Is Ryan Blaney the most prolific speedway driver in NASCAR today?

The question of whether Ryan Blaney is the most prolific speedway driver in NASCAR has come up after his recent win at Daytona. To answer the question, top names like Denny Hamlin and William Byron are also a factor in consideration.

However, Ryan Blaney has the strongest case right now. His recent wins on major speedways, his 2023 championship, and his consistent results put him ahead of the rest in 2025. He is not just winning races but also finishing near the front almost every week.

Blaney won the 2025 Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona with a last-lap move, finishing 0.031 seconds ahead of Daniel Suarez. This was his second career summer race win at Daytona, his first being in 2021. With this result, he entered the playoffs on the back of six straight top-10 finishes.

At Talladega, Blaney has three wins: 2019, 2020, and 2023. Two of those came in photo finishes of less than 0.01 seconds. He has also won the inaugural Cup race at Iowa Speedway in 2024, adding another superspeedway to his record. Overall, he has seven speedway wins.

In the Daytona 500, Blaney has come close but has not won yet. He finished second in both 2017 and 2020. In 2018, he led 114 laps, the most that year, but finished seventh after late contact. In his most recent performance in the race, on February 17, 2025, he clinched a 7th-place finish.

Ryan Blaney is also the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Champion. He has made the Championship 4 in both 2023 and 2024, proving he can compete across full seasons, not just individual races. As of today, he has 15 career Cup Series triumphs.

NASCAR Cup Series driver Ryan Blaney (12) celebrates winning the Cup Series Championship at Phoenix Raceway in Avondale on Nov. 5, 2023 - Source: Imagn

In 2024, he won three races, including Pocono and Iowa. In 2025, he has already won twice, with Daytona being the latest. His consistency in the closing stages of the regular season makes him a key contender for the Championship title.

Denny Hamlin has 58 career wins and three Daytona 500 victories. He is widely respected for his speedway record, though he has never won a championship. William Byron, on the other hand, has won back-to-back Daytona 500s in 2024 and 2025 and was the 2025 regular season champion.

While both Hamlin and Byron are strong, Ryan Blaney’s performance, combining recent speedway wins, playoff performances, and his 2023 championship, places him ahead right now. His ability to close out races in tight situations is unmatched in the current field. All factors considered, Blaney is currently the strongest and most proven on superspeedways.

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Ryan Blaney’s Daytona Win and What It Means for the Playoffs

Ryan Blaney’s win at the 2025 Coke Zero Sugar 400 ended the NASCAR regular season with one of the closest finishes of the year. Driving for Team Penske, Blaney made a final move in a four-wide battle and edged Daniel Suarez by 0.031 seconds at the line.

The result was his second win of 2025 and the fifteenth of his Cup career. It also denied several drivers a chance to make the playoffs by keeping them winless for the season. After the race, Blaney explained the finish on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio,

“And tonight, it was one of those things where everything just kind of flowed correctly for us, you know, and we're able to just kind of make moves that made sense, and especially at the end. And so yeah, it just worked out, and nice to be back. I can look forward to starting the playoffs next week.”

Blaney worked with Cole Custer on the last restart. They moved to the top lane at the right moment, and the drafting push from the latter helped Blaney clear the field. That move gave him the space to hold on in the final sprint. The Daytona result also extended Ryan Blaney’s streak to six straight top-10 finishes.