There were plenty of takeaways from Thursday night's Duel races at Daytona, but Ryan Blaney, the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series champion, wasn't too thrilled with what happened to his No. 12 Team Penske Ford.
Blaney has famously been a great superspeedway racer, with one win at the summer Daytona race, and a handful of Talladega wins.
Blaney has also found himself on the wrong end of some very violent wrecks. That was the case on Thursday night, and he was livid about what happened on track.
Blaney found himself right-rear hooked into the outside wall in an ugly hit that left his car destroyed and on fire. It was a reminder of the violent crash he was involved in just last season when he viciously hit the outside wall in the August race at Daytona.
Blaney was furious after leaving the infield care center and he vented his frustrations through the media and Sportsnaut's Matt Weaver caught it all.
"I can't control it, but it comes from awful pushes by people," Blaney said. "Three times in a row awful pushes have led me to getting right-reared. Guys not being smart, not knowing when to get off somebody. Like, you cannot push going into the corner that hard in the trioval. I don't know when guys will get it. I'm sick of paying the expense of it and getting right reared from someone's dumb push."
Blaney's fired-up mood carried over into his TV interview with FS1's Josh Sims. Citing 's**ty pushes."
Ryan Blaney is not happy. #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/4KiilpBPiD
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) February 16, 2024
Blaney shouldn't have to suffer because other drivers are refusing to lay off at that point in the track. His last two memories at Daytona have been awful wrecks that he had nothing to do with. How many more times will it happen before someone gets hurt? Blaney getting right-reared in the trioval, the worst place possible, is not a good look for NASCAR.
His frustration is valid, and hopefully, NASCAR will do something about it.
As for seeking his first Daytona 500 win, it certainly got harder as he will have to come from the rear of the field in a back-up car.
