Ryan Blaney wins Coke Zero 400 in four-wide photo finish after epic final lap at Daytona

Ryan Blaney started on the pole due to qualifying being canceled due to lightning. He had been putting together a string of strong finishes and races lately. It felt like a perfect storm for this win. But Blaney was largely absent from the front of this race after Stage 1.

A night race at Daytona that plays out like that? What more can you ask for? We had three lanes working during the race. There was enough chaos in the race to keep it all interesting. But things never got messy and frustrating to watch as a viewer.

Perhaps most importantly, this win for Blaney saved Alex Bowman. The Hendrick Motorsports driver is advancing to the NASCAR Playoffs on points. Had any of the next four cars won the race instead, Bowman would have lost out on the final playoff spot.

Ryan Blaney earns second win of 2025

This season, Ryan Blaney has clearly been the best Ford driver. He has had his fair share of problems. Like usual, he has been caught up in a lot of other people’s wrecks. He had three straight DNFs at one point this year.

But there was always speed in the 12 car. He led the most laps at Homestead. He had great runs at Texas and Kansas. The win at Nashville showed that he still had the ability to get it done. Then there was a rough patch again for a brief moment. P40, P12, and P36 from Atlanta, Chicago, and Sonoma. Since then, things have changed.

P8, P7, P4, P6, P3, and now a win. That has been the last six weeks for Blaney. The 12 team is peaking at the right time, and going into Darlington, Gateway, and Bristol, I think that there is more opportunity for this team to win and make noise early in the playoffs.

Ryan Blaney put it all together tonight. He also showed that perhaps the Daytona track and Next Gen car are starting to get along a bit more. The racing tonight was as interesting as it has been in the Next Gen era. Is that a sign of good things to come?