Ryan Blaney BKR Talladega Post-Race

Ryan Blaney (@RyanBlaney22), driver of the No. 29 Cooper Standard Ford F-150, scored a fifth place finish in the Fred’s 250 Saturday afternoon at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway.  Blaney gained precious ground in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship standings, moving up to second place in the standings and closing to within 16 points of the leader.  He grabbed his ninth top five in 18 races this season.   

 

Blaney started fifth and grabbed the lead for the first time on lap 6 of the 94 lap, 250 mile event and was leading the race when the first caution waved on lap 13.  After a fuel only stop one lap later, he restarted in the lead when the race went green on lap 18.  He held the top spot for the next 27 laps until he made a scheduled green flag stop for fuel and tires on lap 44.  Ryan was hit with a speeding penalty entering the pits and served his pass through penalty on lap 47.  The sequence dropped Blaney a lap down but he received the free pass back onto the lead lap thanks to the second caution of the race on lap 59.  He pitted on lap 61 for fuel and tires and restarted 15th when the race went green on lap 62.  Blaney and teammate Tyler Reddick worked together and had climbed inside the top five when the third caution slowed the race on lap 67.  Ryan restarted third when the race went green on lap 70. 

 

As the race entered its closing stages, Blaney was running a close second to Timothy Peters when the sixth and final caution waved on lap 92.  He lined up second for the green-white-checkered restart and was side by side for the lead entering the second turn on the last lap.  There the final scramble for the lead began when a third drafting line formed and pulled to the outside of Blaney, dropping him back in the lead draft pack.  Ryan rallied back over the final half-lap to grab fifth place at the finish line.

 

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