Chris Buescher‘s win at Daytona has finalized the final 16 drivers for the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. It also rounds off the incredible purple patch that the Fords have shown in the final stages of the regular season. Buescher especially brought a breath of freshness, which has now ended up with him having three wins.

However, another Ford-supplied team, Team Penske, was hoping to get a third driver into the playoffs in the form of Austin Cindric after Joey Logano and Ryan Blaney. But all’s not done yet for the Roger Penske-owned team.

The 2022 season was a testament to their abilities as an organization after Logano clinched the championship. Although they hope to replicate a championship-winning performance from Logano or his teammate in the #12, Blaney, a particular NASCAR insider, believes that history has suggested otherwise.

NASCAR insiders are still unmoved by Team Penske and Ryan Blaney

The NASCAR journalist duo of Jeff Gluck and Jordan Bianchi discuss how the elimination races could unfold. Their discussion includes the record of drivers in previous iterations of the playoffs and how they developed this season. As their conversation moves, Gluck sparks curiosity about the chances of a Team Penske driver on such a competitive list of drivers.

Bianchi stated, “They’re good, I mean if they’re both very capable drivers. The one thing I’ll say about Blaney, and it’s the elephant in the room, is he, that team, in the playoffs, have made a lot of mistakes.”

Blaney faced a lot of heat from fans and experts alike for his mistakes, potentially costing him a shot at the title. Qualifying P6 in the final 8 drivers, he failed to get himself into the ultimate round of the season. Bianchi highlights the same as he claims,

“A year ago at Homestead and Las Vegas, Blaney should have had top-three, four, five finishes. He does those and he finishes where he should have finished, he goes on to the championship four, but he made self-induced mistakes that were just inexcusable, and it cost them.

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Well, you’ve seen that happen the year prior at Kansas and so he has got to get over that. You can’t be riddled with mistakes and that’s the big thing about Blaney.”

Blaney grabbed the win at Charlotte this year to make it into the NASCAR playoffs. However, except for the win, he has not had much to celebrate this year, unable to run as strong as some of the title-contender cars.

“He continually falls short”, Bianchi’s been let down by Blaney time after time

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At Daytona, Ryan Blaney had a different outing than he’d expected. While Ford drivers dominated the race, even making up for four places in the top 5, Blaney had a dismal finish in 36th after being involved in the multi-car wreck on the 95th lap. Fortunately, he hasn’t suffered any injuries and has been released after an evaluation.

However, with an average finish position of 15.846, things look tough for him in the playoffs unless he decides to get serious. Bianchi voices his disappointment over choosing Blaney every time prior to this one as one of the favorites to go into the final four.

He claimed, “I mean, I’m purposely not picking Blaney for my championship four because I feel like I pick him every year, and he just continually falls short. It’s like, when is he going to get over that hump, and we are still waiting?

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Apart from the win, Blaney has had four top-5 finishes and 12 top-10 finishes this season. Changes need to be made in their approach if they are to challenge for the title. Some more composure and fewer blunders in decision-making from the driver would also do the #12 team a world of good.

Joey Logano, on the other hand, has not had much of an indifferent season either. In spite of gaining form in the initial stages, they have not found much success as the season progresses, and he has eventually voiced his displeasure at it earlier. As for Team Penske, considering these two are their only options to defend their title, Roger Penske and the company have a big task on their hands.