Ryan Blaney’s teammate says Kyle Larson's “brutally honest” admission didn’t satisfy the 2023 NASCAR champion

Team Penske driver Austin Cindric has shared his views on the run-in between his teammate Ryan Blaney and Hendrick Motorsports icon Kyle Larson during last Sunday’s race at World Wide Technology Speedway. Named the Enjoy Illinois 300, the 240-lap event marked the second race of the 2025 playoffs.

Towards the end of Stage 2, Ryan Blaney, the 2023 Cup Series champion, got turned by Larson after the latter aggressively veered to the former’s inside. Although Blaney managed to bag a top-five finish after that, he was visibly confused. He even confronted Larson after the race was over.

Cindric reflected on the incident during the latest episode of the Door Bumper Clear podcast. Larson apologized for his actions, but it didn’t help Blaney.

“He'll (Larson) overdrive his car and make a mistake, but I don't... he's pretty brutally honest when it comes to things (like that), but if you're Ryan, that still doesn't satisfy things,” Cindric said (36:20 onwards).

Larson finished the race in 12th place, marking his second consecutive finish outside the top-10. Denny Hamlin won the race while the top five spots were rounded off by Chase Briscoe, Chase Elliott, Blaney, and Joey Logano.

Ryan Blaney is in a comfortable position entering next week’s race at Bristol with a 42-point cushion on the cutoff line. Named the Bass Pro Shops Night Race, the 500-lap event will be televised on the USA Network, with live radio updates on PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, 7:30 pm ET onwards.

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"I hope he understands that"- Kyle Larson opens up about his Gateway tango with Ryan Blaney

Ryan Blaney and Kyle Larson were battling for fifth when things went southward for them at the World Wide Technology Raceway. Blaney knew it was a mistake on Larson’s part and that it was unintentional, but he was the one who suffered the consequences.

Larson, who also sits in a solid spot 60 points above the cutline, took full responsibility for his actions that denied Blaney only a few stage points. Speaking with NBC Sports after the race, the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion said,

“I just told (Ryan Blaney) I messed up. I wasn’t meaning obviously to go in there and hit him. The lap before I had got in there and got inside of him, slid up, got to his door, got him tight, got to where I could race him down the frontstretch. I was just trying to do that again. I was a little further back into (Turn 3) than I was the lap before.”

“Just misjudged the point of where I wasn’t going to get next to him and tuck in. I just clipped him. Yeah, all on me. But wasn’t intentional at all. I hope he understands that,” he added.

Both drivers will face off again at Bristol this coming Saturday, September 13th. Both are vying for their second Cup Series title as well. If Blaney wins, it will mark Team Penske’s fourth straight championship win.