finish. Although the weekend presented challenges and the team found themselves battling handling issues, Larson stressed the value of their persistence and adaptability. Having now posted three consecutive third-place finishes at this track, Larson expressed satisfaction in the team’s ability to consistently deliver even when conditions are far from perfect.
“I was not happy to start the race, really not happy all weekend. Just proud of the team. We definitely know how to fight to get a good finish here at Phoenix. We do it every single time. So it’s not a surprise that we weren’t great. This will probably be as bad as we’ve been at Phoenix, but we still come in third like we typically do here. I think that’s three third-place finishes in a row here. Just proud of the team. It took a lot of fight. We definitely have a lot of work to do here but excited to get to Vegas next week and see we’ve got on a mile and a half. Go to work. But happy to put together two solid finishes in a row and continue to build on it.”
— Kyle Larson, third place
Ty Gibbs Leads the Next Generation
Ty Gibbs impressed with a fourth-place result, underscoring the progress of his team as they build momentum early in the season. Gibbs acknowledged opportunities for improvement while emphasizing the importance of team unity and mutual belief among everyone involved. His fourth-place showing, combined with visible racecraft throughout the event, continued his steady rise in NASCAR’s top ranks.
“We were really good today. I don’t know. That’s unfortunate, but we’ll keep rolling. I think I could have done some things better. Just unfortunate. But I’m very happy with my team. All the guys. I’m with the right guys. That makes a difference. We’re running good because of that. It shows. Really happy with my team. Everybody does a great job. Everybody believes in me, and we all believe in each other, so I’m happy with that. Very happy with everything today and how everything went. Congrats to the 12 bunch, they were really fast. I’ll just keep working at getting better and see what I can do better. The show was pretty cool. I had a lot of fun. It kind of sucks I didn’t win, but we had a fun racing out there. It probably looked pretty cool.”
— Ty Gibbs, fourth place
Denny Hamlin Rounds Out the Top Five
Finishing in fifth, Denny Hamlin described his car as hovering just outside of the elite group, expressing satisfaction with the day’s work while recognizing the need for incremental improvements. Hamlin pointed to his teammates, some of whom performed at a high level, as sources for potential growth. With another solid finish in the books, Hamlin and his team aim to make adjustments as the season advances.
“Just a fringe top three to four car all day. That’s kind of all we had. Great job; just need to be a little better. There’s not much else you can say. We’ll download, figure out how we can be a little better, but seems like a couple of our teammates were really good that we can learn from, so good top five, and we’ll move on.”
— Denny Hamlin, fifth place
Tyler Reddick Scores Points With Steady Effort
Tyler Reddick earned the eighth spot after navigating car handling issues, particularly following a two-tire strategy late in the event. Reddick noted the importance of accumulating points consistently as a strategy for season-long success, expressing appreciation for the solid result despite not reaching victory lane.
“We just fought handling a little bit. It seemed our Camry had good speed, we were just kind of back and forth on which direction to go. We kind of hovered around fifth all day, and we took those two tires, it just got a little tight on us at the end. Would have been nice to make it four (wins in a row), but looking at the board over here, (I’ve) scored the fourth-most amount of points on the day, that’s what we need to just keep doing all year to keep the lead we have and hang on to it. Solid day. If we’re not going to win, these are the kinds of days you want to have. Glad to get out of here with some points.”
— Tyler Reddick, eighth place
Accidents Impact Several Contenders
The Phoenix race was marked by several notable incidents that took out multiple drivers and heavily influenced the finishing order. Joey Logano’s day took a downward turn as he became involved in a multi-car incident, resulting in a 31st-place finish. The circumstances of the crash highlighted the tight quarters and split-second decisions drivers face during intense restarts.
“It just seemed like we were kind of three and maybe four-wide there, and one ran out of space, and when you’re that far away from each other, it’s hard to tell who is where until they all kind of merge back together, and I got on the wrong end of it. It just seemed like everyone ran out of space. There were two cars on the outside of me. I thought I had one on the inside and you’re trying to just merge all back together and everyone ran out of space. I got the wrong end of it. It is what it is. It stinks. We had a pretty good car. I hate that I got into Ross. I had a good run there to try to slip him and he kind of anticipated and went down to the bottom and we got into each other. I just ended up spinning him, which I didn’t mean to, so it’s just not the greatest of days.”
