In a race where the Fords proved to be the fastest at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Ryan Blaney took the victory in the opening of the second round of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs.
Blaney, driving his number 12 Mustang, led 116 laps, including the last 39, but had to defend against the attack of Josh Berry, who was very close before going off a turn.
Blaney secured the victory with a 0.937-second lead, achieving his third win of the season and the sixteenth of his career.
“Those were probably the 20 hardest laps I’ve driven,” said the Team Penske driver. “I was trying to manage and leave a little bit for Josh, but then he started closing in. I had to push it to the max to keep him at bay, trying new lines. It was a clean and good race. I appreciate Josh for not hitting me when he could have.”
Ryan BlaneyBlaney, seeking to reach the championship final for the third consecutive year, became the first driver to advance to one of the eight available positions in the third round of the playoffs.NASCAR Cup Series driver Ryan Blaney (12) jumps off his car after saluting fans after winning the Mobil 1 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.Josh Berry, whose Ford number 21 of Wood Brothers Racing has an alliance with Penske, recovered from a spin on lap 82 and rallied after being eliminated in the first round.
“It was an incredible day,” said Berry, who led 10 laps. “Congratulations to Ryan at the end. All of our cars were very strong, and Ryan did a great job there. Honestly, I was surprised I was able to hold him off at the end.”
Josh Berry
The Fords backed up their impressive performance in Saturday’s qualifying, where Penske star Joey Logano won the pole position, completing a sweep of the top three spots with Blaney and Berry. The same trio led 273 of 301 laps on Sunday.
William Byron was the highest-ranking Chevrolet driver, finishing in third place.
“It was a good day overall,” said Byron, who is the highest-ranked driver behind Blaney in the playoff standings, with two races remaining in the second round. “The Penske guys were super fast. I felt like they were in another dimension.”
Logano finished fourth after leading 147 laps in the No. 22 Ford. The Middletown, Connecticut native started from the pole for the first time at New Hampshire, which he considers his home track.
“[Blaney] was incredibly fast in practice, and he showed it again in the race,” Logano said. “Obviously, we got a lot of points today, so we did what we had to do, but I’d rather win. That’s the greed in me, especially when it’s at home.”
Joey LoganoAfter qualifying in 27th place, the last among the 12 playoff drivers, Chase Elliott finished in fifth place.
Christopher Bell finished sixth as the highest-ranking Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing, which remained undefeated in the first round of the playoffs.
Kyle Larson finished seventh, and Ross Chastain was ninth, with the playoff drivers taking eight of the top ten spots on the 1.058-mile oval.
Incidents between teammates
The race became tense for Joe Gibbs Racing on lap 110, when Denny Hamlin spun his teammate Ty Gibbs into the wall in Turn 2 while they were competing for 11th place.
Gibbs, the only JGR driver who didn’t qualify for the playoffs, seemed to be hindering the progress of his teammates Hamlin and Christopher Bell when the incident occurred.
“Does Ty know we’re racing for a championship?” Hamlin said on the radio to his team shortly before the contact. “What (expletive) is he doing?”.
Denny HamlinAfter the accident, Hamlin questioned whether the grandson of team owner Joe Gibbs was receiving preferential treatment. “Are they afraid to talk to him? That’s what I feel,” Hamlin said over the radio to his team. “They’re afraid of him.”
Ty Gibbs briefly returned to the track before being forced to enter the garage with damage to his Camry. He finished in 34th place and refused to speak about the incident or what Hamlin said when directly asked about both.
“It’s unfortunate, but I’m excited to race next week and I’m looking forward to it,” said Gibbs, the 2022 Xfinity Series champion who is still winless after 117 Cup Series races.
Ty GibbsAfter finishing in 12th place, Hamlin had a post-race conversation with Joe Gibbs and JGR’s competition director, Chris Gabehart, before speaking with the media.
“It’s very unfortunate that they spun him there, and obviously the contact came from us”, Hamlin said. “I have no comment other than that. We’ll fix it and everything, but we’ll see how it goes. But, honestly, it’s unfortunate that the contact happened”.
Denny Hamlin
After dominating the first round with three consecutive victories, Joe Gibbs Racing surprisingly faltered in the first stage at New Hampshire, where the team had won the last three Cup races and six consecutive stages.
The team failed to score any points in the first stage on Sunday, as Hamlin, Bell, and Chase Briscoe finished outside the top 10 in the 70-lap segment.
The second race of the second round of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs is Sunday at Kansas Speedway. Kyle Larson won at the 1.5-mile track on May 11.
