Ryan Blaney, the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series champion, exited Sunday’s Round of 8 playoff opener at Las Vegas Motor Speedway early after a tire issue toward the end of Stage 1.
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Entering Turn 3 on Lap 72, Blaney went straight through the corner, his car never turning as his left-front tire appeared to go flat. He suffered heavy right-side damage, immediately radioing to his team, “Everything is [expletive] broken. Everything is [expletive] broken on it.”
Blaney limped his No. 12 Team Penske Ford to pit road, where he stopped in his stall and immediately exited. His team was unable to repair the No. 12 Team Penske Ford and Blaney will be credited with a 38th-place finish to start the penultimate round of the postseason.
“Blew as I lifted into [Turn 3],” Blaney said after being evaluated and released from the infield care center, explaining that he had no indication of a tire issue. “Destroyed right-front, right-rear. Destroyed everything.”
A three-time winner this season, Blaney clinched his spot in the semifinal round with a Sept. 21 win at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Sunday marked his third consecutive Las Vegas race with wall contact as practice crashes both last fall and this spring relegated him to the rear at the start.
With Talladega Superspeedway and Martinsville Speedway up next, the 31-year-old’s title hopes are in peril as he plummets 31 points below the Cup Series Playoffs elimination line. But Blaney has come from behind before, as each of his last two Championship 4 appearances came via walk-off wins at Martinsville in the Round of 8 finale. Asked if this incident immediately placed him in must-win territory, Blaney said: “Yeah. No doubt.”
“I’m not very happy right now, but tomorrow morning, I’ll be optimistic to go to the next race,” Blaney said. “We’ve had good success at the next two events. Hopefully, we can come bring the speed and try to overcome the hole we put ourselves into today.”
