Right when we thought we were going to get a clean Duels race, Ryan Blaney got hooked and sent into the wall. His car caught fire. Kyle Busch was blocked by William Byron and a chain reaction happened that only NASCAR can provide.
Multiple cars were involved in this incident. This looked like a wreck you only see on Sundays. For Blaney, it is the second hard hit into the wall at Daytona since the last race here in 2023.
An incredibly violent hit and after the car caught fire, Ryan Blaney exited as quickly as possible. Lots of torn-up cars here.
Ryan Blaney was not happy with Brad Keselowski after the wreck. From his perspective, Blaney felt Keselowski pushed too hard on Kyle Busch. Then Busch got into Byron. After that, everything just got messy.
You have to feel for BJ McLeod who was trying to earn his way into the race. He took damage to his left front in the aftermath of this. Nothing went right for this second of the Duels at Daytona. That does put Kaz Grala in the drivers seat, pun intended, to race his way into Sunday’s 500.
This hit looked just like that hit Blaney took in the regular season finale last year. Thank goodness for the SAFER Barrier. It still hurts, and it’s a massive wreck, but it helps.
Ryan Blaney, others going to backup cars
There are going to be a few teams that will have to use their backups on Sunday. That is the danger of the Duels at Daytona. You can have the best car on Thursday night and be in a different one on Sunday. While they don’t want to do it, Busch, Blaney, Herbst, and others will have to make the most of what they have.
Daytona is dangerous. It is not a race for the faint of heart. Even in the shorter Duel races. The Ford Mustangs have been fast this week, the new Dark Horse model is working well. This race had a few of those ponies get crushed.
When you see a car go into the wall the way Blaney did, it’s scary. Those hits have done more than injure drivers. However scary it was at first, it was thankfully, quickly over. Blaney remained alert, although you could hear pain in his voice as he talked on the radio.
Let’s not forget the AMR Safety Team. Those safety crew members got out there and made sure Ryan Blaney was pulled from the car safely. You combine a violent wreck with a big fire and things just get too dicey and risky. This could have a major impact on Sunday’s Daytona 500.
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