Sunday evening’s race was the primary for the Cup sequence on the observe, which had hosted Xfinity, Truck, ARCA and IndyCar rounds beforehand.
In a race the place groups have been cautious of tyre put on – and a number of other paid the worth by hitting the wall – Blaney and his #12 Penske Ford crew mastered the technique.
On the ultimate warning of the race, Blaney was first out of the pits having taken two new right-side tyres. The race, which had eight cautions in whole, ended with an 84-lap green-flag run to the end and Blaney was by no means significantly challenged for the lead.
William Byron and Chase Elliott, who each took 4 new tyres on the ultimate cease, tried to run Blaney down however to no avail. Blaney edged Byron by 0.716 seconds to safe his first win of the yr.
Blaney led 4 occasions for a race-high 201 laps on his solution to the eleventh win of his profession and the second triumph for Penske within the final three races. It was Blaney’s team-mate, Austin Cindric, who gained at Gateway two weeks in the past when Blaney ran out of gas on the ultimate lap whereas main.
“What a cool solution to win right here. This place means rather a lot to me and means rather a lot to my mother,” stated Blaney, whose mom, Lisa, grew up in Chariton, Iowa. “We had lots of people right here tonight cheering us on, so that they willed us to that one.
Race winner Ryan Blaney, Group Penske, Advance Auto Components Ford Mustang
Photograph by: Danny Hansen / NKP / Motorsport Images
“Our automobile was actually quick all evening and we obtained a little bit bit higher by way of the evening and two tyres [on the final pitstop] was a superb name. I didn’t know the way nicely I used to be going to carry on. I began to wrestle a little bit bit on the finish however had sufficient to hold on.”
With Elliott third, Christopher Bell charged from the rear of the sphere in a back-up automobile to take fourth place, as Ricky Stenhouse Jr rounded out the highest 5.
Kyle Larson, who went from thirty third to first in Stage 2 earlier within the race, regarded a robust contender to win till Daniel Suarez clipped his left-rear nook on lap 220, which despatched him up the observe and into the aspect of Denny Hamlin.
Larson ended up thirty fourth on the end having suffered heavy automobile harm, whereas Hamlin might solely climb to twenty fourth.