Ryan Blaney Texas Post-Race

Ryan Blaney (@RyanBlaney22), driver of the No. 29 Cooper Standard Ford F-150, scored a fourth place in the WinStar World Casino 400 Friday night at Texas.  Blaney claimed his third top five finish of the season and climbed three positions in the series championship standings.  He also led the race twice for 45 laps, the most laps he has led in six NCWTS races this season.   

 

Blaney had one of his stronger runs of the season but a late race stop for a splash of fuel under green took away his chance to win the race. He was running second when the fourth and final caution waved on lap 105.  Blaney and crew chief Chad Kendrick decided to pit for four tires and a major chassis adjustment.

 

He restarted second when the race went back green on lap 109.  Blaney and leader Matt Crafton were running side-by-side when Ron Hornaday Jr. made a bold move to make the leaders three-wide at the entrance to Turn 3.  Wisely Blaney backed off to avoid a potential collision but fell back to sixth in the running order.

Blaney steadily began working his way back toward the front despite having his hands full with a loose handling truck.  He moved into third-place with 34 laps to go and stayed there as the event moved into its closing stages.  Like most of the lead lap trucks, he was forced to make a final stop for a splash of fuel under green on lap 158, just nine laps from the finish, and he was able to bring it to the checkered flag in 4th place.

BKR PR