Emotional Blaney gives Penske maiden Indy/Charlotte double
Ryan Blaney was on the verge of tears after driving Penske to a second big win in as many days at the Coca-Cola 600.
On Sunday Josef Newgarden scored a breakthrough Indianapolis 500 victory and at Charlotte on Memorial Day it was Blaney’s turn to deliver Roger Penske more success.
The Penske team has achieved a lot in motorsport, but 2023 is the first time the heavyweight has won the Indianapolis 500 and Coca-Cola 600 on the same weekend.
The 2023 running of the prestigious Coca-Cola 600 was postponed 24 hours due to Sunday showers, but it was worth the wait for the patient Blaney.
The Penske driver overcame the third most cautions (16) in event history to snap a 59-race winless streak in the NASCAR Cup Series and struggled to contain his emotions as the crowd chanted “Blaney, Blaney, Blaney”.
“I might shed a tear,” he said in the post-race interview after delivering Team Penske a third Coca-Cola 600 triumph.
“This has been a cool weekend obviously being Memorial Day. I grew up watching dad run this race for a long time and it is cool just to be a part of it, let alone win it.
“I was able to get the lead on the restart and our car is so good that I could bide my time a little bit.
“I knew we could do it, but I was just hoping there was not another restart because you never know what could happen.
“When you don’t win in a while, you start to feel like you cannot win anymore.
“It was getting hard, so I am just super thankful for the #12 cars for believing in me.”
Blaney prevailed after a crazy 600 mile race around the famous Charlotte Motor Speedway, which contained no less than 16 caution flags. Only the 2005 and 2022 runnings of the race had more interruptions.
When the red flag arrived early in the race, Aric Almirola and Bubba Wallace took the opportunity to have a verbal and physical spat after side to side contact when racing.
Denny Hamlin was wiped out after a big smash at Turn 4, while Kevin Harvick also came unstuck at the same corner.
William Byron controlled the first stage, but both he and Blaney lost ground in the second stage fronted by five Fords led by Chris Buescher.
However, the final half of the race was dominated by Blaney, who led the third and fourth stages.
The last caution arrived with 26 laps to go when contenders Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, Ty Gibbs, Aric Almirola and Christopher Bell were wiped out by a big smash caused by Larson, who lost control when his Chevy front end “snapped” at Turn 2.
Whilst the chaos unfolded behind, a major moment in the race also occurred up front with Blaney edging his front end slightly ahead of the 24 at the final scoring loop before the yellow arrived.
This allowed the Penske driver to take control of the restart, hold off Byron and lead the field home to the chequered flag.
Blaney is now the 10th winner from the first 14 races of the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season, which resumes at World Wide Technology Raceway, Madison, Illinois on June 4.
Coca-Cola 600 unofficial results
- #12 – Ryan Blaney
- #24 – William Byron
- #19 – Martin Truex Jr.
- #23 – Bubba Wallace
- #45 – Tyler Reddick
- #8 – Kyle Busch
- #47 – Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
- #17 – Chris Buescher
- #3 – Austin Dillon
- #38 – Zane Smith
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