Ryan Blaney had plenty to deal with during the closing laps at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. The Team Penske driver was fighting to keep Bubba Wallace behind while navigating traffic from cars a lap down. With Wallace closing and four-tire competitors gaining ground, Blaney had little room for error. Somehow, he kept everything under control and held on for another Loudon victory.

“You know, we did two at the end, trying to hopefully get the lead, and we did. It was a long, long run to the end there. The long run we had, just tried to manage my stuff, and I knew those four tire guys would probably pressure me eventually, and Bubba kind of came on pretty hard there, and just trying to manage the lap traffic, also trying to manage tire and just not make a mistake,” Ryan Blaney said in a post-race interview.

The Team Penske driver had already made a bold call before the battle for the win truly began. When Riley Herbst’s incident brought out the caution on Lap 225, the lead-lap field headed to pit road.

Ryan Blaney’s crew chief Jonathan Hassler called for two tires. That decision gave Blaney track position. But it also left him with a major disadvantage for the final run. Bubba Wallace took four tires and restarted sixth, giving the 23XI Racing driver fresher rubber and a clear reason to believe the race could still swing his way.

Blaney got off pit road first, followed by William Byron and Chase Briscoe. He then had to make those two tires last. By Lap 241, Ryan Blaney had cleared Chase Briscoe for the lead. The No. 12 Ford settled into a rhythm and opened a two-second advantage over Wallace by Lap 282.

But the gap was never going to remain comfortable. The lapped traffic became another opponent. On Lap 291, Blaney got caught behind slower cars, allowing Wallace to close to within one second. The pressure was suddenly back on. And Ryan Blaney had to balance two separate problems.

He couldn’t afford to overwork his tires while trying to escape the traffic. At the same time, he couldn’t give Wallace an easy opportunity to attack.

By Lap 295, Wallace had closed to within 0.412 seconds. Then came another twist. Wallace locked up his right-front tire in Turn 3 on Lap 298 and lost some of the ground he had worked so hard to gain. That gave Ryan Blaney the breathing room he desperately needed.

From there, the Penske driver kept his composure and brought the No. 12 Ford home 0.586 seconds ahead of Wallace. The victory was not simply about making the two-tire strategy work. Blaney had to protect his tires, negotiate traffic and withstand a charging Wallace simultaneously.

One mistake could have changed everything. Instead, Ryan Blaney executed when it mattered most and secured his second consecutive victory at Loudon.

Ryan Blaney has another lobster to add

“Hang it right next to the first one,” this was Blaney’s response to collecting another Loudon lobster.

Blaney already knows exactly where his second Loudon lobster is going after adding another New Hampshire victory to his résumé. In 2025, Ryan Blaney capped a strong weekend for Team Penske by winning the Mobil 1 301 and securing his place in the Round of 8.

Logano led the opening 52 laps before Blaney moved ahead and captured the first stage. He later led 61 consecutive laps before pit strategy reshuffled the field. Josh Berry eventually emerged as Ryan Blaney’s biggest threat.

After getting spun on Lap 83, he fought his way back through the field and was battling for the win late in the race. With 48 laps remaining, a caution for Cody Ware’s spin sent Blaney and Logano to pit road. Berry stayed out and inherited the lead. But Ryan Blaney wasn’t done.

He moved back in front with 39 laps remaining and held off Berry through the closing stretch to secure the victory. That history makes his latest Loudon triumph even more significant.

Blaney has now proven he can master the track under very different circumstances. And there is another reason he is particularly fond of winning here. After last year’s victory, Ryan Blaney said:

“I’m looking forward to it and see how it tastes. I’ve wanted a lobster ever since I was a little kid coming to watch these races. I’ve always wanted one of those things, so I’m looking forward to it.”

Now he has another one coming.