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Ryan Blaney has been one of the most hardworking cup drivers this season, accumulating valuable points. Before heading to Talladega last Sunday, Blaney hosted four back-to-back top-ten finishes, including two consecutive top-five finishes.
Following wonderful performances in his previous races, Ryan Blaney took the Talladega stage as the favorite to win. He had odds of +1000, +250 for a top-three finish, and +125 for a top-five finish.
However, things on the ground went against the odds masters after the favored driver failed to deliver, finishing in the 11th position. Well, Ryan has come out to explain why he didn't perform as expected.
Speaking to the press, Blaney said:
"You can’t pass anybody here anymore. It is hard to pass everywhere, but it is the same thing at speedways now. You can’t make a third lane. I don’t know what the problem is with it."
Ryan Blaney also had the same concern as Kyle Busch about not being able to form a third line, hence making the race slow. Despite disappointing the odds makers and fans who chose his shot, Ryan Blaney posted a commendable finish.
The No. 12 driver had a bumpy qualifying race, taking pole number 22, which meant he was going to work extra hard to sit in the top ten before the end of the race. He managed to stretch from the top 20 to run in the top 15 in the first stage.
Blaney posted on Twitter how satisfied he was, going from number 22nd to 11th.
How Ryan Blaney performed at NASCAR Geico 500 at Talladega Superspeedway
In the second stage, he was in and out of the top 10, trying to find his way to the lead position. Signs of hope began to emerge in stage three when he managed to take the lead for several laps while Bubba Wallace Jr. challenged him to take it away.
Seven laps to the victory line, Blaney was ranked 10th, with Erik Jones in first place and Larson trailing him. The final lap came unexpectedly as Jones got out of his lane to block Kyle Larson, opening a straight path for Ross Chastain.
Blaney's No. 12 Ford Mustang couldn't speed up and he ended up taking 11th position.
With 10 races down, Blaney has only recorded one disappointing finish in Las Vegas, the worst he has recorded since then is 18th.
He has the most top-ten finishes this season with six top-ten finishes, and three top-five finishes.
