Ryan Blaney has done it again.
For the second season in a row, Blaney piloted his No. 12 Team Penske Ford to victory in the Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway to make the Championship 4. After a messy and controversial finish, William Byron usurped Christopher Bell for the final Championship 4 spot on points.
Though the biggest storylines took place on the track, there was a fair share of pit road drama for both playoff and non-playoff drivers. Let’s take a look at four key drivers and how pit penalties and strategy shaped their days.
Ryan Blaney
At first, it might seem odd to have the race winner here, but Blaney’s rally to the checkered flag was not without pit road adversity.
On lap 264, following the conclusion of stage two, Blaney pitted from the second position. However, he exited pit road back in sixth following a slow 12.5-second pit stop from his pit crew, hitting the tire out of the hands of a tire carrier for Carson Hocevar in the process.
The No. 12 team kept it clean the rest of the way, and Blaney made the most of his long-run speed to get back to the front and pass Chase Elliott with 14 laps remaining to punch his ticket back to Phoenix Raceway.
Chase Elliott
Speaking of Elliott, the driver of the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet entered Martinsville in an almost certain must-win situation.
Early on, Elliott positioned himself well to do just that, starting the race from the outside pole. Elliott then backed up his qualifying speed by winning stage one.
On lap 186, Elliott’s day took a detour with a slow pit stop under caution. Pitting from the second position, the No. 9 crew had issues on the right rear tire, putting the jack down before it was fully tightened. The jackman had to go back to the right side to jack the car up to finish getting the lug nut fastened on the right rear, costing Elliott numerous spots.
That mistake put No. 9 crew chief Alan Gustafson in a position where he to get creative with pit strategy to get Elliott back in contention. Gustafson brought Elliott down pit road on lap 351, early in the green-flag cycle in hopes of catching a caution. The yellow flag came on lap 398 and Elliott was back in the picture.
Gustafson’s strategy call nearly worked to perfection as Elliott hung on to finish second behind Blaney, just one spot shy of the chance to become a two-time Cup Series champion.