“Have a Sniff of F*cking Air”- Ryan Blaney’s Vegas Troubles Highlight Drivers’ Next Gen Car Struggles

Team Penske‘s only championship hope, Ryan Blaney, had a solid day in Vegas, but not as spectacular one as everyone would expect out of him at this point in the tournament. After finishing 6th, Blaney is now 7th in the rankings, 17 points below the cutline. And now, with the playoff bandwagon heading to another mile-and-a-half track, the #2 driver has to fight on two fronts to stay alive in the tournament.

Rattled by NASCAR’s disqualification after the sanctioning body denounced his finish in Vegas, Blaney is now caught in the headlights, left with no other option but to engage. He will have to fight two battles—one with the 36-car field and the other alongside his struggling race car.

Ryan Blaney’s championship hopes turn into woes as the driver gets explicit on the radio in Vegas

So far, NASCAR’s 2023 iteration of the Cup Series has been a hit or miss for the all-American manufacturer, Ford. While Chevrolet is at the top of their game, their rival has fallen out of grace and is now replaced by Toyota as the second-top manufacturer in points. Besides the occasional blitz like Blaney’s Coca-Cola 600 triumph and RFK Racing 3’s show of strength, the Fords are considerably back in consistency and performance.

As the playoff action heads to Miami for another mile-and-a-half race, the manufacturer’s hopes have shrunken down to two drivers: Ryan Blaney and RFK Racing’s Chris Buescher. To add insult to injury, Blaney’s Vegas run continued to woe the driver as the #2 Ford’s vulnerability was evident, prompting Blaney to lash out explicitly.

The Next-Gen platform and Ford don’t seem to blend together. While the Next-Gen layout is still being tested rigorously owing to its shortcomings in short-track racing, the Fords are having a hard time struggling in intermediate tracks where Toyota and Chevrolet are on a roll. NASCAR Race Hub’s radioactive segment showed a frustrated Blaney getting livid over his race car’s inability to gain speed.

“Have to run a full car length away from somebody to even have a sniff of f*cking air,” said the driver over the radio, relaying his obvious frustration to his team.

WATCH THIS STORY: Ryan Blaney’s championship hopes take a hit: A tale of two disqualifications 

NASCAR reversed the Ryan Blaney disqualification, giving the driver a brief respite

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As mentioned above, Blaney’s Vegas run at the mile-and-a-half track was solid but did not have anything to make it special for his fans. Instead, the scene grew even darker when dark clouds loomed over the driver in the form of NASCAR’s post-race inspection. The sanctioning body found a front shock that was not according to the permitted regulation, leaving no other option but to disqualify the driver and relegate him to the last spot.

Fortunately for him, the organization reversed its decision after officials found a problem with the template used for the post-race inspection. While the community found it odd for the organization to commit such a mistake, Blaney really dodged a bullet there as NASCAR reinstated his 6th-place finish.

READ MORE: Amidst NASCAR’s Vegas Gaffe, Ryan Blaney & Co Hand Roger Penske the Penultimate Honor

Now with 2 more races remaining, Blaney certainly needs to make major strides in his performance to close the 17-point gap separating him from the top 4.