NASCAR: Blaney wins Daytona wreckfest, Reddick claims final playoff spot (Update)

The race winning No. 12 Team Penske Ford passed NASCAR‘s post-race inspection, thus confirming Ryan Blaney‘s victory.

The No. 17 Roush Fenway Racing Ford of Chris Buescher, however, was disqualified as it did not conform to the NASCAR rule specifications per the following rule: 20.3.3.3.b REAR SUB-FRAME ASSEMBLY; I-4 Track Bar Mounting Assembly. Buescher‘s second-place finish was altered to 40th, last in the 40-car field, as a result.

The results below have been updated accordingly.

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August 29, 2021 

In NASCAR on a superspeedway wreckfest, luck, not skill, determines the winner

The Coke Zero 400 NASCAR Cup race was a complete wreckfest, just as one would expect.

Getting a push from behind from Corey Lajoie on the final restart, Penske Ford driver Ryan Blaney was the luckiest of all to win in an overtime green-white checker crash that took out half the field.  And that was after all the other wrecks.

Chase Elliott and Matt DiBenedetto collided at the front of the pack, triggering ‘The Big One’ with three laps remaining.

Chris Buescher was 2nd also in a Ford while a lucky Bubba Wallace was handed third place after the seas parted in front of him.

Ryan Newman and Ryan Preece rounded out the top-5.

Blaney’s Daytona wins caps an impressive summer run that is good enough to move him into second place in the Playoff standings – 28 behind Larson – heading into next week’s Playoff opener at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway.

Martin Truex Jr. and Kyle Busch are ranked third and fourth in the Playoff re-set, followed by 2020 NASCAR Cup Series champion Chase Elliott, Alex Bowman, Hamlin and William Byron. Joey Logano, who led a race best 37 laps Saturday but finished 24th, is seeded ninth, followed by his Team Penske teammate Brad Keselowski, Kurt Busch, Christopher Bell, this year’s Daytona 500 winner Michael McDowell, Aric Almirola, Reddick and Kevin Harvick.

“Got good momentum,” Blaney said smiling. “Nice to make it three in a row. We’ll see.”

Bubba Wallace, who led eight laps late in the race, finished second – his best result of the 2021 season. Ryan Newman, Ryan Preece and Tyler Reddick rounded out the top five; a season best for Newman and Preece as well.

Haley was sixth, followed by Alex Bowman, who won the Xfinity Series race earlier in the afternoon. Chase Elliott, B.J. McLeod and Josh Bilicki rounded out the top 10. It was McLeod’s first top-10 finish in 76 NASCAR Cup Series starts.

The 10-race elimination style NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs begin with next Sunday’s Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway (6 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Kevin Harvick is the defending race winner. Martin Truex Jr. won at Darlington this spring.

1st Ryan Blaney

For years Ryan Blaney told me, I don’t want to be a guy who wins one race a year. He’s done it in back-to-back weeks. This multiple win thing is working out for you these days, isn’t it?

RYAN BLANEY: Yeah, how about that? That was a lot of fun. Gosh, we just barely missed that wreck. Got to lineup on the front row, got a good push by the 7.

You never know how the end of these things is going to play out. Down the back, you don’t know what lane is getting a bigger run. I guess someone got tangled up over there. Hopefully everyone is okay.

So cool. Second win of the year with Bodyarmor on the car, win at Daytona, everybody here. Thank you guys for coming. Really special. It’s been a fun two weeks.

How about that final restart that these fans here at Daytona were treated to, you and Buescher dueling it out for the final spot?

RYAN BLANEY: Yeah, the biggest thing is just getting the push, right, just trying to get a good push. Corey LaJoie gave me a good push two weeks in a row, gotten really good pushes on restarts, able to win the race, so thanks for that.

No, it really all started with the 7 giving me he a good push, then trying to hold off the 7 and Kevin and a couple other cars, 17. Awesome win for Bodyarmor, Menards, Advance Auto Parts, Ford. Looking forward to next week.

What about the next week, the momentum the 12 team comes into the Playoffs with?

RYAN BLANEY: Yeah, got good monument. Nice to make it three in a row. We’ll see.

2nd Chris Buescher (Later Disqualified)

Chris Buescher winds up second. When we talked earlier in the week he said, I put myself in position to win these races, I haven’t made the blocks I needed to. Were you making the right moves to be able to win this race?

CHRIS BUESCHER: Yeah, all but the last one I guess. I think that was what we had to do, we had to be more aggressive on the blocking side. We’ve been aggressive with making moves, not protecting them. We did that today.

Back bumper, this thing, it’s rough, I know that. It’s just become a part of this speedway race. The more film you go back and watch the more I realize that’s where we’re getting beat.

I want to say thank you. It hurts. This one stings a lot. At the same time appreciate everybody at RFR. Awesome weekend for Fifth Third Bank announcing they’re going to come back on board with Roush for the next five years. Last time they made an announcement, we won. Want to get that one for so many different reasons.

To miss that Playoff spot by one spot, that’s a tough ending to a day. Proud of this group. Proud of the car we brought. I’m sure I’ll play it back and find something else different again. Top line wasn’t as organized on that start. The bottom, they were digging. We were fortunate to get back to second.

That hurts.

A lot of debate about the bottom line or top line. You chose the top line. How many times will you replay that restart and think what could you have done differently?

CHRIS BUESCHER: Yeah, I’d take the bottom this time, right, if I had to go back and look at it (smiling)?

I think we watched the top work well. To get in line, drop in, have that materialize, then go. I thought we got the initial jump well. Just didn’t have the help behind us to push us beyond that front row and get in front of the 12.

At the end of the day I’m glad to see another Ford in Victory Lane. That part is cool. Man, I wanted it to be us. Really good finish. Glad to see Ryan in the top five right there with us as well.

Just a little pissed off that we missed it by that close, that tight a margin, right?

3rd now 2nd Bubba Wallace

Bubba Wallace finishes third here at Daytona. Needed a win to get in the Playoffs. You were up there. What did you need to go your way?

BUBBA WALLACE: I don’t know, that last restart our car felt slow, sluggish. The seas parted. When that wreck happened, I stayed in it, came out third. Not what we needed. Bummer.

Solid day. I mean, we led some laps. This is the best I’ve kept a speedway car clean. Just some nose damage. Thanks to Columbia. I gave them a good run.

I’m a little frustrated. I’m the one that gets called out for not working with teammates, and I’m the one that gets left hanging. That’s the reason why Ford is in Victory Lane, because they always work together.

Unfortunate-tempo, but we wanted to win. I was the most prepared I’d ever been for this speedway stuff, and third.

Your first year of 23XI. Not in the Playoffs. What would be a success for you at the end of the year?

BUBBA WALLACE: 17th in points. That’s what we want to do. Just continue to climb from here. Appreciate everybody that is a part of this program. A fun regular season figuring out this team with 23XI. Toyota jumping onboard, being a part of it, taking me back under their wing. All of our partners, DoorDash, Columbia, DoorDash, Dr. Pepper, McDonald’s. It just stings.

Happy for Ryan, though. We’ll celebrate a little bit tonight.

Race Results (Updated No. 17 Disqualified)