In the unpredictable world of NASCAR, Daytona and chaos are terms that are synonymous with each other. For Ryan Blaney and the Cup Series field, it was a day filled with high-stakes drama, desperation, and a chaotic conclusion where we saw Blaney elevate himself from mid-pack to clinch the victory over Daniel Suárez in the final lap by 0.031 seconds. That last lap lead was truly illustrative of all the chaos possible at Daytona, according to Blaney, along with very lure of unpredictability.

The Daytona race set the playoff grid amid preservation of the status quo, creating yet another case that, at this tri-oval, any win can emerge anywhere, anytime. While Blaney had his own thrilling run, he certainly earned one more good deed as a byproduct by helping Alex Bowman fix his spot in the final 16. Now, after enjoying the time on the victor’s podium, Blaney openly spoke about the chaos and the unpredictable nature that the World Center of Racing holds. 

Blaney navigates superspeedway mayhem to claim Daytona win

After securing the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series championship, Ryan Blaney’s victory at the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway further solidified Team Penske’s dominance in the sport. Prior to the Daytona race, Blaney was on a decent roll, having secured five consecutive top-10 finishes. Speaking with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, Blaney reflected on the unpredictability of the track and how it eventually worked out for them:

“You know, it’s seeing the World Center of Racing right here and all the lights. You never know how they’re going to play out. And gosh, I’ve ended on the bad side here so many times, more times than I can count. And tonight, it was one of those things where everything just kind of flowed correctly for us, you know? And we were able to just kind of make moves that made sense, especially at the end.”

When Blaney spoke of the “bad side” of Daytona, there were recollections of the traumatic finish of the 2020 Daytona 500 in those words. In that race, Blaney’s push to the lead on the final lap went awry, and a horrible crash propelled Newman’s car into the outside wall, where it rolled over before being struck by another car. Blaney finished a close second to Denny Hamlin, but the event left a significant impact on his psyche. The source of comfort in the entire affair, as he said later, was talking to Newman on the phone, with the latter having been discharged from the hospital. However, Blaney was happy not to fall into any of that chaos this time and eventually managed to break through the grid towards the end.

Ryan Blaney, who started on the pole, seemed to disappear for a while among the other cars during the race. When asked about this, Blaney explained that it was a strategic decision. “We kind of just played the hand we were dealt. You know, with leading the first stage, starting on the pole, we had to burn a bunch of gas. So, I knew we were going to take more at the stop. So, he just came in at one to go and took more gas and, um, just went into full fuel-save mode. If we had a green flag stop, then I could maybe jump kind of back to where I needed to be. So, yeah, it was just a product of having to take a bunch of gas and, uh, understanding that that’s what we needed to do.”

Blaney fell to the back of the pack during the middle of the race, a deliberate strategy to conserve fuel and protect his car during a calm Stage 2. He chose to bide his time, saving his resources for the final stretch. Blaney also credits his win to his crew chief, Jonathan Hassler, saying, “Jonathan did a good job of understanding the spot we were in, keeping me informed of what his plan was, what the new plans were, and then getting the green light to go at the end paid off.”

Blaney will start the postseason next week at Darlington Raceway, sitting just three points behind Denny Hamlin and six points back from co-leaders William Byron and Kyle Larson. And while he cherishes his own win, there’s another playful prize that he awaits from a fellow racer from another team camp.

Alex Bowman owes “7 million beers” to Ryan Blaney

The Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway was one of the most dramatic races, especially when a huge 12-car accident on lap 27 put Alex Bowman out of the race, jeopardizing his playoff hopes. His fate rested in the hands of the drivers; had the race been won by someone new, he would have lost his spot, which he held on points.

The crash was sparked by Bubba Wallace, Joey Logano, and Kyle Busch colliding. Bowman’s car was badly banged up in this. He has said he could have only avoided it if he had been ahead of the crashed cars. After the crash, all eyes turned to Ryan Blaney to win the race and fill the playoff spot vacated by Bowman.

However, Blaney’s victory brought relief to Bowman, along with a debt. Post the race, Bowman got candid about his race emotions and shifted the tone towards humor. When asked what he owed Blaney for this gift, he said, “7 million beers. I’m certainly thankful for him. Ryan’s a good dude. Happy to see him win.”

Ryan Blaney, too, took the joke well and responded in similar fashion. “I’ll take 5. Save him some money, I’ll take 5 million,” he said. He realized that Bowman’s playoff fate depended directly on who won at Daytona. “Someone told me that he got in because I won. Right? Like if the 41, 7, the 99 had won here; he would have been out.”