What is the last thing you would expect in a playoff race? The reigning Cup Series champion crashing out in the very first lap? Of course not! But that’s exactly what transpired when Ryan Blaney shocked his fans when he got involved in a wreck at Watkins Glen when drivers were just warming up. Corey LaJoie and Kyle Busch contacted and caused the incident as a result of which Blaney’s car incurred heavy damage. Blaney redirected his anger at a NASCAR rule in frustration.

The Team Penske driver attained a disbarment from re-entering the racetrack after an attempt at repairs. However, a NASCAR official recently cleared up that controversy. He shared how authorities were merely following an old rule implemented for safety.

Ryan Blaney’s complaint loses legitimacy after textbook rule comes to light

Several strategies went awry for the playoff grid at The Glen. The tricky turns or ‘esses’ and heavy braking zones of the racetrack stuttered the pace of stellar drivers like Kyle Larson. Goodyear’s tire fall-off experiment did not work out – Christopher Bell bashed the tire brand for this. But Ryan Blaney probably drew the worst hand in the series of unfortunate events at the Glen when he crashed out. When NASCAR enforced the Damaged Vehicle Policy (DVP), he was furious. “Give us a chance to fix it. How are they going to dictate if we’re done or not?”

A valid concern that stems from a passionate driver. But Cup Series managing director Brad Moran recently explained to Sirius XM NASCAR that the officials’ hands were tied as they were simply following the rulebook. Ryan Blaney’s team had already towed the car to the garage and hence, could not come back to the race track.

He explained: “If you are in an incident and you’re on the DVP, you cannot drive the vehicle back to your pit stall. You are out of the race at that point. If you drive it into the garage or behind the wall, at that point you’re out of the race. You have to go to the care center. So it’s a variety of reasons over efficiency, over safety, but all the industry in collaboration put this together in 2017.”

Ryan Blaney stirred up controversy following his mishap, as fans rallied to bash NASCAR for not allowing him another chance. But Moran further explained that the No. 12 Ford incurred so much damage that the prospect was hopeless, anyway. “So it was totally unfortunate. I totally get Blaney’s frustration. But he was involved in that incident with the 6, which did end up busting the front suspension or steering, I believe, and it was the end of it all. And that would be consistent with what we’ve been doing since 2017.” 

Even Denny Hamlin sided with NASCAR’s call in this situation as he prioritized the invoking of rules rather than bending them.

“Kneejerk” reaction doesn’t mean we should bend rules, says Denny Hamlin

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A part of Ryan Blaney’s argument involved tires. He argued that NASCAR allows teams to tow back cars to pit road with flat tires and send them back out on track. However, Brad Moran stressed that is a totally different situation. Called the “flat tire recovery program”, it allows drivers with flat tires a chance to continue. Even Denny Hamlin chose to oppose Blaney, despite his own series of wrecks and spins at the Glen. He reasoned that if the team had fixed the problem in two minutes, then Blaney’s argument would have carried more weight.

But since the No. 12 Ford incurred a steering issue, the repair prospect seemed a little bleak. So Hamlin sanctioned NASCAR’s decision to follow rules and save the team’s repair costs as well. “I mean, they went by the rules. I’m not saying he’s wrong and NASCAR’s right, I’m just saying they went by the rules…What they’re trying to avoid is that we were spending as race teams lots of money on crash carts, repair parts…It can cause a caution from debris or whatever it might be. So, it was one of the cost-cutting things that got brought on years ago. By the rule, it’s the right thing. I mean, should we kneejerk reaction just change it because there’s an uproar? Absolutely not.”

Evidently, Ryan Blaney’s argument lost steam as both NASCAR and Hamlin provided solid reasons. Hopefully, the 2023 Cup champion can steer clear of mishaps in the other playoff races.