Ryan Blaney finishes 11th in missed opportunity at North Wilkesboro

Ryan Blaney might as well have been Odysseus going through hell and back to get home to Ithaca in Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series race at North Wilkesboro Speedway. 

Blaney was awarded the pole via the NASCAR rulebook after qualifying was rained out on Saturday, but had to go to the rear of the field at the start of the race for an unapproved adjustment. 

But Blaney, who is known for being able to carve his way through the field, climbed up to 12th by the end of Stage 1 and finished eighth in Stage 2. He was running inside the top five when the final round of green flag pit stops began and was in line for a huge points day. 

Penalty derails Ryan Blaney's day

But that was when the 2023 Cup Series champion incurred a costly pit road speeding penalty, which forced him to mount another charge through the field. While he clawed his way back to 11th, it was a disappointing result on a night where his Penske teammate, Joey Logano, dominated the race. 

More importantly, Blaney lost ground in the battle for the points lead. He's now 87 points back of leader Denny Hamlin, though he did gain ground on second-place Tyler Reddick, who is 68 points behind Hamlin and only 19 ahead of Blaney.