— Joey Logano, 31st place
Josh Berry, Austin Cindric, and Others Face Tough Luck
Josh Berry, Austin Cindric, Noah Gragson, and Chase Briscoe were among those whose races ended in disappointment due to crashes or mechanical failures. Berry recounted being collected in an accident, a scenario echoed by Cindric, who described an especially severe impact after being swept into the wall. Gragson experienced a brake and tire failure that led to an early exit, despite gathering his best point total entering Phoenix so far in his Cup career. Chase Briscoe also saw his chances dashed by a suspected left-front issue, reflecting broader frustrations with a season so far beset by missed opportunities.
“I didn’t see a whole lot. Obviously, I saw the smoke there for a second and could tell that something was happening, and I checked up, someone got into me. Either way, I was wrecking. It was a tough day, a really tough day. We didn’t have the car like we wanted. We had some bright spots there and got some track position and looked alright. Ultimately, we were down a set of tires and, honestly, we were just trying to finish it out and take what we could today. We just got caught up in the issues. You know the old saying, you run with the squirrels, you get what you get.”
— Josh Berry, 32nd place
“Obviously, it’s a frustrating start with so many fast race cars and to have another one today with our Ford Mustang. The restarts get crazy here and I’m not really sure what happened other than just cars jumping right across the racetrack. I’m not sure I’ve ever jumped head-on into a wall, but that changed today. It’s just a shame. I’m not discouraged. This 2 team has shown me a lot in the first four races, but it’s just a shame we don’t have the results for them. (I saw) a whole lot of cars going right when the cars need to be going left. It’s just a real shame. We got points in both stages and were in desperate need of a race finish without a crash and we did not get that today. It’s a shame because I felt like we did all the right things throughout the afternoon, so that’s racing. I’m not discouraged by any means. It’s a long season. My team has brought me four fast race cars to start the year.”
— Austin Cindric, 34th place
“We blew a right-front rotor, and then it blew the tire out. I started getting a long pedal a couple of laps prior to that and I made a comment about it after about a half lap saying, ‘Hey, my pedal is starting to get really long.’ So, I started lifting early and then it blew into one, and then blew the tire wheel in half and all the air-pressure left the tire. It was a hard hit, but it is what it is. It definitely sucks having to go early next week in qualifying and try to put this behind us at Vegas, but, at the same time, this is the most amount of points I’ve had coming into Phoenix in my career into Vegas. Two years ago we were in the negatives and climbed back up into the top 24 in points, so we’ll just go on and work hard. It’s just a bummer that we didn’t get to the end today.”
— Noah Gragson, 36th place
“I’ve only seen the replay one time, it almost looked like something in my left front. When I had my vibration, I told them that I thought it was in the front end. Just par for the course for how this year started. It was another car that was extremely fast, felt like we were certainly going to be in contention for the win and just another failure for us. Definitely frustrating, we’ll go on to next week and see if we can turn it around with our Toyota team. All the JGR Toyotas seemed to be strong and marching towards the front, how was the racing in these hot and slick conditions? It was a blast, I was having a lot of fun. We were driving them extra power, it’s only 70 horsepower more, but it feels like way more than that. We were sliding all over the place and it made it a lot of fun. I think Darlington is going to be out of control when we go there with this package. It was a lot of fun, wish I was out there until the end and the JGR cars were certainly good.”
— Chase Briscoe, 37th place
The Race’s Broader Context and What Lies Ahead
The Ryan Blaney Phoenix Cup win encapsulated the unpredictable nature and intensity that defines NASCAR Cup competition. The event showcased not just outright speed but creative calls by crew chiefs like Jonathan Hassler, teamwork at organizations like Team Penske and JGR, and the grit of drivers confronting adversity head-on. As the series shifts attention to Las Vegas and the rest of the season, lessons learned at Phoenix will drive adjustments, with top teams and up-and-comers alike seeking to build on experiences from a dramatic and challenging afternoon in the desert. For Ryan Blaney, basking in victory lane at Phoenix once again, the triumph is a testament to determination and the collective effort propelling Team Penske forward.
