Yearly Archives: 2017

745 posts

Ryan Blaney has Mixed Feelings about Runner Up Finish

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Ryan Blaney, driver of the #21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center Ford, prepares to practice for the 59th Annual DAYTONA 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 24, 2017 in Daytona Beach, Florida. Photo – Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images

Given his running position with two laps left in Sunday’s Daytona 500, Ryan Blaney was pleasantly surprised with his runner-up finish in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series’ most prestigious race.

On the other hand, there was a tinge of disappointment at coming so close to a victory and falling 0.228 seconds short.

“We all got single-file with 15 (laps) to go, something like that,” Blaney said. “I tried to make a move with 10 to go to see what would happen. No one really went with me. The 22 (Joey Logano) tried too. It really wasn’t happening. I was kind of worried it was just going to end that way.

“Luckily, I got Joey behind me there down the frontstretch, and we were able to lay back to him and get a huge run into (turn) one. At the same moment, the 41 (race winner Kurt Busch) went to go pass the 42 (Kyle Larson), and it kept my run going, all the way up to second.”

But second was also where the run stopped.

“It was a good way to start off the year,” Blaney said. “Stinks to be so close. But I think that’s good momentum for our team, to be good at the beginning of the day, get some damage and be able to rally for a good finish.”

Michael Waltrip Finishes Eighth in Final Daytona 500

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series NASCAR NASCAR Wire Service Track News
Michael Waltrip, driver of the #15 Aaron’s Toyota, walks on the grid during qualifying for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series 59th Annual DAYTONA 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 19, 2017 in Daytona Beach, Florida.Photo – Cliff Hawkins/Getty Image

Michael Waltrip didn’t have the fastest car in Sunday’s Daytona 500, but he managed to avoid the prolific multicar wrecks that peppered the first 150 laps of the race.

And when he took the checkered flag, Waltrip was eighth in his 30th and final trip around Daytona International Speedway in NASCAR’s most important race.

“Yeah, it’s going to be a great memory to have a top-ten,” Waltrip said. “I had so many times I was in the middle of a crash and just missed it. So you do a good job, and you get lucky—both. At the end, I just lost the draft, and that’s unfortunate, because I was able to weave my way past people.

“I had a really, really good handling car. I’m thankful that I survived, and I’m thankful for being able to run up front, and I’m happy about the finish. I’m ready for it to be my last one, so it’s going to be a good one to remember it by.”

Patient Kurt Busch Wins Wild Daytona 500—Without Looking Back

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series NASCAR NASCAR Wire Service Track News

His car damaged in a wreck on the backstretch and held together with tape, Kurt Busch grabbed the lead on the final lap of the 59th Daytona 500 on Sunday and took the checkered flag in the Great American Race as a capstone to a checkered career that has trended upward since Busch joined Stewart-Haas Racing in 2014.

In a race that featured the first test of a new three-stage race format in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series—and featured enough twisted sheet metal to keep fabricators busy for a month—Busch surged to the front with a run around the outside when more than half the vehicles in an 11-car lead draft sputtered and ran short on fuel.

Having pushed other drivers to victory in the 500 on three previous occasions, Busch took the prize himself this time, finishing 0.228 seconds ahead of Ryan Blaney, who came from the rear of the lead pack on the final two laps. Continue reading →

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Daytona 500 Preview

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series NASCAR Track News Xfinity Series

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series team return to action for 500 miles over 200 laps in the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on Sunday, February 26, 2017.  FOX will start their coverage at 1 pm ET with a green flag around 2 pm ET and radio coverage on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

He’s Back. Dale Jr. Set To Return At Daytona

After missing the final 18 races of the 2016 season Dale Earnhardt Jr. returns to his No. 88 Chevrolet for Sunday’s 59th running of the DAYTONA 500.

Earnhardt, a two-time DAYTONA 500 winner, qualified second for Sunday’s race, a mere 0.002 seconds behind Chase Elliott. In 34 total starts at “The Birthplace of Speed,” he has four wins, 13 top fives and 19 top-tens. Continue reading →