Ryan Blaney, driver of the #22 Discount Tire Ford, celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Nationwide Series Kentucky 300 at Kentucky Speedway on September 21, 2013
Photo – Geoff Burke/Getty Images
With no Sprint Cup regulars in the Kentucky 300 race, the Nationwide Series field smelled their opportunity to take home a victory. Instead a Camping World Truck Series standout, Ryan Blaney, stole the show by winning on Saturday night.
In just his second Nationwide series start of 2013, Blaney found his first career series victory after 15 career starts/ Blaney’s win marks Penske Racing‘s tenth win of the season in the No. 22 car by four different drivers, with AJ Allmendinger, Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski.collectively making up nine of those victories.
It was not an easy path to victory lane for Blaney, a development driver for Penske Racing. With 15 laps remaining, his Penske teammate and points leader, Sam Hornish Jr, nearly took him out after getting loose on the restart. When Hornish faded, Blaney mashed the gas, now keeping his eye on Austin Dillon until the caution flag waved just one lap later with Parker Kligerman smacking the frontstretch wall after contact with Cole Whitt.
In the early laps of the race, Hornish’s No. 12 was the car drivers were chasing at the front and successfully fending off challenges from RCR teammates, Dillon and Brian Scott. At the same time, Blaney’s crew chief, Jeremy Bullins kept making the right adjustments, allowing him to methodically, race his way to the front, overtaking Dillon on lap 101, just past the midpoint of the event.
Blaney kept his lead until Harrison Rhodes brought out a caution by dropping fluid on the track on lap 107. Under caution, pit stategies were the difference, when Elliott Sadler took just two tires allowing him to assume the lead.
On the restart, Blaney immediately shot past Sadler retaking the lead until the next yellow flag with Brad Sweet crashing on the frontstretch and with just 38 laps remaining. With a series of late-race restarts, it was the quick work of the No. 22 crew keeping the 19-year-old Blaney in the lead.
It was Dillon attempting to pass for the lead in turn one, on the last restart, but Blaney powered the outside lane and pulled ahead to lead the rest of the field for the last nine laps.
“Yeah, we had a great car all night,’ said a calm, but jubilant Blaney during his media debrief. “We kept working on it throughout the race, just little tweaks here and there. We were really strong to start out the race and just got better and better as the runs went on. It was really tough the last few restarts to really know what was going to happen. The wy the restart rule is now, you never know how big of a push someone can get. I was a little worried being on the outside, but we had a great car to be able get through one and two good and be able to clear them by three and four.
“I’ve always said it before, it really speaks numbers how good this team (really) is. To be able to win with four different drivers. That just shows how strong this 22 group is and how strong Penske Racing is as a whole. I want to thank everyone, who made this opportunity possible.”
Competing for the Nationwide championship, Dillon finished second ahead of his RCR teammate Matt Crafton in third. Points leader, Hornish finished fourth, while Alex Bowman posted his first top-five run since the season opener race at Daytona in February.
The grandson of Richard Childress, Dillon just missed recording his fourth series victory at the 1.5-mile track, but did notch his tenth top-five of 2013, improving his sixth-place finish at Kentucky in June.
“We knew we would be good coming here, it’s one of our better tracks and I’m just thankful we had a good run tonight,” said Dillon. “It was a solid run, there was just one car better. We needed something. Just a little bit more we were too tight all night on exit and we tried to get it out of the car and (we) just couldn’t. That 22 has been very tough all year long, no matter who’s gotten in it. They’ve won with four different drivers this year. That’s pretty impressive.”
Still winless in 2013, Dillon responded when asked about his deficit to Hornish at just 15-points with less than two months of racing left in the season.
“Just let it (points) come to us,” Dillon said. “We’re going to stay here and keep running hard every week. We have to run top-five from here on out.”
Crafton the current Camping World Truck Series points leader, tied his best Nationwide series career finish (third). Incidentally, the driver of the No. 33 RCR car also finished third in the triple-header weekend at Kentucky Speedway in June.
“We were tight, tight, tight, for most of the race until the last stop. I then got loose, but went back to tight, but I can’t thank Menards, Rheem and RCR for the opportunity. A good night.”
Taking the reins for Kyle Busch Motorsports this weekend, Drew Herring finished sixth, with Brian Vickers seventh, Jeb Burton in his Nationwide series début finished eighth, Cole Whitt ninth, with Michael Annett rounding out the top-ten.
Blaney has led a total of 65 laps in his full-time run in the Camping World Truck Series, but led a race high 96 laps in the Kentucky 300. In Blaney’s last Nationwide start in June at Iowa Speedway he finished ninth after starting sixth.
The owners championship race between points leader Roger Penske (No. 22) and JD Gibbs (No. 54) are now separated by 23 markers.
Race Results
Point Standings
