At the Phoenix Raceway, Ryan Blaney was primed for a top-five finish. However, all that came crashing down at his feet when Jimmie Johnson overtook him.

Speaking about his reaction to the pass, he said, “I was pissed, I was not one to get messed up, I was pissed.”

As per his account, he was at least a second and a half ahead of the #48 driver after the pit stop phase. Blaney assumed that he could simply drive away from the Hendrick Motorsports veteran. Unfortunately, that car loomed closer and closer in his mirrors, thus growing very threatening.

Before long, Johnson peeked down his inside a couple of times. Luckily, Blaney was able to fend him off for the time being. Unfortunately, that did not last, as the veteran driver swept around his outside, a couple of laps later.

What did Ryan Blaney tell Jimmie Johnson after the race?

Blaney revealed that he texted Johnson after the race. He told him that he ‘tried to race the hell out of’ him, and then then had a laugh about the incident.

The driver also spoke about a hypothetical situation where Johnson won the race, and Chase Elliott finished 2nd to win the championship. The Penske driver admitted that for Elliott, it would still be the same outcome, regardless of whether he or a non-playoff driver won.

Blaney declared that the champion does not really care about winning, as long as the title is in the bag. Of course, there would also be the conundrum of whether to focus on Johnson winning his final race, or the newly crowned champion.

In the end, Ryan Blaney had to settle for sixth fastest, behind the Championship 4 and Jimmie Johnson. The fifth-place finish may not have been a win, but he was the best of the rest. In addition to that, he managed to bow out on a high note.

READ MORE – Ryan Blaney Congratulates “Best Friend” Chase Elliott for the NASCAR Title and Lauds Jimmie Johnson