​HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — The thick moustache wasn’t the only feature that made Ryan Blaney resemble a young Richard Petty as he powered to a dominant victory at EchoPark Speedway. Blaney raced with the confidence and poise of NASCAR’s King, steering the Cup Series race from pole to the finish line as a weather-delayed program finally concluded in the early hours of Monday. The Team Penske Ford driver’s performance kept him squarely in the championship conversation, with the win securing a strong foothold in a season where every mile matters.
Blaney captured the pole and never relinquished the lead, dominating every stage and notching 171 laps led on a drafting-style track. The race endured a 3 hour and 9 minute delay caused by rain and lightning, finally ending at 1:45 a.m. Monday. The 171 laps led stand as the most at a drafting-focused venue since Petty himself led 184 of 200 laps in Petty’s first Daytona 500 victory in 1964, underscoring the historical magnitude of Blaney’s performance.
Following the win, Blaney sits third in the NASCAR points standings, just 65 points behind the leader, Denny Hamlin, with Tyler Reddick in second. Blaney himself expressed astonishment at discovering he’s so deeply embedded in the championship chase as the series prepared for the next race at North Wilkesboro, North Carolina. “Really?” he asked after learning he’s only 65 points out of the lead. “Wow! Wow!”
The day will be remembered as a milestone for Blaney and Team Penske. The strong start came when Blaney earned the pole position, with his teammate Joey Logano joining him on the front row. He weathered the long delay and answered every test by winning Stage 1 and Stage 2, ultimately surviving a three-wide scramble on the final lap to seal the victory. “I couldn’t ask for a better weekend,” Blaney said afterward. “Sat on the pole, won both stages, and won the race. My car was incredibly fast, leading. I could defend moves without having to throw, like, low-percentage blocks. I just never really did that.”
He noted his ability to recover if he briefly slipped from the lead. “Some moves are kind of unbeatable to defend as the leader,” Blaney explained. “I would just let people get to my inside. If they passed me, great—then I could probably develop a run to get them back.”
Blaney’s crew chief, Jonathan Hassler, made the critical call to keep the No. 12 Ford on track after Blaney brushed the wall with 29 laps remaining. Blaney feared a “terrible” vibration from the contact, but Hassler quickly assessed that the damage wasn’t severe. “We were able to get some pictures really quick, see that the damage wasn’t too bad,” Hassler said. “Obviously we saw there was a little bit. … We looked at it, there were 30 cars on the lead lap, not many laps left. Our chance to win was to stay out, take a little bit of a risk. Fortunately, it worked out for us.”
Blaney fended off late challenges from Bubba Wallace and Christopher Hill, who finished second and third, respectively. Carson Hocevar and Ty Gibbs completed the top five. A penalty for Wallace—coaching a pass below the double yellow lines—dropped him to 29th in the final results, rather than finishing second as he might have.
Blaney acknowledged he didn’t have the car handling exactly as he would have liked, but he relished the chance to push for victory and the implications for his title hopes. The win at EchoPark Speedway reinforced Blaney’s reputation for steady, disciplined driving and his ability to capitalize on opportunities when they arise, a hallmark of a racer who can contend for NASCAR’s top prize as the season advances toward the finish.